Problem 9 Flashcards

1
Q

What are the cross cultural differences on the relationship between talking and thinking ?

A
  1. West: Speech + thought are thoroughly interrelated
    * Analytic thinking, where each part can be described seperately + sequentially
  2. East: Speech + thought are independent from one another
    * Holistic thinking, where one focuses on the whole
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2
Q

In comparison to western countries, eastern countries put less emphasis on speech.

But does speech necessarily mean less communication ?

A

No,

the closer the relationship, the more likely are people to rely on nonverbal communication

–> interdependence

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3
Q

Why is one better at recognizing objects or faces when one was not previously asked to describe it ?

A

Because, verbal descriptions will interfere with our ability to process the object as a whole

–> poorer recall

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4
Q

High context culture

A

Refer to cultures where people are deeply involved with each other + have shared info that guides their behavior

  • no need of explicit communication, more indirect speech
    e. g.: Eastern cultures
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5
Q

Low context culture

A

Refers to a culture with little involvement among individuals

  • need for explicit communication to guide behavior, more direct speech
    e. g.: Western cultures
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6
Q

There is a big difference in the explicitness of East asian languages, compared to European languages.

How is the key information of messages, when talking, conveyed ?

A

They are expressed nonverbally, whilst the content of the words are rather empty

  • this is why easterners attend + focus more on the opponent conveying the message
    e. g.: facial expressions, gestures, etc
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7
Q

Whorfian/linguistic relativity hypothesis

(Strong version)

A

Language determines how we think, we cannot think without language (available words)

–> universally rejected

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8
Q

Whorfian/linguistic relativity hypothesis

(Weak version)

A

Suggests that the language we speak affects how we think

–> e.g.: certain aspects of cognition like perception + memory

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9
Q

Categorical perception

A

Suggests that we tend to perceive stimuli as belonging to separate + discrete categories, even though the stimuli may gradually differ from each other along a continuum

ex.: difference between the phonemes “ba” vs “pa”, difference between colors green + blue

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10
Q

Much debate one the Whorfian hypothesis has focused on cross cultural differences in color perception, as different cultures classify colors in different ways.

Does the weaker version of the worfian hypothesis hold true here ?

A

Yes,

Ones perception of different colors is influenced by the color categories used in ones respective languages

–> as shown by categorical perception

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11
Q

Mathematics is a domain that is independent from culture, thus our ability to reason with numbers should reflect the experiences we had in our cultures.

Is this true and therefore evidence for the strong version of the Whorfian hypothesis ?

A

Yes,

Evidence showed that if linguistic terms for specific numbers were absent, people were not able to understand the associated numerical concept

–> e.g.: if there is no word for numbers higher than 2, one isn’t able to do maths correctly

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12
Q

Linguistic relativity can be considered in terms of peoples spatial descriptions.

How does this differ from culture to culture ?

A

West: Identify locations based on their position relative to the speaker

–> recent development

Australians: Identify locations based on the cardinal directions

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13
Q

Linguistic relativity

A

Refers to the ways in which speakers of any given language are influenced by the language they speak

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14
Q

Pragmatics

A

Refers to the study of the ways in which language is used + understood in the real world

–> relates to the intended meaning as opposed to the literal meaning

“meaning minus semantics”

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15
Q

Figurative language

A

Refers to language that is not intended to be taken literally

ex.: metaphors, irony etc

  • requires more cognitive resources than literal language processing
  • combining content with a relationship type
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16
Q

What are the 3 stages involved in processing a metaphorical or figurative statement ?

(Standard pragmatic model)

A
  1. Assessing the literal meaning
  2. Deciding whether the literal meaning makes sense in the current context
  3. If inadequate, searching for a suitable one
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17
Q

Standard pragmatic model

A

Predicts that figurative/metaphorical meanings should be accessed more slowly than literal ones

–> proved to be wrong, because this process is automatic

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18
Q

Predication model of metaphor understanding

(Kintsch)

A

Suggests that our understanding of metaphors depends on our ability to inhibit semantic properties of the predicate that are irrelevant to the argument (Non-reversability)

Consists of 2 components:

1. Latent semantic analysis component

  • understanding the meanings of words based on their relations to other words

2. Construction-integration component

  • using info from component 1 to construct interpretations of the statement

=> Metaphors involve a non-directional process that is preceded by a directional process

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19
Q

Directional process

A

Projecting info from the argument onto the predicate

ex.: sharks are aggressive, thus lawyers are aggressive

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20
Q

Non-directional process

A

Involves finding commonalities in meaning between the argument + predicate

ex.: sharks + lawyers

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21
Q

People with better … -Memory are better at inhibiting info that is irrelevant to the situation, thus are faster at understanding metaphors.

A

Working

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22
Q

Common ground

A

Refers to the shared knowledge + beliefs possessed by a speaker and listener

  • the use of it facilitates communication
    e. g.: Easterners have a greater common ground
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23
Q

Egocentric heuristic

A

Refers to a strategy used by listeners in which they interpret what they hear based on their own knowledge rather than knowledge shared with the speaker

–> causes one to misunderstand the speaker

e.g.: Westerners engage in this more often

24
Q

Why do listeners often rely on the egocentric heuristic ?

A

Because, it can be cognitively challenging/demanding to take on the perspective of a different person

25
Q

Theory of WM capacity

A

Individuals with high WM capacity have superior executive attention

–> these differences influence language comprehension

26
Q

Why does higher WM capacity lead to faster metaphor processing ?

A
  1. Reduced mind-wandering
  2. Better at discriminating between relevant + irrelevant info
  3. Smaller seductive details effect
27
Q

Discourse

A

Refers to language that is a minimum of several sentences in length

–> can be written text or connected speech

28
Q

What is the difference in processing a discourse vs single sentence ?

A

A Single sentence is often harder to process/comprehend as there is little info to infer.

–> when listening to a discourse one has a lot of info to make several conclusions

29
Q

List the 3 main types of inferences.

A
  1. Bridging
  2. Elaborative
  3. Logical
30
Q

Bridging inference

A

Involves establishing coherence between the current part of the text + the preceding text

31
Q

Elaborative inference

A

Making inferences based on our knowledge of the world, by adding details to a text being read

32
Q

Mental model

A

Refers to an internal representation of some possible situation/event

33
Q

Minimalist hypothesis

A

States that only 2 automatic (bridging) inferences are used/needed for comprehension, which are

  1. are based on quickly available information
  2. contribute to local text coherence
34
Q

Constructionist approach

A

Suggests that readers typically construct a mental model of the event

–> one typically engages in numerous elaborative inferences , eventhough when they are not required to understand the text

35
Q

Anaphor

A

Involves identifying a profound or noun with a previous noun phrase

  • form of bridging inference
    ex. : Fred sold John a book, then he sold him his phone

–> understanding that “he” is Fred

36
Q

Causal inference

A

Requires reader to work out causal relationship between the sentence they are reading + previous one

–> form of bridging inference

37
Q

What are the 2 stages in forming bridging inferences ?

A

1. Bonding

  • involves automatic activation of words from the preceding sentence

2. Resolution

  • ensuring the overall interpretation is consistent with the contextual info
38
Q

List the 3 types of errors that can occur due to the use of schemas.

A
  1. Rationalisation
  2. Levelling
  3. Sharpening
39
Q

Rationalisation

A

Refers to distortions designed to make recall more rational + in line with the readers expectations

40
Q

Levelling

A

Omitting/Leaving out certain unfamiliar details from recall

41
Q

Sharpening

A

Selecting/adding certain details for embellishment

42
Q

What are the 3 main assumptions of the construction-integration model?

(Kintsch)

A
  1. Readers turn sentences into propositions
  2. Propositions are stored along with the irrelevant ones
  3. A certain process selects the appropriate propositions to form text representation

–> 3 levels of text representation are contracted as a result

43
Q

List the 3 levels of text representation.

(Construction-integration model)

A

1. Surface representation

  • text itself

2. Propositional representation

  • propositions formed from the text

3. Situation representation

  • mental model describing the situation
44
Q

Event indexing model

A

Suggests that readers monitor 5 situational aspects and compare those present events to previous events, to decide whether their situation model needs to be updated:

1. Protagonist

2. Temporality

  • present vs previous events

3. Causality

4. Spatiality

5. Intentionality

  • present + previous goals

=> accounts for comprehension processes when reading a narrative text

=> here and now view

45
Q

Event segmentation theory

A

Suggests that updating of a situational model in response to changes within + between events can take 2 main forms:

1. Incremental updating of individual situational dimensions

  • “brick by brick”

2. Global updating in which an old situational model is replaced by a completely new one

  • “from scratch”

=> Resonance view

46
Q

Schema theory of discourse comprehension

A

States that schemas influence our comprehension of discourse in a _top down f_ashion

47
Q

Which cognitive advantages do bilingual people have ?

Are there multiple language systems ?

A
  1. Bilingualism protects against cognitive decline (cognitive reserve) + elicits better executive control
  2. No, there is 1 language system working for both languages
48
Q

What are the objectives of language ?

A

1. Content

–> e.g.: commanding, info sharing, threatening

2. Relationship type

a) Dominance
b) Communality
c) Reciprocity

49
Q

Universalism

A

Thought influences language

–> opposite to Whorfian hypothesis

50
Q

Supporting evidence for universalism

A

1. Perception

2. Thinking infants

3. Reliving memories

  • usually depicted in pictures, than words in the mind

4. Inventing process

  • when inventing a word, we first think
51
Q

What does a moral dilemma consist of ?

A

Deontological + Utilitarian outcome

52
Q

Moral foreign language effect

A

Bilinguals are more likely to endorse the utilitarian decisions, when speaking a foreign language

–> emphasis on moral thinking

53
Q

Dual process framework

A

S1: Deontological outcome (inhibited)

  • biased

S2: Utilitarian outcome (excited)

  • not biased
54
Q

Explanation for MFLE

A
  1. Blunted deontology
    * less emotional processing
  2. Dual process framework
55
Q

Resonance view

A

When attaining new info it doesn’t replace the old ones but just represents a new model, beside the other ones that were already created

–> related to event segmentation theory

56
Q

Here and now view

A

Most current info replaces old info

–> related to event indexing model

57
Q

Name the 2 kinds of Bilingualism.

A

1. Compound bilinguals (early)

  • learning 2 languages at the same context
    ex. : from parents

2. Coordinate bilinguals (later)

  • learning languages in separated environments
    ex. : school