A stated view is what a participant actually says or reports as their position and reasons. An inferred motive is your guess about why they hold it. Keep the two apart in your writing, and mark the guess as a guess.
This lesson follows describing perspectives without stereotypes and belongs to comparing perspectives.
Why separate them?
A stated view can be checked against the source: you can point at the sentence. A motive cannot be checked in the same way, because it sits inside someone’s mind.
If you present a guess as fact, your comparison may attribute things to people that they never said. Separating the two keeps your analysis honest and keeps the evidence visible.
How to tell them apart
Ask three questions of any sentence you write about a participant.
- Can I point to the exact words in the source that show this? If yes, it is a stated view.
- Am I explaining why they hold the view beyond the reasons given? If yes, it is an inference.
- Does the source itself supply evidence for that explanation, such as a declared interest? If not, say less or leave it out.
Useful inference signals include “may suggest”, “could indicate” and “one possible reading”. Avoid verbs of certainty such as “clearly wants” or “is only trying to”.
Worked example
Invented source for practice.
Source C (invented): the chair of the Pantai Hijau Fishing Cooperative says in a statement: “We oppose the proposed dredging for the marina. Our members net along the sandbar, and dredging would move it. We ask for a study of where fish gather before any work begins.”
Stated view: the cooperative opposes the dredging. Its stated reasons are that members net along the sandbar and dredging would move it. It asks for a study before work begins.
Inferred motive (labelled): “This may suggest the cooperative is concerned about members’ income, although the statement does not mention income.”
Check: the stated-view sentences each point to words in the statement. The inference is marked with “may suggest”, names what it rests on and admits what the source does not say.
The mistake to watch for
Mistaken sentence: “The cooperative is only protecting its profits and does not care about the town.”
The statement mentions nets and a study request, not profits, and says nothing about caring for the town. This sentence reports a motive as a fact and adds a negative judgement the source does not support.
The correction is to report the reasons given, then, if you want to, add a labelled inference with its evidence, as in the worked example.
Check yourself
1. A source says: “We support the new bus lane because it cuts journey times for commuters.” Write the stated view in one sentence.
Show answer
“The source supports the bus lane and gives shorter commuter journey times as its reason.” Everything in it is in the source.
2. Which of these is an inference: (a) “The group asks for a safety review”, (b) “The group wants publicity”, (c) “The group says the road is unsafe”?
Show answer
(b). Options (a) and (c) report what the group asks and says. (b) guesses a motive that no words in the source state.
3. Rewrite so the inference is labelled: “The company claims jobs only to win approval.”
Show answer
“The company states that the plan would create jobs. This may suggest it wants to show benefit to the community, though the source does not state that aim.” The first sentence is the stated view, the second a labelled inference.
Where this leads next
Once you can label inferences, the next step is to explain why two sources can answer different questions. Practise the whole set in the comparing perspectives practice.
Most students learn this by seeing their own sentences marked up. A teacher in online one-to-one Global Perspectives tuition can go through your paragraphs line by line and mark each stated view and each guess.