Investigating the Correlation Between Vocabulary Mastery and Narrative Reading Comprehension Among EFL University Students

Abstract

Although previous studies have reported a positive relationship between vocabulary mastery and reading comprehension, less attention has been given to the relationship between selected semantic and contextual aspects of vocabulary knowledge and narrative reading comprehension among Indonesian EFL university students. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between students’ vocabulary mastery and reading comprehension of narrative texts among fourth-semester students in the English Education Department at Universitas Islam Malang. A quantitative correlational design was employed with 29 eligible students, representing the entire accessible population, through total sampling. Data were collected using multiple-choice tests measuring vocabulary mastery through synonyms, antonyms, contextual meaning, and word classification, and reading comprehension through main ideas, explicit and implicit information, contextual word meaning, and text structure. Descriptive statistics showed that the mean vocabulary mastery score was 68.62 (Fair), while the mean reading comprehension score was 83.10 (Very Good). Pearson’s product-moment correlation analysis revealed a statistically significant positive correlation between vocabulary mastery and reading comprehension (r = 0.398, p = 0.032; 95% CI [0.037, 0.667]), indicating a weak-to-moderate relationship. The findings suggest that higher vocabulary mastery is associated with better reading comprehension, although the correlation does not imply a causal relationship. The study provides additional empirical evidence on the association between selected aspects of vocabulary knowledge and narrative reading comprehension among Indonesian EFL university learners and suggests the value of integrating contextual and semantic vocabulary activities into reading instruction.