PSY2004 SEMESTER 1 - WEEK 6 Flashcards
(50 cards)
name 2 theories of grammatical development
nativist (Chomsky) and constructivist
outline nativist approach of grammatical development (Chomsky)
can’t learn by creatively copying what we hear around due to poverty of stimulus (not enough language input) and no negative evidence (when children make mistakes lacking feedback on why its mistake)
instead, universal grammar proposition
what is universal grammar? (nativist)
grammatical categories, rules used to generate grammatical sentences of world’s languages (blueprint that there was universal grammar in all children)
innate and can guide language acquisitions from start
name issues of universal grammar idea (nativist)
does not account for=
1. what innate knowledge makes up this universal grammar
2. how children can use it to learn specific languages they are exposed to, instead of all language
3. what possible learning algorithm, child as social being?
outline constructivist approach of grammatical development
no problem in poverty of stimulus or no negative evidence and instead grammar is learned based on child considerable capacity for statistical learning from social interaction = innate grammar proposals is redundant
why are constructivist approach of grammatical development more popular
larger database of transcribed speech available along with computational linguistic tools to analyse them
emphasises social context in development and learning mechanisms (reading intentions, imitation, statistical learning and generalisation)
give issue of constructivist approach of grammatical development
no fully worked account of how different learning mechanisms interact to allow children to creatively produce language base don what they have previously heard
name the 2 key components of grammar
syntax and morphology
define syntax
branch of grammar which deals with organisation of words into large structures
define morphology
branch of grammar dealing with analysis of word structure
what does grammar allow us to do?
combine words in different way so conveys different meanings
what is inflectional morphology used to mark
tenses (walk- walked)
person (I walk, he walks)
number (dog or dogs)
possession (my dog’s bone)
define pragmatics
component of language where we vary linguistic form that we use according to people we are speaking to and context we find ourselves in
what does effective and appropraite language do
uses language in way to achieve communicative goal and not cause offense, misunderstanding
eg; make inference = they didn’t mean that like this
what is Morris semiotic triangle (pragmatics)
in language, triangulate:
1. real world conditions
2. signs we use (words, sentences)
3. users of signs (speaker, listener)
pragmatics is when sign relates to users, if we set up context first then tell about person in context, can refer to them with pronoun
how can syntactic development be tested
use novel words (fake word) and show 2 videos- lion push dog on swing, then dog push lion
say “point to where lion weefed dog”
age 2, child points to right video as able to know structure of sentence imply
how can we test if a child has understanding of functions of inflectional morphemes (ie, if child knows there are 2 of something if you add an s on it)
this is a wug
add another
there are two
what are there two of
“wugs”
but can be difficult as have some exceptions to morphological rules (mice, mouse)
what is morphological productivity
know that adding s means multiple
what is developmental trajectory of inflections
- discover inflection, then make error of omission (dog, even if theres 2)
- over apply inflections (eg, I blewed it up = overregularisation)
- manage to balance applying inflection
what models capture developmental sequence of developments of inflections
neural network/connectionist model
draws out both regularisations (common word rule) and allows for misconception
outline initial pragmatic learning
quickly learn can direct attention via gesture, vocalisation, eye-gaze, facial expression, touch (initiate joint attention)
then can connect sentence to allow narrative and build mental model for other, learn to present info in manageable chunk
later learn about non-literal language, deception, irony
what is a challenge for children for pragmatic development
using skills in a rapid conversation
when this breaks down need to use repair processes to stay on same page as another person
when do children start to combine words into a sentence, and what does it allow
around 2
enable to use grammar to convey complex thought
communicate in ways sensitive to listener, pragmatically appropriate
name 3 important pragmatics in sentences
- tune into speaker(interlocutor) state and aspect of physical context relevant to conversation
- mutual awareness of effects of communication, intentions, inference
- make multiple communicative moves in sequence as conversation unfold, introducing characters and setting context before explaining story
