Psych Unit 2: Language Ch. 9

Nativist Explanation (Naom Chomsky)

-language-learning capacities are built into the brain, which is specialized to acquire language rapidly through simple exposure to speech -theory does not explain how language develops, only why

Shortcomings of the Behaviorist Explanation

1. Parent's don't usually spend much time teaching their children to speak grammatically correct 2. Children generate much more grammatically correct sentences than they could ever hear 3. Errors children make tend to be overgeneralization of grammatical rules Behaviorist theory does not predict these aspects since it believes that children are learning through trial & error of imitating what they hear

HW 12: _____ are to sounds, as _____ are to meaning. Select one: a. Morphemes; phonemes b. Dialects; morphemes c. Phonemes; morphemes d. Phonemes; dialects

c. phonemes, morphemes

Deep structure

the underlying meaning of a sentence

What are the 5 key higher cognitive functions in humans

1. Acquiring & using language 2. Forming concepts & categories 3. Making decisions 4. Solving problems 5. Reasoning

3 Characteristics of language development

1. Children learn language at an astonishing rate. 2. Children make few errors while learning to speak. 3. Children's passive mastery develops faster than their active mastery (can understand language better than they can speak it)

3 Differences between human language & other species

1. Human language has a very complex structure 2. Humans use words to refer to intangible things 3. Humans use language to name, categories, & describe things to ourselves when we think, which influences how knowledge is organized in our brains

Telegraphic speech

2-word sentences devoid of function morphemes and consist mostly of content words

How many human languages are there

4000 - with 50 language families

Interactionist Explanation

Although infants are born with an innate ability to acquire language, social interactions play a crucial role in language. -Theory explains how innate biological processes + environmental experiences lead to language acquisition

What do language & color processing/the concept of time have in common?

Both show the influence of language on thought

0-4 months

Can tell the difference between speech sounds (phonemes). Cooing, especially in response to speech

Generating a sentence

Deep structure --> surface structure

Language & Color Processing

English = 11 basic color terms, Himba= 5 basic color terms English= 1 name for blue, Russian=2names for blue

Language & the Concept of time

English: future=foward, past=backward -- horizontal spacial relations Mandarin (Chinese): future=up, past=down -- vertical spacial relations

HW 12: Syntax refers to a basic sound unit of a given language. Select one: True False

False

HW 12: Today, most cognitive psychologists believe that language and thought are largely synonymous. Select one: True False

False

(T/F) At birth, infants are already tuned into their native language and can only hear those corresponding contrasting sounds

False, infants start with the ability to distinguish among all the contrasting sounds in all human languages but then after 6 months this ability goes away and they can only hear the contrasting sounds in the language spoken around them

(T/F) Languages can be picked up easily at any time in life

False, language can only be acquired during restricted periods of development. In humans, after puberty is reached, acquiring language is extremely difficult. -Ex. Genie case, immigrants

HW 12: Infants begin to babble speech sounds between 1 and 3 months of age. Select one: True False

False, tabling occurs at 4-6 months

HW 12: People with Broca's aphasia primarily have difficulty understanding language. Select one: True False

False: Broca's aphasia is damage to the frontal lobe so people would have trouble producing language. Wernicke's aphasia, damage to the temporal lobes, is where difficulty understanding language would happen

Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis

Language shapes the nature of thought

Is human language a recent or distant phenomenon

Recent- spoken 1-3 million years ago, written 6,000 years ago

Comprehending a sentence

Surface structure --> deep structure

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: Language development as an innate, biological capacity is explained by a. fast mapping. b. behaviorism. c. nativist theory. d. interactionist explanations.

c. nativist theory

Genie case

The case in which a thirteen-year-old girl raised in social isolation was introduced to language and normal life. She initially was as mentally-developed as an 18-month-old. It was very difficult for her to learn the rules of English, even with tutors, because she did not acquire languages skills before puberty.

Language development & cognitive development debate

Theory 1: orderly progression could result from general cognitive development that is unrelated to experience with a specific language Theory 2: orderly progression could depend on experience with a specific language, reflecting a child's emerging knowledge of that language (most likely)

"Ball" is a morpheme consisting of 3 phonemes True or False

True

(T/F) As children acquire grammar rules, they tend to overgeneralize

True

HW 12: The nativist position argues that language-learning capacities are built into the brain. Select one: True False

True

(T/F) Deaf infants also babble

True, deaf infants will babble at the same time and sequence as babies that can hear, they will just babble through sign language

College level

Vocabulary of 200,000 words

5th grade

Vocabulary of 40,000 words

36-60 months

Vocabulary of >10,000 words, production of full sentences, mastery of grammatical morphemes and function words. Can form questions and negations

24-36 months

Vocabulary of ~1000 words, production of phrases and incomplete sentencees

12-18 months

Vocabulary of ~50 words on average by this age (simple nouns, adjectives, and action words) and can understand several times more words than that. Toddlers generally learn nouns before verbs

Behaviorist Explanations (BF Skinner)

We learn to talk through reinforcement, shaping, extinction, & other basic principles of operant condition. -This theory offers a simple account of language development but doesn't account for many fundament characteristics of language development

Language Acquisition Device (LAD)

a collection of processes in the human brain that facilitate language learning

Morphological Rules

a set of rules that indicate how morphemes can be combined to form words

Phonological rules

a set of rules that indicate how phonemes can be combined to produce speech sounds

Syntactical Rules

a set of rules that indicate how words can be combined to form phrases and sentences

Grammar

a set of rules that specify how the units of language can be combined to produce meaningful messages

Genetic Dysphasia

a syndrome characterized by an inability to learn the grammatical structure of language despite having otherwise normal intelligence

Language

a system for communicating with others using signals that are combined according to rules of grammar and convey meaning

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: A collection of processes that facilitate language learning is referred to as a. phonological rules. b. dysphasia. c. a language acquisition device. d. grammatical generalizations.

c. LAD

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: 2. Which of the following statements about language development is inaccurate? a. Language acquisition is largely a matter of children imitating adult speech. b. Deep structure refers to the meaning of a sentence, while surface structure refers to how it is constructed. c. By the time the average child begins school, a vocabulary of 10,000 words is not unusual. d. Children's passive mastery of language develops faster than their active mastery.

a.

The nativist approach to language development: a. believes that humans have an innate ability to acquire language b. believes that environmental factors affect language development c. places heavy emphasis on the role of social interactions

a.

HW 12: _____ is an early stage of speech development during which a baby vocalizes a wide variety of nonword sounds. Select one: a. babbling b. fast mapping c. telegraphic processing d. Baby talk

a. babbling

HW 12: Ming is learning English and today learned that the word talking is made up of two units of meaning: talk and ing. Ming is learning about Select one: a. morphemes b. phonemes c. syntax d. babbling

a. morphemes

HW 12: Janice is learning about the alphabet and how to read, but she is struggling to make the s and z sounds. Janice is having difficulty with: Select one: a. phonemes b. morphemes c. syntax d. telegraphic speech

a. phonemes

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: Damage to the brain region called Broca's area results in a. failure to comprehend language. b. difficulty in producing grammatical speech. c. the reintroduction of infant babbling. d. difficulties in writing.

b.

HW 12: Language is defined as: Select one: a. The speech sounds produced when humans reach a certain point of evolution. b. A system for communicating with others using signals and rules of grammar. c. A symbolic system characterized by increasing levels of complexity. d. An abstract ability unique to humans an their ancestors.

b.

Infants begin to babble between the ages of _____ months a. 1 and 3 b. 4 and 6 c. 10 and 12 d. 18 and 24

b. 4-6

HW 12: A set of rules that specify how units of language can be combined to produce meaningful messages is called: Select one: a. Syntax b. Grammar c. Morphology d. Deep structure

b. grammar

HW 12: One-year old Matthew wanders into the kitchen where his father is making dinner for the family. He points to the counter and says, "Nana!" His father looks down and says, "Do you want to eat a banana?" Matthew then gets very excited and starts jumping up and down. Matthew is currently in the _____ stage of language development. Select one: a. babbling b. one-word c. telegraphic d. fast-mapping

b. one-word

4-6 months

babbles consonants

10-12 months

begins to use single words (First words!)

Deep Structure refers to the ___________ of a sentence. a. grammar b. wording c. meaning d. linguistic relativity

c.

When a toddler wants her mother to give her more juice, she says "more juice" instead of "juice more". This way of expressing herself shows that she understands: a. fast mapping b. function morphemes c. syntax d. parsing

c.

HW 12: Lauren has just begun to use two-word phrases, such as "give doll" and "throw ball." Lauren is probably about _____ months old. Select one: a. 0-6 b. 12-18 c. 18-24 d. 36-60

c. 18-24

HW 12: The nativist theory of language development suggests that: Select one: a. children learn language through hearing others speak it. b. language influences thought. c. the ability to use language is inborn. d. a child's use of language develops from a desire to interact socially.

c. the ability to use language is inborn

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: The linguistic relativity hypothesis maintains that a. language and thought are separate cognitive phenomena. b. words have different meanings to different cultures. c. human language is too complex for nonhuman animals to acquire. d. language shapes the nature of thought.

d.

Ch. 9 Concept Quiz: The combining of words to form phrases and sentences is governed by a. phonological rules. b. morphological rules. c. structural rules. d. syntactical rules.

d. syntactical rules

Surface structure

how a sentence is worded

Nativist Theory:

language development is best explained as an innate, biological capacity

Babbling

stage of language development at about 4 months when an infant spontaneously utters nonsense sounds

Fast Mapping

the fact that children can map a word onto an underlying concept after only a single exposure

Morphemes

the smallest meaningful units of language

Phenoms

the smallest units of sound that are recognizable as speech rather than as random noise

6-10 months

understands some words and simple requests

18-24 months

vocabulary increases to and average of 200 words two-words combinations (telegraphic speech) ordered to syntactical rules