Language & Communication Flashcards
Language
a system of symbols used to communicate that convert meaningless elements into structures that convey meaning
5 components of language
- phonemes: sounds of language (e.g. lake vsrake)
- morphemes: smallest units of meaning (e.g. rakes vs. raking)
- semantics (meaning)
- syntax: rules for combining words into meaningful and interpretable sequences
- pragmatics: rules for how language is used
3 functions of the components of language
- form: phonemes, morphemes, syntax
- content: semantics
- use: pragmatics
Nature vs nurture in language acquisition
- innate human characteristic that allow us to use syntax or structure
- requires exposure and experience
- depends on timing (sensitive or critical period)
unlike humans, animals lack syntax
* bees communication through a waggle dance
* parrot named Alex and dog named Rico learned words
* bonobo named Kanzi knows 400 words and could follow verbal instructions (suggests some understanding of syntax)
Evidence for critical period in language acquisition
children adopted after age 7 have trouble learning the syntax of their adoptive language
findings based on Genie case study (strapped to a chair in a basement for the first 7 years of her life)
Language acquisition in childhood
- 10-12 mos: infants discriminate and produce the sounds of their language(s)
- age 2: 200-500 word vocabulary
- 18 mos: begin combining words with syntax
- there may be individual differences!
- much of linguistic competence is underway by childhood but still a lot of development in communicative competence
2 kinds of egocentric speech (Piaget)
a reflection of children’s egocentric thinking
1. monologue (running discourse)
2. collective monologue
Collective monologue
egocentric speech
when 2 individuals are speaking together but not for the purpose of each other
no desire to influence the hearer to tell them anything
Private speech (Vygotsky)
- drives thinking
- serves purpose of self-regulation and planning
- found to be used more in difficult tasks
What do conversations involve?
- turn-taking
- taking related turns (e.g. talking about the same topic): poor in early childhood but steadily improves
- repairing miscommunication
How do children repair miscommunication across development?
young vs older children
increase in giving/responding to verbal and non-verbal feedback
* young children (ages 1-3) tend to repeat failed communication
* older children (ages 3-5) are more likely to repair failed communication
Evidence for language adaptation
- children as young as 4 adjust their language to younger vs older children, to children vs adults
- also seem to adapt their registers while playing
Registers
language adaptation
styles of language associated with particular settings/roles
e.g. formal, casual
Dialects
language adaptation
forms of language that vary with regions or groups of people
all equally good and accurate!
e.g. Canadian English, Australian English, British English, Southern English, Maritimer English
African American English (AAE) or Black English
- characteristic rules, form, and vocabulary
- young children can code-switch and adjust dialect to context
- use by Black children appears to decrease once they begin formal schooling, which is correlated with academic success
similarly, a dialect in American Sign Language (ASL) is Black American Sign Language (BASL)
2 kinds of bilinguals
- Simultaneous/crib bilinguals: learn 2 languages from birth
- Sequential bilinguals: learn 1 language first then another
- more than half the world and ~20% of Canadians are bilingual
- learn 2 sets of rules for form, content, and use
2 aspects of bilingual communication
- code-switching/mixing: appropriately apply languages based on their conversational partner (ages 2-4)
- some evidence that bilingual children are better able to detect conversational violations
e.g. Young bilinguals (German/Italian) are better at detecting rudeness and irrelevant responses in a conversation compared to monolinguals (Italian); Difference decreases with age (6+)
Do studies suggest that bilingualism is good or bad?
- 20s-50s: studies showed bilinguals scoring lower on IQ/cognitive assessments
- Peal & Lambert (1962): bilingual children had better cognitive abilities when bilingual and monolingual samples were more evenly matched (e.g. SES, educational background)
In the 20s-50s, bilinguals were mostly recent immigrants and IQ tests were conducted in English
Advantages of bilingualism according to Peak & Lambert
due to experiences in 2 cultures and experience with 2 languages
* mental flexibility
* better concept formation
* more diverse set of mental abilities
Cognitive advantages of bilingualism
- perspective-taking
- executive function (planning and managing cognitive abilities)
but bilingualism is not associated with an IQ advantage, just specific cognitive abilities, and the strength of these are still being debated
Evidence for perspective-taking in bilinguals
more bilinguals give the target object (smallest red car) from the director’s POV rather than their own
mere exposure to multiple languages, even if one is monolingual, also conveys advantages
Evidence for better executive functioning in bilinguals
card sort task
- bilinguals are better able to switch between rules of games (e.g. sorting based on color vs shape)
- monolinguals tend to perseverate and stick with the first rule
monolinguals have difficulty inhibiting existing knowledge
Sign language
- share the same properties of language (e.g. rules of form like finger shape as building blocks, rules of use like registers and dialects)
- children exposed to sign language show similar patterns of acquisition to spoken language (e.g. babbling, first words/signs, combining words/signs)
What are gestures?
- not a language because they have no rules, rather they are a form of nonverbal communication that accompanies speech
- reflect thought and serve as a window into what children know (number of gestures predicts vocabulary)
- also changes thought
pointing (develops a few months before first words), symbolic/representational gestures (e.g. thumbs up), patomime, beat gestures to emphasize cadence
Piagetian conservation task
example of gesture-speech mismatch
- two young girls are asked which row of checkers has more (they have the same number)
- both responded wrong verbally (said one row has more)
- first girl gestured that the checkers were spread out and the second’s gesture show’s one-to-one correspondence, suggesting she’s on the verge of learning
children who produce mismatches benefit most from instruction on that task
Mathematical equivalence
example of gesture-speech mismatch
5+3+4=__+4
children who gesture mismatch are sucessful post-training (more likely to answer correctly), suggesting they are on the verge of learning
How can gestures change thought?
by helping “lighten the load” in difficult tasks
e.g. children remember more when they gesture during learning
What kind of gesture benefits learning?
Novack et al. on impact of gesture vs physical action
in mathematical equivalence problems:
* all gestures (physical action, concrete gesture, abstract gesture) are beneficial for learning
* abstract gestures are best for generalization (i.e. applying learning to new problems)
