[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-578006-105":59,"doc-detail-578006-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","proposing-the-5ps-typology-of-distractors-for-efl-multiple-choice-reading-comprehension-tests","Proposing the 5Ps Typology of Distractors for EFL Multiple-Choice Reading Comprehension Tests","","This paper examines the role of distractors in constructing multiple-choice questions (MCQs) for EFL reading comprehension assessment. Distractors are treated as essential for distinguishing levels of mastery and revealing students’ comprehension processes. The study evaluates how constructive distractor design affects educational objectives and the reliability and validity of MCQs. It introduces a 5Ps typology: plausible, peripheral, polyconceptual, prejudicial, and pragmatic, showing how different types address specific conceptual and linguistic challenges, strengthening assessment quality and learning.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":20,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/proposing-the-5ps-typology-of-distractors-for-efl-multiple-choice-reading-comprehension-tests/578006/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/proposing-the-5ps-typology-of-distractors-for-efl-multiple-choice-reading-comprehension-tests/578006.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Eliana","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-07","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":44},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What problem does the paper address about MCQs in EFL reading assessments?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"It focuses on how distractors are constructed in MCQs and why distractors matter for distinguishing different degrees of student mastery in reading comprehension.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"What are the five types in the proposed 5Ps typology of distractors?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"The typology identifies plausible, peripheral, polyconceptual, prejudicial, and pragmatic distractors.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"How are constructive distractors expected to affect assessment outcomes?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"Constructive distractors are argued to improve the effectiveness of MCQs and enhance the equity, efficiency, educational quality, and assessment reliability and validity.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},578006,1792461010,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":19,"category_name":20,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":44,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":44,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},4398048949847,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/400002536579ef2da7f?_k=1778318612642679267","Proposing the 5Ps Typology of Distractors for EFL Multiple-Choice  \nReading Comprehension Tests  \nPatsawut Sukserm 1  \n1 Language Institute, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand  \nCorrespondence: Patsawut Sukserm, Language Institute, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. E-mail: [patsawut.s@chula.ac.th](patsawut.s@chula.ac.th)  \nReceived: October 7, 2025  \ndoi:10.5539/hes.v16n1p350  \nAccepted: January 28, 2026 Online Published: February 2, 2026 URL: [https://doi.org/10.5539/hes.v16n1p350](https://doi.org/10.5539/hes.v16n1p350)  \nAbstract  \nThis paper outlines the importance of distractors in the construction and multiple-choice questions (MCQs) in EFL educational assessment. Distractors are integral to understanding student comprehension and differentiating among varying degrees of mastery. The purpose is to examine the impact of constructive distractors on educational objectives, effectiveness, and the assessment reliability and validity of multiple-choice questions. The study proposes the 5Ps typology of distractors, identifying five distinct types of distractors—plausible, peripheral, polyconceptual, prejudicial, and pragmatic—and demonstrates the diverse types of distractors that can be utilized to tackle specific conceptual and linguistic hurdles of the respondents. The use of different types of distractors in various assessment contexts is evidenced by the examples. These reinforce the assertion that distractors can enhance the assessment and learning function of MCQs. This seeks to enhance the equity, efficiency and educational quality of MCQs in assessment.  \nKeywords: distractors, multiple-choice questions, reading comprehension tests  \n1. Importance of Reading Comprehension for Assessing Language Skills  \nScholars point to reading comprehension as one of the most important components of the assessments of the language as it involves the understanding and interpreting of texts (Bitew et al., 2024; Bruggink et al., 2022; Ma & Zhao, 2025) . One aspect that examines the interaction between the reader and the text describes reading as a‘psycholinguistic guessing game’ which reinforces the multifaceted nature of reading (Goodman, 1967) . This perspective of reading tends to be ignored; however, it highlights the importance of understanding word meanings in relation to the context in which they are situated. In addition, Alderson (2000) discusses the significance of reading comprehension and reinforces the importance of reading as a skill in the EFL field. These perspectives show reading as a powerful tool in and beyond an academic environment.  \nEducational reading tests are designed to evaluate how students process and understand various pieces of information (Bruggink et al., 2022) . As Grabe (2009) explains, these tests assess not just the level of understanding, but the test taker’s ability to formulate inferences and engage in evaluative reasoning. Reading tests illustrate understanding beyond the test taker’s linguistic competencies; they reflect the test taker’s cognitive competencies. Carrell (1983) also enriched the understanding of reading in terms of the techniques employed by readers, such as skimming and scanning. Therefore, understanding these techniques is important for educators as they can teach these techniques to students (Agustin et al., 2023) .  \nAs a result, the ability to process and understand text is a crucial aspect of any language assessment because it serves the purpose of developing language competencies along with other cognitive and communicative competencies of the learners.  \n2. The Role of Multiple-choice Questions (MCQs) in Reading Assessment  \nBecause multiple-choice questions (MCQs) measure a significant range of understanding skills in assessment including advanced thinking (Liu et al., 2023), they have a key role in assessment. For Osterlind (1998), MCQshave a particular advantage in that they can be scored in an unbiased way which provides prompt feedback that benefits ","cbCaicC5NrFCLj8g","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaicC5NrFCLj8g","pdf",206533,"English","# Importance of Reading Comprehension for Assessing Language Skills\n# The Role of Multiple-choice Questions (MCQs) in Reading Assessment\n# Distractors and their Significance in MCQs","[{\"question\":\"What problem does the paper address about MCQs in EFL reading assessments?\",\"answer\":\"It focuses on how distractors are constructed in MCQs and why distractors matter for distinguishing different degrees of student mastery in reading comprehension.\"},{\"question\":\"What are the five types in the proposed 5Ps typology of distractors?\",\"answer\":\"The typology identifies plausible, peripheral, polyconceptual, prejudicial, and pragmatic distractors.\"},{\"question\":\"How are constructive distractors expected to affect assessment outcomes?\",\"answer\":\"Constructive distractors are argued to improve the effectiveness of MCQs and enhance the equity, efficiency, educational quality, and assessment reliability and validity.\"}]","Proposing the 5Ps Typology of Distractors for EFL Multiple-Choice Reading Comprehension Tests | PDF",1792032893,23]