Class notes

Unit 9 - Language

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Course
Psyc 101

Institution
University Of British Columbia (UBC )

Gain insights into the complexities of language acquisition, development, and comprehension. Explore key concepts such as language structure, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics. Delve into different theoretical perspectives that help us understand how language influences cognition and communication....

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Uploaded on May 11, 2023
Number of pages 3
Written in 2020/2021
Type Class notes
Professor(s) Eva zysk
Contains Language - psyc101

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Unit 9 – Language
Psyc 101 – Eva Zysk

Learning
- Language: consists of symbols that convey meaning for combining those symbols, according to rules of
grammar, that can generate an infinite variety of messages
 Speech, hand gestures, body language, written language, animal communication (dolphins click,
monkeys call, etc.)
- Grammar: a set of rules that specify how units of language can be combined to produce a meaningful
message.

Structure
- Phonemes – smallest unit of speech in a language
that can be distinguished perceptually
- Morphemes – smallest unit of meaning in a
language
 Words (e.g., content morphemes)
 Root words (e.g., functional morphemes)
friend, ability, etc.
 Combinations (adding prefixes and/or
suffixes) unfriendly, disability.
- Semantics – area of language concerned with understanding the meaning of words and word
combinations
 Denotation – dictionary definition
 Connotation – includes emotional overtones and secondary implications
- Syntax – a system of rules that specify how words can be arranged into phrases and sentences
- Phonological rules indicate how phonemes can be combined to produce speech sounds
- Deep structure: meaning of the sentence
- Surface structure: wording of the sentence

Theories
1. Behaviourist theories (nurture)
 Skinner  children learn through imitation, reinforcement, and other established principles of
conditioning.
 Criticism  parents don’t spend time correcting grammar, children generate more grammatical
sentences they ever hear, overgeneralizations are not predicted by behavioural theory.
2. Nativist theories (nature)
 Chomsky  humans have an inborn or “native” biological propensity to develop language
 Language acquisition seems effortless
 Developmental timing
 Cross-cultural similarities
 Optimal periods
 Criticism  does not explain how language develops (only
why), social factors play a role

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