What makes texts clear and informative for children? The role of lexical concreteness and specificity

Research on text readability has traditionally focused on structural indicators of linguistic complexity, while less attention has been given to how lexical properties influence readers’ subjective perceptions of text quality, particularly during development. This study investigates the role of conceptual concreteness and lexical specificity in shaping children’s perceptions of textual clarity and informativeness. Children aged 9–12 read short texts manipulated along these two dimensions and evaluated them on 5-point Likert scales measuring clarity (ease of understanding and absence of confusion) and informativeness (perceived quantity and relevance of information). Mixed-effects models reveal that concreteness strongly predicts perceived clarity, regardless of age. In contrast, specificity primarily affected perceived informativeness, increasing judgments of informational richness and relevance, with stronger effects among older children.