Week 1- what is psycholinguistics Flashcards
What is psycholinguistics?
The relationship between the human mind and language, it involves the research of individuals and the patterns amongst individuals.
What are the main aims of psycholinguistics?
To establish an understanding of the processes which underline the system we call language.
‘Examine language as a product of the human mind and thus as evidence of the way in which human beings organise their thoughts and impose patterns upon their experience.’ [Field, p.2]
How do we ‘do’ psycholinguistics?
Competence- linguistic theory, what is in our language knowledge. Our competence can change due to the addition of new words and the changing of meaning of others.
Performance- what actually happens, language in use. You can be hesitant in performance and have slips of the tongue. You can have an identical competence and yesterday but never an identical performance.
Historically, we worked back from output by recording, capturing and transcribing data. These days we have scanning equipment and computer programmes such as eye trackers and inputlog (keystrokes) that can measure responses and reactions much more accurately.
What is observational data collection?
Observe speakers and hearers. You can record and observe performance errors which may allow us to make predictions about the speakers future mistakes.
What are the downsides to observational data collection?
You pick which bits you record and keep, you pick who you record, people know they’re being recorded (unethical to not tell them) and it may result in an observers paradox (where the person being observed is unwittingly influenced by the presence of the observer). Due to this technique being more spontaneous, you may not get the desired set of results.
How can you control certain types of data collection without influencing the results?
To try and control your data, you may choose to use a language game to prompt the results that you need. You can generate slips of the tongue by getting people to repeat riddles. Word association also works well.
What is qualitative data?
Qualitative- individual behaviour, describes one/ not many. This is an in-depth analysis of one person, it cannot be generalised.
What is quantitative data?
Quantitative- recording lots of information, a group result. You can generalise with this method, psycholinguists usually use this method.
What did Skinner say about language?
Skinner- psychologist, behaviourist. Said there was nothing special about language, babies are born without knowing anything- the environment teaches them everything. Language is simply another life skill.
What did Chomsky say about language?
Chomsky- linguist. Believed that language is innate, like learning to breathe.
