Eye movements during processing of text requiring bridging inferences in adolescents with higher functioning autism spectrum disorders: A preliminary investigation Frank J. Sansosti *, Christopher Was, Katherine A. Rawson, Brittany L. Remaklus Kent State University, United States 1. Introduction Typically, though not always, children with higher functioning autism spectrum disorders (HFASD), demonstrate average ability for word and non-word decoding and text reading skills. Despite these competencies, reading comprehension often remains an area of particular difficulty. In a study investigating the range of reading skills of children with ASD, Nation, Clarke, Wright, and Williams (2006) found that nearly 75% of their sample demonstrated below average comprehension skills, a finding that mirrored previous literature (e.g., O’Conner & Klein, 2004). However, Nation and colleagues also identified substantial heterogeneity among students across all of the reading tests administered, highlighting that the nature of poor reading comprehension among children with HFASD remains a complex process and may fail for a variety of reasons. One possible explanation for poor reading comprehension is that children with HFASD have difficulty determining and applying relevant contextual information while reading text. As such, children with HFASD may remember the details of a passage (e.g., the names of all the characters) yet be unable to state the main idea or purpose of a story. In one study of inferential processing, Norbury and Bishop (2002) demonstrated that although children with HFASD were able to construct bridging inferences successfully, their inferences often were inappropriate to the story’s context. For example, children with HFASD demonstrated an attempt to build inferences, but the inferences reflected their own experiences rather than Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders 7 (2013) 1535–1542 ARTICLE INFO Article history: Received 3 April 2013 Received in revised form 30 August 2013 Accepted 3 September 2013 Keywords: Autism spectrum disorders Eye-tracking Eye-movements Bridging inferences Text comprehension ABSTRACT In this study, 18 children with higher functioning autism (HFASD) and 16 controls read short, two-sentence passages that necessitated a bridging inference for comprehension and responded to a general knowledge question that was either primed or unprimed by the inference. We measured mean reading times and correct responses to knowledge questions, as well as recorded the eye-movements of the participants while reading. Analysis of reaction times to general knowledge questions were faster for questions in relevant context as compared to those in irrelevant contexts, suggesting that children with HFASD were able to build the bridging inferences necessary for comprehension. Eye- movement data revealed that children with HFASD spent more time fixating on text, made more fixations overall, and made more regressions (i.e., moving backward within the text) while reading than did controls. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are offered. ß 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 330 672 0059; fax: +1 330 672 2512. E-mail address: fsansost@kent.edu (F.J. Sansosti). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders Journal homepage: http://ees.elsevier.com/RASD/default.asp 1750-9467/$ – see front matter ß 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rasd.2013.09.001