Constructivist notions of meaning making turned long-held views of comprehension upside down. They highlighted that the reader, not the text, is the key determinant of meaning. The reader does not extract meaning from the text by some form of translation; rather, constructivist readers draw upon their knowledge of the world, including their existing awareness of such elements of characters (e.g., traits, motivations, and most likely actions), events (i.e., their possible antecedents and outcomes), and settings (e.g., the nature and influence thereof). ...

The political context for developments in the late 60s and early 70s involved major global tensions around civil rights and the war against communism, which persisted in countries like Vietnam and in political events around the world. While we saw the end of the Vietnam War and a peace accord between Egypt and Israel, various countries were still in struggle. The world seemed on the precipice of change, yet it remained embattled within and across nations. In some countries in which the political climate seemed to be in a state of flux, there also appeared to be a shift from social-mindedness to individualism. ...