Week 7 - Language Flashcards
What is language?
The primary mode of communication in every human culture.
Range of informational, social, emotional functions
Which systems are involved in language?
System of symbols, sounds/signs, meanings, and the rules for combining them.
What is the nature of language?
(Spoken) language is squired without specific instruction and becomes automatic
We don’t usually notice it’s complexity
Requires co-ordination of physical, cognitive, and social skills to produce language effectively
Language symbols are
Arbitrary
-limited sound symbolism
•onomatopoeia: “hiss”, “buzz”
•phonoesthemes: flap, flee, flick, fling
Human language is generative
-infinite number of ways to generate new words and sentences
What is a phoneme?
Smallest unit of sound (th,a,t,s)
What’s a morpheme?
Smallest unit of meaning (word shape)
Eg. That, short, en, ing, re, un
Many are while words (nation, dance, interest)
What is syntax/grammar?
Grammatical rules about word order and sentence structure (the red dog sat on the mat)
Knowledge of syntax allows us to alter “surface structure” but maintain “deep structure”.
- the girl was bitten by the fish
- the fish bit the girl
What re semantics?
Word meaning (sea~= ocean)
Literal meaning of morphemes, words, sentences.
Meaning is very specific
English has few true synonyms
English has many homophones
-semantic context (and syntax) helps to disambiguate (look at that girls calf, she went on a date)
What’s extralinguistic info?
The way language is used and understood in everyday life
Beyond actual words, but essential for interpreting meaning (that’s a rather short skirt)
Literal meaning is not always the intended one:
-my door is always open
-it’s a bit cool in here
-shall we go to (expensive restaurant) for dinner?
•well, which bank should we rob first?
Describe some elements of extra linguistic information in nonverbal communication.
Can speak louder than words;
- body language and gestures
- facial expression
- vocalisations (eg. Gasps, sighs)
Important to use these cues appropriately in different cultures
Early language learning in infants
Infacts start heading (muffled) language after about 5 months in the womb
Newborns can recognise mothers voice and native language songs/stories. How do we know? Because of high amplitude sucking
Babbling: intentional but meaningless vocalisation (learn to produce phonemes and intonation
Start with all phonemes, but end up better at distinguishing phonemes of native language
Development of motor and auditory recognition processes
What is the process of learning words?
~ 6 months, understands own name 9-12 months: understand other words ~12 months: start saying first words 12-18 months: saying 20-100 words VOCABULARY EXPLOSION 24 months: several hundred words 48 months: several thousand words
What’re some early linguistic errors with phonemes?
Children pronounce words imperfectly at first
-production constraints rather than lack of knowledge
Early linguistic errors in semantics?
Hard to learn exactly what words mean
- overgeneralisation/overextension
- under generalisation/underextension
Syntax; as learned in later development
- holophrases: single word phrase
- number of words gradually increases
- word order, morphological markers
Extralinguistic communication; learned in later development
- development more gradual
- 24 months, can use speakers looking/pointing to help understanding, emotional tone
- takes years to understand sarcasm, irony, etc
What is bilingualism?
Having use of two learned languages
Dominant vs. balanced bilinguals
Bilinguals show:
- same progression as monolingual acquisition
- slight delay in squiring syntax, but not vocab
- superior metalinguistic awareness (Long term)
Bilingualism in early dev-> use same brain areas
Later in development -> different in brain areas
Sign language
A complete language system
- generative, with syntactic structure
- some signs are iconic (sign conveys meaning) but many arbitrary (does not contain meaning)
- language and visual/spatial areas of brain
- dead babies of native signing deaf parents show same stages of language learning as hearing babies
Is there a critical/sensitive period for acquiring language?
Yes; anytime before the age of 7 is the easiest time to learn language. Rapidly declines after that
Theories of language acquisition: What is the imitation/learning theory?
Language, learned through imitation, and classical and operant conditioning
-parents model words/ phrases; shape, reinforce, and “recast” children’s responses
BUT
children generate new words/combinations
Parents tend to reinforce correct meaning, not correct grammar
Theories of language acquisition: nativist/innatist theories
- Noam Chomsky, Steven Pinker
- “language aquisition device”: innate neural structures for acquiring language
- explains: rapid aquisition, similarity across children/language/modality, specialised brain areas
BUT
Why is grammar learned so slowly?
Descriptive - doesn’t actually explain how it occurs, or generate testable hypotheses
Theories of language acquisition: general cognitive processing theories
- learning language is just like learning anything else
- ability to perceive, learn, recognise patterns is enough to learn language
BUT
- children better than adults at learning language, but not everything else
- distinct cognitive processes/brain activation occur during language processing
What’re some ways that animals communicate?
Bees: waffle dance tells it’s mates where to find food
Vervet monkeys: share specific (arbitrary) alarm calls for different predators
Chimps: sign language, lexigrams, but limitations
Bonobos: learn through observation, use language socially, but poor syntax
African grey parrot: Alex learnt to use language creatively (repetition rather than observation)
The nature of written language
Not in every culture, must be taught
Written languages can be:
- logographic
- syllabic
- alphabetic
- can move in different directions
