Psyc 100 - Language

Nicaraguan Sign Langauge

language developed by deaf children

Psycholinguistics

the scientific study of language

Syntax

Rules for word order

Adjacency Pair

somebody speaks and someone listens

Common Ground

common knowledge shared between people in a conversation

Audience Design

Statements designed for our audience

Priming

Thinking about one thing and related things are then remembered

What percentage of our language is used for gossip?

70%

Linguistic Intergroup Bias

A language bias that increases stereotypes

Whorf Linguistic Relativity Hypothesis

Language shapes how we think and perceive the world

Theory of Mind

The ability to understand that other people have their own thoughts and knowledge. We are all independent thinkers.

When does theory of mind develop?

0-6 years of age

Agents

Moving objects that act on their own and influence behavior or events

1st Level of Theory of Mind

Ex. Monkeys

Agents, recognizing goals, intentional

2nd Level of Theory of Mind

Ex. Chimpanzees

Imitation, mimicry, imitation, automatic empathy

3rd Level of Theory of Mind

Ex. Human

Joint attention, visual perceptive taking

4th Level of Theory of Mind

Stimulation, Projection

5th Level of Theory of Mind

Inferring mental states

Imitation

copying a behaviour observed in someone else

Mimicry

Copying observed behaviour without being aware

Automatic Empathy

Mimicking/imitating a behaviour leads to feeling emotion of the person you are mimicking

Joint Attention

Two people paying attention to the same thing (they are both fully aware of it)

Visual Perceptive Taking

Perceiving something from another’s point of view

Stimulation

Putting yourself in someone else’s shoes by imagining how you would think or feel in their situation

Projection

Assuming someone else’s knowledge, desires, and feeling are the same your own

Inferring Mental States

Figuring out what someone else is thinking or feeling based on their actions, expressions, or other external clues

False Belief Tasks

Testing to see if a child understands that people have different information than them. Involves reading facial expressions and inferring intentions

What is the importance of play in children?

Allows them to take on different roles