Abstract
Individual differences in drawing bridging inferences during text comprehension were examined. We measured reader differences in working memory capacity, using the reading span task, and in access to relevant knowledge, using Potts and Peterson’s (1985) integration task. The dependent measure of greatest concern was answer time about facts posited to validate the bridging inference. Reading span and access were negligibly correlated, an outcome that supports their independence. Answer times were lower both for high reading span and high-access readers. In addition, readers who were either high on both reader traits or low on both traits exhibited qualitatively different inference effects from the typical pattern. It is proposed that knowledge access during comprehension is facilitated by the extraction of integrated situation models from text and that it is individuals with efficient reading processes who can construct these models.
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This research was supported by Grant OGP9800 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to the first author. The data were presented at the meeting of the Psychonomic Society, St. Louis, November 1994.
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Singer, M., Ritchot, K.F.M. The role of working memory capacity and knowledge access in text inference processing. Mem Cogn 24, 733–743 (1996). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03201098
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03201098