A Methodology for Extending Focusing Frameworks

We address the problem of how to develop and assess algorithms for tracking local focus and for proposing referents of pronouns. Previous focusing research has not adequately addressed the processing of complex sentences. We discuss issues involved in processing complex sentences and review a methodology used by other researchers to develop their focusing frameworks. We identify difficulties with that methodology and difficulties with using a corpus analysis to extend focusing frameworks to handle complex sentences. We introduce a new methodology for extending focusing frameworks, which involves two steps. In the first step, a set of systematically constructed texts are used to identify an extension of the focusing framework to handle a particular kind of complex sentence. In the second step, a corpus analysis is used to confirm the extension. We explain how our methodology overcomes the difficulties faced by other approaches.