• Discuss the Inferences and Assumptions Exercise. Identify and rationalize any underlying assumptions and inferences you made.

use the below to answer the question.

Inferences and Assumptions Exercise

The story below is modified from the original developed in 1955 by communication psychologist William V. Haney to help understand how human beings make inferences and assumptions from information that is available (Ayers, 2002). The exercise consists of a brief story and 11 statements about the story.

Read the following story:

A businessman had just turned off the lights in the store when a man appeared and demanded money. The owner opened a cash register. The contents of the cash register were scooped up, and the man sped away. A member of the police force was notified promptly.[1]

Read the following statements (see Footnote 1).

After each of the 11 statements, mark each statement with either:

• "T" to indicate true
• "F" to indicate false
• "U"to indicate unknown

1. A man appeared after the owner had turned off his store lights.
2. The robber was a man.
3. The man who appeared did not demand money.
4. The man who opened the cash register was the owner.
5. The store owner scooped up the contents of the cash register and ran away.
6. Someone opened a cash register.
7. After the man who demanded the money scooped up the contents of the cash register, he ran away.
8. While the cash register contained money, the story does not state how much.
9. The robber demanded money from the owner.
10. It was broad daylight when the man appeared.
11. The story concerns a series of events in which only 3 persons are referred to: the owner of the store, a man who demanded money, and a member of the police force.

Note: Do not share your responses with your classmates at this time.

[1] Adapted from "Leadership, Shared Meaning, and Semantics," by M. Ayers, 2002, ETC.: A Review of General Semantics, 59(3), 287. Copyright 2002 by ETC.: A Review of General Semantics.