Language: intro to language and speaking

Question 1

What is language?

Answer 1

Language is a set of spoken, written or signed words
These are then combined to communicated
Language can be described as an abitrary set of symbols, and rules for combining symbols, which can be used to create an infinite variety of messages

Question 2

Hockett - overview

Answer 2

Hockett suggested there were design features of language.
He believed there were 16 in total.
All human spoken languages include all 16 features.
All human languages throiugh vocal-auditory channel.

Question 3

Specialization

Answer 3

Sounds we produce are designed to convey meaning, they are not a biological outcome of another activity
Words that we make are specialised, not biproducts of biology

Question 4

Semanticity

Answer 4

The ties between the word and its meaninga re definite
Sounds denote specific messages
Some exceptions to this rule.

Question 5

Arbitrariness

Answer 5

Words are arbitrary and decided by agreement
Whales are huge but the word is relatively small
Microorganisms are tiny but the world is relatively large.

Question 6

Discreteness

Answer 6

Linguistic representations can be broken down into small discrete units, which combine with each other in other rule governed ways.

Question 7

Displacement

Answer 7

Can talk about things that aren’t immediately in our vicinity.

Question 8

Tradition transmission

Answer 8

Language is acquired through social groups, teaching through social interaction

Question 9

Sapir-whorf theory

Answer 9

Idea that language frames the way we think
Allows us to grapple with difficult concepts, logical problems etc
Shapes our thoughts and perceptions
Shapes the way we think

Question 10

What is language based on

Answer 10

Mental representations - store of moental representations for language developed via experience
We match mental representations to words we see or hear.
We activate our mental representation of words to speak or write.

Question 11

STate all four language functions

Answer 11

Speaking
Writing
Reading
Understanding

Question 12

What type of processes are language production

Answer 12

FUNDAMENTALLY DISTINCT.

Question 13

Name some of the different building blocks of language

Answer 13

Semantics
Syntax
Morphology
Form
Speech.

Question 14

Semantics

Answer 14

We have different understandings and meanings that we link together
Semantics= meaning/concepts.

Question 15

Syntax

Answer 15

How we define grammar
word order changes the meaning/intent of what we are trying to say
Rules help us to make sense of the words.
Interpretation can change the way we understand the syntax.

Question 16

Morphology

Answer 16

The smallest meaningful unit of sound

Question 17

What are phonemes

Answer 17

Sounds

Question 18

What are graphemes

Answer 18

Letters

Question 19

How many phonemes are there in english

Answer 19

roughly 40

Question 20

What are pragmatics

Answer 20

The meaning within the meaning
Language changes depending on the people we’re engaging with.

Question 21

What are the 4 grice’s maxims

Answer 21

Quantity
Quality
Relation
Manner

Question 22

Quantity

Answer 22

don’t include more information that necessary

Question 23

Quality

Answer 23

Communication should be truthful

Question 24

Relation

Answer 24

communication should be relevant to the topic of conversation

Question 25

Manner

Answer 25

speaker avoids ambiguity

Question 26

What is the mental lexicon

Answer 26

Our store of all the words and meanings that we know We need all these processes within our lexicon to be able to speak. Competition within the lexicon for selection and activation

Question 27

Methods used to test speech production

Answer 27

Timing of speech onset, hesitations and pauses Speech errors Tip-of-the-tongue state

Question 28

Time of speech onset, hesitations and pauses.

Answer 28

Delay in initiating speech can be the result of processing problems. Hesitations may provide insight into mental processes Larger numbers of words in lexicon - more hesitations

Question 29

Speech errors

Answer 29

Test accuracy of how we speak Retrieval of the wrong word Error accours every 500 sentences Slips of the tongue Can be in words, morphemes, phonemes, concepts Exchanges come from the same category

Question 30

Levels of processing

Answer 30

Exchanges/mistakes come from the same category

Question 31

Conceptualisation

Answer 31

Semantic blend errors

Question 32

formulation

Answer 32

syntactic and morpheme exchange

Question 33

articulation

Answer 33

word and phoneme exchange

Question 34

tOP OF THE TONGUE STATE

Answer 34

State where you know what you want to say but have trouble retrieving the word to say it. Interference from conflicting information results in hestiation.