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ERIC Number: EJ1212343
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0163-853X
EISSN: N/A
Generating Predictive Inferences When Multiple Alternatives Are Available
Cranford, Edward A.; Moss, Jarrod
Discourse Processes: A Multidisciplinary Journal, v56 n4 p289-309 2019
The generation of predictive inferences may be difficult when a story leads to multiple possible consequences. The present study examined whether inferences are generated when the story implies two mutually exclusive consequences are nearly equally likely to occur. Experiment 1 used a word-naming task and showed that neither inference was activated when probed at 500 ms after the story, suggesting the alternative inference interfered with activation of the targeted inference. Experiment 2 used a contradictory reading paradigm and showed that reading time was slower when a sentence contradicted both inferences but not when it contradicted only one inference. These results imply that both inferences were generated but at a minimal level of activation so that they were not detected in a word-naming task. The results are discussed in the light of comprehension theories that could account for the representation of minimally encoded inferences.
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Mississippi
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A