Lecture 4 - Language & Thought Flashcards
Language
A set of symbols used for communication that allows us to convey our thoughts and desires
- Can be divided into comprehension and production
- Is generative (unique to human language)
Word of The Year - 2023
Rizz
What Makes Up Language?
Phonemes - Smallest distinct sound unit in a language
- English has ~40
- French has ~39 (diff than English)
Ex. Cat
/c/ /a/ /t/
Morpheme - Smallest unit that carries meaning
- Root Words, Prefixes, Suffixes
- English has ~50,000
Ex. Cats has 2
“Cat” and “s”
Semantics - The study of how meaning in language is constructed of individual words and sentences
Syntax - The system for using words (semantics) and word order to convey meaning (grammar)
Pragmatics - Practical aspects of language usage, including speech, pace, gestures, and body language
- Phonemes
- Morphemes
- Syntax
- Pragmatics
How Does Language Develop?
Begins as early as the womb
* Infants show a preference for listening to speech over non-speech (e.g. srambled speech, monkey calls)
* A familiar language
Researchers investigate development of language by examining bilingualism
Video: How Do Babies Become Bilingual? (See Notes App)
Pros/Cons of Speaking More Than One Language
Pros:
* Better at Learning Rules
* Better Focus
* Ability to Switch Between Tasks
* Less Cognitive Decline When Older
Cons:
* Monolingual Babies Solidify Connections Faster
Is Language Innate or Learned?
This video suggests that learning a language itself is an innate ability, although the learning of a language is different for different babies.
Bilingualism
Bilingual kids may have smaller vocabularies in each language (compared to monolingual)
- Bilingualism Leads To Advantages In Cognitive Flexibility, Analytical Reasoning, and Selective Attention
Development of Language
2 months - babies coo, using vowel-like sounds
4 months - babies recognize different speech sounds and read lips
6 months - babbling sounds begin to resemble surrounding language
10 months - Babies lose ability to hear sounds that don’t exist in surrounding language
Ex. Diff between Right/Light, Read/Lead, Crime/Climb
1 year - First Words Appear
* Accurately Name Things and Use Gestures
* Receptive Vocabulary Outpaces Productive Vocabulary
* Children whose parents encourage use of gestures have larger vocabularies and understand more
18-24 Months - Vocabulary Spurt (Fast Mapping Is Apparent)
2 Years - 2-3 word combos
Ex. Mama Come, Hungry Now
- Speech follows Syntax Rules, Words are Arranged In Sensible Order
- Telegraph Speech (Drop Unnecessary Words)
- Over-regularizations are common
3 Years Old - Pragmatics are evident
- Basic Understanding of Practical Information, pausing between sentences
- Sentences of 3-4 words
- Nuanced Expressions (“I don’t want to” instead of “no”)
- Asks many questions (why?)
4 years old - Basic Grammer Rules Understood
- 5-6 word sentences
- Can Describe Something
- Can speak cleary enough to be inteligible to strangers most of the time
** 5-6 Years Old** - Children have 8,000-14,000 words in their vocabulary
* Refinement of language and recognition of ambiguities
Fast Mapping
Fast mapping is a cognitive process, primarily studied in language development, where individuals—especially young children—quickly learn the meaning of a new word or concept after only a few brief exposures.
Fact
Comprehension Outpaces Production at First in Babies
Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis (Sapir & Whorf)
The more words we have available to us about a single concept, the more complex and detailed our thoughts can be about that idea
Ex. Diff languages shape diff thoughts and perceptions of the world
Languages affects all of these things:
- Perception
- Sense of Time
- Memories
- Behaviour
- Sense of Self
Perception - Each language has different words to describe the things around us and these differences change the way we perceive these things.
Ex. Italian may see objects as Male/Female, while an English Speaker won’t
Ex. The Kuuk Thaayorre, Aboriginal Tribe, describes things as North,East,South,West while others describe them as left, right, ahead, behind
Sense of Time - languages are written in different directions, people who write left to right (English) see things differently than those who do not (Arabic)
Memories - In English, we say “he broke the vase” (puts blame on person) but in Spanish people say “the vase broke” (puts blame on environment). a small difference with big consequences
Behaviour - Languages are often associated with culture, and with the context in which it is learned. Those who speaks various languages access different parts of themselves (studies found people exhibit different personality traits depending on the language used; English=more agreeable, Spanish=more neurotic
Sense of Self - The words we speak influence how we feel about ourselves. Ex. Self-Affirming Language is linked to reward and self-perception and can increase our confidence
Learning a new language is not just learning new words, you are opening your mind to a new of seeing and interacting with the world.
Regional Dialects
More differences even within countries/regions.
* Different dialects can signal where people live
Theories of Language Development
- Origin of Language (Nature Vs. Nurture Debate)
- No right answer but 3 predominant psychological perspectives:
- Nativist Theory (Chomsky)
- Behaviourist Theory (Skinner)
- Interactionist Theories
Nativist Theory (Noam Chomsky)
Proposed all humans are born with a Language-Acquisition Device (LAD)
All Languages Share Some Basic Elements
* Humans born with a native (or built-in) predisposition to learn grammar rules
* All children speak in nouns, not verbs/adverbs
Evidence against theory
* No LAD has ever been found
* No universal grammar
Language-Acquistion Device (LAD)
The Language Acquisition Device (LAD) is a theoretical concept that suggests humans are born with an innate, biological capacity for language, which he called the LAD. This device acts like a mental mechanism that allows children to learn the rules of language (such as grammar and syntax) without needing explicit teaching or a significant amount of input.
Behaviourist Theory (BF Skinner)
Children learn language the same as everything else
* Imitation, reinforcement, and other conditioning is responsible for language development
Evidence against theory
* Ability to acquire language later in life requires considerable effort (extreme case study: Genie)
Case Study Genie:
She was rescued from extreme neglect in 1970 at age 13; was non-verbal and unresponsive to speech.
* She never acquired full language, despite extensive therapy and training (missed critical period)
