PSYC 1001 Chapter Notes - Chapter 8: Noam Chomsky, Computer Architecture, Fast Mapping
16 Jun 2018
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Psychology Chapter 8 Notes
- Cognition: refers to the mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge
- Cognitive psychologist study memory, the complexities of language, inference, problem solving,
decision making, and reasoning
Cognitive psychology revolution
- 19th century focus on mind
o Introspection but too unreliable
- Behaviorism focus on overt responses
o Incomplete picture of human functioning
- Empirical study of cognition (1956)
o Herb Simon – problem solving
o Noam Chomsky – model of language
o George Miller – memory
- Computer revolution in psychology
o Computers began to be widely used
o Computer architecture analogy to human thought formulated
- Cognition is involved in all behavior
Language
- Language: consists of symbols that convey meaning, plus rules for combining those symbols, that
can be used to generate an infinite variety of messages
o symbolic (spoken sounds and written words to represent objects, actions, events, and
ideas)
o semantic (meaningful)
o Generative (symbols combined to generate a message)
o Structured (rules govern the arrangement of words into sentences)
The structure of language
Structure
Description
Phonemes
- Phonemes: the smallest speech units in a
language that can be distinguished
perceptually
- Estimate that humans are capable of
recognizing only about 100 basic sounds
and no one language uses all of these
phonemes
- The English language is composed of 40
phonemes
Morphemes and semantics
- Morphemes: are the smallest units of
meaning in a language
- Approximately 50 000 English
morphemes
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2
- Semantics: the area of language
concerned with understanding the
meaning of words and word
combinations
- Denotation: the dictionary definition of a
word
- Connotation: the emotional overtones
and secondary implications of a word
Syntax
- Syntax: a system of rules that specify how
words can be arranged into sentences
- Sentence must have both a subject and a
verb
- Childe’s acquisition of syntax seems to
progress very rapidly
- Phonology (sound system)
- Morphology (rules for word formation)
- Syntax (rules for how words combined to form sentences)
- Semantics (meaning of words and sentences)
- Pragmatics (gestures, facial expressions, intonation, etc.)
Children and language
- 3-month old’s can distinguish phonemes from all of the worlds languages, including phonemes
that they do not hear in their environment
- Ability is lost between 4 months and 12 months
- Janet Werker: human infants are well prepared to learn language and that babies have perceptual
biases that facilitate and guide the acquisition of phonology
o Optimal period for different subsystems involved in language acquisition
- Babbling allows infants to acquire the basics of language
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3
Age
General characteristics
1-5 months
Reflexive communication: vocalizes randomly,
coos, laughs, cries, engages in vocal play,
discriminates language from nonlanguage sounds
6-18 months
Babbling: verbalizes in response to the speech of
others; responses increasingly approximate
human speech patterns
10-13 months
First words: uses words, typically to refer to
objects
12-18 months
One-word sentence stage: vocabulary grows
slowly; uses nouns primarily; overextensions
begin
18-24 months
Vocabulary spurt: fast mapping facilitates rapid
acquisition of new word
3-50 words
2 years
Two-word sentence stage: uses telegraphic
speech; uses more pronouns and verbs
2.5 years
Three-word sentence stage: modifies speech to
take listener into account; oeegulaizatio’s
begin
3 years
Uses complete simple active sentence structure;
uses sentences to tell stories that are understood
by others; uses plurals
3.5 years
Expanded grammatical forms: expresses concepts
with words; uses four-word sentences
4 years
Uses five-word sentences
5 years
Well-developed and complex syntax: uses more
complex syntax; uses more complex forms to tell
stories
6 years
Display metalinguistic awareness
- Toddlers can comprehend more words spoken by others than they can actually produce to
express themselves
- Fast mapping: the process by which children map a word onto an underlying concept after only
one exposure
- Overextension: occurs when a child incorrectly uses a word to describe a wider set of objects or
actions than it is meant to (ages 1-2.5 years)
o Ex. A child uses the word ball for anything that is round (orange, apples, moon)
- Under extensions: occur when a child incorrectly uses a word to describe a narrower set of objects
or actions than it is meant to
o Child uses the word doll for one single favorite doll
- Telegraphic speech: consists mainly of content words; articles, prepositions, and other less critical
words are omitted
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Document Summary
Cognition: refers to the mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge. Cognitive psychologist study memory, the complexities of language, inference, problem solving, decision making, and reasoning. Empirical study of cognition (1956: herb simon problem solving, noam chomsky model of language, george miller memory. Computer revolution in psychology: computers began to be widely used, computer architecture analogy to human thought formulated. Phonemes: the smallest speech units in a language that can be distinguished perceptually. Estimate that humans are capable of recognizing only about 100 basic sounds and no one language uses all of these phonemes. The english language is composed of 40 phonemes. Morphemes: are the smallest units of meaning in a language. Semantics: the area of language concerned with understanding the meaning of words and word combinations. Denotation: the dictionary definition of a word. Connotation: the emotional overtones and secondary implications of a word. Syntax: a system of rules that specify how words can be arranged into sentences.
