Module - 7 Language Formation

Amity Institute of Psychology and Allied Sciences
Cognitive Psychology
(PSYC313)
Ms. Ria Mahanty

PGDGC, M.Phil Clinical Psychology RCI
Visiting Faculty
Department of Psychology, AIPS
Module VII: Language Formation

• Structure of language and its acquisition
• Speech perception
• Chomsky’s Language development theory
• Language and thought
Language
• The method of human communication, either spoken or
written, consisting of the use of words in a structured and
conventional way.
• Language is the ability to acquire and use complex systems
of communication, particularly the human ability to do so, and
a language is any specific example of such a system.
• The scientific study of language is called linguistics.
3 ASPECTS OF
LANGUAGE
PHONEMES
MORPHEMES
SYNTAX
PHONEMES:
• Phoneme, in linguistics is the smallest unit of speech distinguishing one
word (or word element) from another, as the element p in “tap,” which
separates that word from “tab,” “tag,” and “tan.”
• It is the smallest unit of sound that may cause a change of meaning within a
language, but that doesn’t have meaning by itself.
• The letters of the alphabets in English language have 26 Corresponding
basic sounds in speech i.e. one letter for each distinguishable speech sound.
• For example, the word “dog” has three phonemes: /d/, /o/, and / g /.
However, the word “shape,” despite having five letters, has only three
phonemes: /sh/, /long-a/, and /p/.
MORPHEMES:
• A morpheme is the smallest meaningful unit in a language.
• A morpheme is a series of phonemes that has a special meaning. If
a morpheme is altered in any way, the entire meaning of the word
can be changed.
• A morpheme is a language unit that cannot be broken down further
without loosing or altering its meaning. A single morpheme may
consist of any syllable or several syllables.
• Some morphemes are individual words (such as “eat” or “water”).
SYNTAX:
• syntax is the set of rules, principles, and processes that govern

the structure of sentences in a given language, usually
including word order. The arrangement of words and phrases
to create well-formed sentences in a language.
• The ultimate purpose of syntax is to understand how the
meaning of sentences is conveyed by the speaker to the
listener.
• For example, the English sentences “The baby ate the
carrot” and “The carrot ate the baby” do not mean the same
thing, even though they contain the exact same words.
Language Development
Language development is the process by which
children come to understand and communicate
language during early childhood. .
Infancy
Between birth and three months of age, most infants acquire the
following abilities:
• Seem to recognize their mother's voice.

• Quiet down or smile when spoken to.
• Turn toward familiar voices and sounds.
• Make sounds indicating pleasure.
Between three and six months, most infants can do the following:
• Turn their head toward a speaker.

• Watch a speaker's mouth movements.
• Respond to changes in a tone of voice.
• Cry differently out of pain or hunger.
• Mimic sounds, inflections, and gestures.
• Communicate desires with gestures.
Between six and nine months babies begin to do the following:
• Search for sources of sound.

• Recognize "dada," "mama," "bye-bye“.
• Express their moods by sound and body language.
• Play with sounds.
• Make long, more varied sound.
• Use their tongues to change sounds.
Between nine and 12 months babies may begin to do the

following:
• Listen when spoken to.
• Respond to simple requests.
• Understand "no“.
• Understand gestures.
• Associate voices and names with people.
• Know their own names.
• Use "mama" and "dada" for any person.
• Shout and scream.
Toddlerhood
Between 12 and 15 months children begin to do the following:
• Recognize names.
• Understand and follow one-step directions.
• Laugh appropriately.
• Use partial words.
• Gesture and speak "no“.
• Ask for help with gestures and sounds.
At 15 to 18 months of age children usually do the following:
• Understand "up," "down," "hot," "off“.

• Use 10 to 20 intelligible words, mostly nouns.
• Use complete words.
• Put two short words together to form sentences.
• Have 20 to 25 % of their speech understood by outsiders.
At 18 to 24 months of age toddlers usually do

the following :
• Follow two-step directions.

• Point to parts of the body.
• Speak three-word sentences.
• Ask two-word questions.
• Express pain verbally.
Between two and three years of age children acquire :
• The use of pronouns.

• Three to five-word sentences.
• Names for body parts, colors, toys, people, and objects.
• The ability to answer "what" questions.
Preschool
Three to four-year-olds usually can do the following:
• Understand most of what they hear.

• Use pronouns correctly.
• Use three to six-word sentences.
• Ask questions.
• Tell stories .
At age five most children can do the following:
• Follow three consecutive commands.

• Talk constantly.
• Use descriptive words.
• Know all the vowels and consonants.
• Use generally correct grammar.
Speech and language: what’s the difference?

• Speech means producing the sounds that form words. It’s a physical
activity that is controlled by the brain. Speech requires coordinated,
precise movement from the tongue, lips, jaw, lungs and voice box.
Making these precise movements takes a lot of practice, and that’s
what children do in the first 12 months.
• Language is the words that child understands and uses as well as how
he uses them. Language includes spoken and written language. The
parts that make up language include vocabulary & grammar.
Relationship between language and thought

Humans are not born with language, but learn it over time. This
means that language is almost the first thing we ever learn. Although
we may not be able to create words for a few months, our minds
start beginning to acquire language from the first time we hear it.
Therefore, the way we learn language actually can impact the way
we will learn for the rest of our lives.
• There is a very important relationship between thinking and

language. In a sense, they are codependent upon one another. One
can easily speak (language) and not convey a message to be thought
about.
• For example, a person may be saying something to another person
who is not paying attention. Here, language is being used, but the
one who is supposed to be listening and decoding the language
(thought) fails to do so.
How language helps to convey our thoughts!

• Language as a tool for representing ideas
• Language as a reflection of our own perspectives
• Language as a reflection of our cultural values and
experiences
• Languages do not limit our ability to perceive the world or to
think about the world, but they focus our perception, attention,
and thought on specific aspects of the world.
Language develops thought…….

• According to Benjamin Lee Whorf language determines the
contents of thought.
• This view is known as linguistic relativity hypothesis.
• In its strong version, this hypothesis holds what and how
individual can possibly think is determined by the Language
and linguistic categories they use (linguistic determinism).
• We speak and then we think
Thoughts develops Language…..
• Jean Piaget’s theory claims that “Thought determines Language”.

• He says that because a child has some thought, they learn the
language. Imitating other’s is a proof that a child is thinking.
Thinking is the basic need and necessity to learn a language.
• We think and learn before we speak
IMPORTANCE OF LANGUAGE
• Language is an important source of communication. Man is not only
affected by it, but also, expresses his personality through it
• All kinds of information can be sorted out by it and we convey our feelings,
thoughts, impressions, experiences to others through it.
• In journalism language plays an important role.
• Language helps in communication with people.
• Language is a complex system of symbols; it is the source of human
thoughts.
• Language is the easiest source of dual communication.

• Due to language people all over the world, come close, it creates universal
brotherhood. In present age, world has taken the shape of a family.
• We persuade others through language to think and act.
• It is right proverb that language gives happiness as well as sorrow. If it is
used for creating trouble for others; it is the negative aspect of the language.
CHOMSKYS THEORY OF
CHILDREN’S LANGUAGE
DEVELOPMENT
Noam Chomsky believes that children are born with an inherited

ability to learn any human language. He claims that certain linguistic
structures which children use so accurately must be already
imprinted on the child’s mind.
Chomsky believes that every child has a ‘language acquisition
device’ or LAD which encodes the major principles of a language
and its grammatical structures into the child’s brain.
Chomsky's Theory Challenged

Chomsky's concept clashes directly with behaviorist B. F.
Skinner, who gave the idea that language is a direct result of
conditioning, and with psychologist Jean Piaget, viewed
language acquisition as a part of overall cognitive development in
children.
• Jean Piaget theorized that language is made up of symbols and

structures, but exhibits itself as a child’s mental abilities mature. In
addition, language is only one of many human mental or cognitive
activities.
• His particular insight was the role of maturation (simply growing
up) in children's increasing capacity to understand their world:
they cannot undertake certain tasks until they are psychologically
mature enough to do so.
• Piaget proposed that children's thinking does not develop entirely

smoothly: instead, there are certain points at which it "takes off"
and moves into completely new areas and capabilities.
• He saw these transitions as taking place at about 18 months, 7
years and 11 or 12 years. This has been taken to mean that
before these ages children are not capable (no matter how bright)
of understanding things in certain ways, and has been used as
the basis for scheduling the school curriculum.
Language Development
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Module - 7 Language Formation

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Amity Institute of Psychology and Allied Sciences

Ms. Ria Mahanty

Module VII: Language Formation

• syntax is the set of rules, principles, and processes that govern

• Seem to recognize their mother's voice.

• Turn their head toward a speaker.

Between six and nine months babies begin to do the following:

• Search for sources of sound.

Between nine and 12 months babies may begin to do the

Between 12 and 15 months children begin to do the following:

At 15 to 18 months of age children usually do the following:

• Understand "up," "down," "hot," "off“.

At 18 to 24 months of age toddlers usually do

• Follow two-step directions.

Between two and three years of age children acquire :

• The use of pronouns.

Three to four-year-olds usually can do the following:

• Understand most of what they hear.

At age five most children can do the following:

• Follow three consecutive commands.

Speech and language: what’s the difference?

Relationship between language and thought

• There is a very important relationship between thinking and

How language helps to convey our thoughts!

Language develops thought…….

Thoughts develops Language…..

• Jean Piaget’s theory claims that “Thought determines Language”.

• Language is the easiest source of dual communication.

Noam Chomsky believes that children are born with an inherited

Chomsky's Theory Challenged

• Jean Piaget theorized that language is made up of symbols and

• Piaget proposed that children's thinking does not develop entirely

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