Module 10 Flashcards
Language
Set of rules used to communicate; natural (spoken and signed) or unnatural (written)
Hockett’s Universal Characteristics of Language
Semanticity, Arbitrariness, Flexibility and naming, Duality of patterning, Productivity, Displacement
Semanticity
Language conveys meaning
Arbirtrariness
Symbols/sounds can’t resemble the referent
Flexibility and naming
People can decide what label and object has and change it at will
Duality of patterning
Language signal exists in levels (sounds->words->sentences->etc.)
Productivity
Create infinite combinations from finite set of items (unique to human language)
Displacement
We can communicate about things that are not present in the moment
Behaviorist approach to language
Skinner argued language is learned through reinforcement of correct behaviors.
Innatist theory of language
Chomsky pointed out kids say things they’ve never heard and don’t say words they hear often. Argued that language is inborn, and we need language input to fine tune the rule set we are born with
Poverty of stimulus argument
Kids say things that they don’t hear, hear incorrect examples, and receive no negative evidence and yet learn correct language. Argued behaviorist teaching and theories are inaccurate
Phonology
Study of sounds of language
Morphology
Study of words
Semantics
Study of meaning
Syntax
Study of rules of language
Pragmatics
Study of how we use language
Phoneme
Smallest unit of sound; carries no meaning but can create meaning
Lack of invariance problem
The speech signal is variable, but we do not perceive it that way. Same sounds can have different physical signals but we always perceive them as the same (ex: coarticulation of vowel sounds)
Segmentation problem
we can hear where words begin and end, even when they don’t match physical pauses in sound energy
McGurk effect
We use vision to aid speech perception, which can change our perception of words or sounds
Categorical perception
We lump sounds into categories based on ‘close enough’ principle; helps us perceive speech with no delays or variance; unique processing of phonemes
Voice Onset Time (VOT)
The time between the start of speech and vocal cord vibration. Helps us distinguish between close sounds (like ‘ba’ and ‘pa’). Clear switching boundaries, not fuzzy.
Morpheme
Smallest meaningful unit of language
Free morpheme
Can stand alone
Bound morpheme
Holds meaning but needs to be attached to a word (“-ly”)
Lexicon
Mental dictionary, type of semantic memory
Lexical access
How we access the lexicon, studied by psychologists. Assumed to be top-down
Phonemic restoration effect
When missing sound is interrupted or masked, we can fill in the sound if it occurs in the context of a sentence.
Swinney experiment
Showed a sentence containing the word ‘bug’ with both meanings primed in the sentence. Performed online and offline lexical decision tasks, measuring response time. Found that for a brief moment we access all meanings of a word, but it quickly fades to the ‘correct’ primed meaning. Falsified top-down processing assumption of the lexicon. (Lexical access is inherently bottom-up upon onset)
Prescriptive grammar
Grammar rules that are written down and taught
Descriptive grammar
How we use grammar in everyday speech; linguists attempt to describe these rules using theories of syntax
Parsing
How we read parts of a sentence and put things together
Immediacy principle
We parse words as soon as we hear/read them
Syntax-first approach to parsing
Argues syntax is the first thing we use for parsing. Evidenced by syntactically correct sentences sounding correct even when they have no meaning.
Garden-path sentence
Start parsing one way but later shown that that parsing is wrong
Temporary syntactic ambiguities
Ambiguous parsings that are cleared up by the end of the sentence
Late closure
We like to tack words onto the current phrase as long as we can until it does not make sense. Supports syntax-first parsing. Early closure sentences take longer to parse, supporting the idea.
Trueswall et. al experiment
Shown four sentences. 2 were syntactically ambiguous with the same structure. Reading time were different between them. Should have been the same since they have the same syntax structure. Rejects syntax-first approach, argues we process meaning while parsing
Tanenhaus pragmatics experiment
Eye tracking while listening to instructions. Measured direction of eye movement at points in the instructions. Found that looking behavior varies based on the visual environment presented. Argues that surrounding context can be used alongside syntax. Rejects syntax-first parsing
Discourse
Anything longer than a sentence
Levels of discourse
Surface, proposition, situations model
Surface level of discourse
Exact wording of the text
Proposition level of discourse
Understanding the propositions in the text. Uses only what is given in the text
Situations model level of discourse
Mental representation of what is described and all possible inferences and outcomes. Incorporates prior knowledge and assumptions
Coherence
Making a story make sense
Local coherence
Connecting adjacent sentences; uses simple references (anaphor, bridging)
Global coherence
Connecting an overall theme or storyline; uses explanatory inferences (Instrument, causal)
Anaphor inferences
The anaphor gets its meaning from the antecedent (referent) in the prior sentence
Bridging inference
Filling in info to connect sentences. Takes longer than anaphor because there is no direct connector
Instrument inferences
Infers things about tools we use for a task
Causal inferences
Inferences about what causes events to happen
