ABSTRACT
The inferences that are made during reading stimulate intriguing questions for research. Some inference processes seem to be automatic and effortless yet they yield quite complex kinds of information. Other inference processes seem to be dependent on the goals, strategies, and contextual situations of the readers. Some inferences are concerned with the relatively small units of reading represented by words; others are concerned with much larger units like event structures or story outlines. Since about 1970, all of these kinds of inferences have been the subject of investigation, and all of these investigations have shared a common problem: finding empirical measures that can be used to investigate the processes and the products of inference. Different investigators have used different measures, but all the measures have eventually come under criticism, and as a result, progress in understanding inference has been less than impressive.
