Linguistic Theory Flashcards

Flashcards covering linguistic theory concepts, including lexicon theories, speech errors, and Garrett's model.

Lexicon Theories

Theory that the lexicon is organized as a neural network or connectionist network where lexical items (morphemes or whole words) are connected based on similarities.

The Onset

the consonant or consonants at the beginning of the syllable

The Rime

the part of the word that you would use to create a rhyme

The Nucleus

Just the vowel

syllable is broken down into two parts

the onset & rime

content morphemes

Carry semantic meaning

function morphemes

Serve grammatical purposes like tense

Lemma(s)

The abstract representation of a word's meaning

Lexeme(s)

the specific form of the word

Lexicon Structure

connectionist / neural network model (SPIDER WEB/Spiderman)

Lexical items

Morphemes or whole words

Computational System

• Comprised of RULES that allow us to construct novel utterances
  think coding = computing

Language Acquisition

• Chomsky vs. Skinner: Nativist hypothesis vs Behaviorist Model

Speech Errors

each error is defined by the (1) Segment it affects, the (2)Type of error, and (if relevant) the (3) Direction of the error.

Segments

• Phonemic

• Morpheme

• Whole Word

• Phrase/Syntactic

Types

Substitution

Addition

Deletion

Exchange

Blend

Semantic Connections

Words with similar meanings are linked (e.g., 'dog' and 'fox').

Phonological Connections

Words with similar sounds are linked (e.g., 'dog' and 'hog').

Other Associations

Words connected based on common associations (e.g., 'cat' and 'dog').

Spreading Activation

When one word is mentioned, related words become activated in the mind; can be excitatory or inhibitory.

Excitatory Activation

Saying a word activates related terms.

Inhibitory Activation

Saying a word blocks the activation of another related term.

Substitution

direction: anticipation or perseveration

Addition

Direction: anticipation or perseveration

Deletion

Direction: progressive or regressive

Exchange

• Error: a weekend for maniacs

• Target: a maniac for weekends

Blend

• Error: "I sold the teller"

• Target: " I told the seller"

• = Phoneme exchange

Whole Word Substitutions

Paraphasias, phonemic & semantic

Morpheme Exchanges

• O Error: "I saw two DRINKS dog from that fountain" (heavy accented syllable capitalized)
  O Target: "I saw two DOGS drink from that fountain".

• (heavy accented syllable capitalized)

GARRETT'S MODEL of production

• Message level

• Functional level

• Positional level

• Sound level

• Articulatory instructions

Message level

Conceptual level

Articulatory instructions

how make sound

How does Garrett's model help to explain morpheme exchanges?

We use morphemes separately from content and function

TOT (Tip of the Tongue) Errors

Supporting Lemma and Lexeme levels of word representation

Frame Model of Sound sequencing (between sound and articulatory)

• Syllabic Frame

• Enter Sounds

• Helps to explain why phoneme exchanges never affect syllabic structure and tend to involve the analogous parts of the syllable (e.g., the Onset is exchanged of two monosyllabic words)

Aphasia

• Broca's Aphasia

• Wernicke's Aphasia

• Conduction aphasia

Broca's Aphasia Symptoms

• Anomia (difficult to find the right words to say or write)

• Dysprosody (variations in melody, intonation, pauses, stresses, intensity, vocal quality, and accents of speech)

• Dysfluency (include pauses, fillers, errors, and repetitions)

Wernickes Aphasia Symptoms

• Anomia (difficult to find the right words to say or write)

• Neologisms use of neologisms (“new words”)

• Paraphasias (produce incorrect words or sound combinations when speaking)

• Semantic (a word with a similar meaning is substituted for the intended word)

• Phonemic (use words that resemble the intended word phonetically but contain 1 or more substituted syllables eg, “hosicle” instead of “hospital”)

Conduction aphasia symptoms

• arcuate fasciculus (a white matter bundle in the brain that connects the frontal, parietal, and temporal lobes) damage

• cant repeat words

Noam Chomsky

the father of modern linguistics & challenged the idea that language is simply a list of utterances learned by repetition.

Generative Theory

Language is based on rules that allow us to construct novel utterances.

Novel Utterances

We can generate new and unique sequences of words using rules.

Language Acquisition

Language acquisition is at least partially innate, requiring both a language environment and a built-in mechanism.

Operant conditioning & Language

BF Skinner’s theory that language is a learned social behavior

Phonemic Error

Affects individual sounds.

Morphemic Error

Affects meaningful parts of words.

Word Error

Affects entire words.

Phrase Error

Affects entire phrases.

Substitution (Paraphasia)

Replacing one segment with another.

Phonemic Paraphasia

Based on similar sounds (e.g., 'painted' instead of 'planted').

Semantic Paraphasia

Based on similar meanings (e.g., 'grew' instead of 'planted').

Paraphasia

A type of speech error characterized by the substitution of a word or sound with an incorrect one.

Phoneme

Individual sound.

Morpheme

Smallest unit of meaning.

Substitution / Paraphasia

Replacing one segment with another.

Phonemic Paraphasias are based on

Sound similarity to the target word

Semantic paraphasias are based on

Meaning similarities to the target word

Addition

Adding a new segment.

Deletion

Removing a segment.

Exchange

Swapping two segments.

Blend

Fusing two segments.

Direction

Refers to whether the error is influenced by segments that come before or after it

Anticipation

A sound is produced early, influenced by a sound that's to come (e.g., 're-read' instead of 'we read').

Perseveration

A sound is repeated, influenced by a sound that was already produced (e.g., 'we wed' instead of 'we read').

Progressive

Deletion that happens because of something that you're about to say.

Regressive

Deletion because of something you've already said.

Phonological Accommodation

Pronunciation of a word changes to better fit the surrounding sounds.

Garrett's Model

Describes the levels of processing involved in language production.

Message Level

Conceptual level; initial thought or idea.

Functional Level

Assignment of syntactic roles (subject, object, verb).

Positional Level

Arrangement of words and phrases in a specific order.

Sound Level

Phonological encoding; selection of appropriate sounds.

Articulatory Instructions

Instructions sent to the articulators (tongue, lips, etc.) to produce speech.