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Related Experiment Videos

Connecting goals and actions during reading

J S Huitema1, S Dopkins, C M Klin

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst 01003.

Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition
|September 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary

Reading about a character's actions can bring back their previously stated goals, even when unrelated information is presented. This goal reactivation influences how quickly people process subsequent actions consistent or inconsistent with those goals.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Memory Retrieval

Background:

  • Understanding how readers maintain and retrieve information from text is crucial for comprehension.
  • Previous research suggests that goals influence text processing, but the persistence of goals despite intervening material is less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether reading about a character's actions can reactivate goals stated earlier in a text.
  • To determine if this reactivation occurs even when the goals are backgrounded by unrelated information.

Main Methods:

  • Three experiments were conducted where participants read passages describing a protagonist's goals and subsequent actions.
  • Reading times for actions consistent or inconsistent with stated goals were measured.

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  • Intervening material varied, including unrelated text or information about a different goal.

    • Main Results:

    • Participants were slower to read actions inconsistent with a protagonist's previously stated goal compared to consistent actions.
    • Goal reactivation occurred even when intervening text did not relate to goal achievement or presented an alternative goal.
    • This effect persisted despite several lines of unrelated text.

    Conclusions:

    • Reading actions can reactivate previously stated goals, demonstrating robust memory retrieval during text comprehension.
    • Goal reactivation is resilient to intervening coherent text, suggesting goals remain active even when not immediately relevant.
    • This research highlights the dynamic nature of goal representation in readers' minds.