Language and development

part 2

Language milestones

• Definition: Typical ages when children reach key language skills (babbling, first words, two‑word phrases, simple sentences).

• Example: Around 12 months: first real words (“mama”); around 18–24 months: vocabulary spurt and two‑word combinations (“more juice”); by 3 years: simple multi‑word sentences.

When do you start using single words vs short sentences?

• Definition: Most children use single words around 1 year and short two‑word sentences around 2 years, with longer sentences by about age 3.

• Example: A 1‑year‑old might say “ball!” to request a toy; a 2‑year‑old might say “want ball,” and a 3‑year‑old might say “I want the ball.”

Behaviorist explanation of language

• Definition: Behaviorists (like Skinner) argued language is learned through conditioning—children imitate speech they hear and are reinforced when they use words correctly.

• Example: A child says “milk,” the parent smiles and gives milk; this positive outcome reinforces saying “milk” in the future.

Nativist explanation of language

• Definition: Nativists (like Chomsky) argue humans are born with an innate “language acquisition device” and a built‑in ability to learn language using universal grammatical rules.

• Example: Children can generate new sentences they have never heard before (“The doggy is jumping over the big sofa”), which is hard to explain by imitation alone.

Interactionist explanation of language

• Definition: Interactionists say language develops from both innate abilities and rich social interaction; biological readiness and social environment work together.

• Example: A baby has an inborn ability to detect speech patterns, but needs caregivers talking, reading, and responding in order to develop full language.

Broca’s area

• Definition: A region in the left frontal lobe involved in speech production and language expression.

• Example: Damage can cause Broca’s aphasia—slow, effortful speech like “want… water” while understanding is relatively preserved.

Wernicke’s area

• Definition: A region in the left temporal lobe important for understanding spoken and written language.

• Example: Damage can cause Wernicke’s aphasia—fluent but nonsensical speech and major difficulty understanding others.

Other species and the human language

• Definition: Many animals can communicate, but human language is uniquely complex—using grammar, recursion, and open‑ended symbol use.

• Example: Apes taught sign systems can learn many signs and combine some, but typically do not show full human‑like grammar or generativity.

Vocabulary

• Definition: The set of words a person knows and uses; includes both receptive (understood) and productive (spoken/written) vocabulary.

• Example: A two‑year‑old might use about 100 words, whereas an educated adult might know tens of thousands.

Grammar

• Definition: The overall system of rules in a language that governs how words are formed and combined to convey meaning (includes syntax and morphology).

• Example: English grammar lets you know “The dog chased the cat” is acceptable, but “Dog cat the chased” is not.

Syntactic rules

• Definition: Rules that govern how words are ordered and combined into phrases and sentences (sentence structure).

• Example: In English, typical order is subject–verb–object (“She ate pizza”), not “Ate she pizza.”

Phonological rules

• Definition: Rules about how sounds (phonemes) can be combined and how they change in a particular language.

• Example: In English, the sound combination “ng” can occur at the end of words (“sing”) but not at the beginning.

Morphological rules

• Definition: Rules that govern how morphemes (smallest units of meaning) are combined to form words.

• Example: Adding “‑ed” to a verb to indicate past tense (“walk” → “walked”) or “un‑” to make a negative (“happy” → “unhappy”).

Crystallized intelligence

• Definition: Crystallized intelligence is your accumulated knowledge and skills—facts, vocabulary, and strategies you have learned over time, stored in long‑term memory.

• Example: Knowing historical facts, word meanings on a vocabulary test, or how to solve a type of math problem you were taught all reflect crystallized intelligence.

Fluid intelligence

• Definition: Fluid intelligence is your ability to reason quickly and solve new, unfamiliar problems independent of prior specific knowledge.

• Example: Solving a novel logic puzzle or figuring out a pattern in a sequence you have never seen before uses fluid intelligence.

Robert Sternberg’s theory and 3 kinds of intelligence

• Definition: Sternberg’s triarchic theory says intelligence has three main parts: analytical, creative, and practical.

  • Analytical: Problem‑solving and academic skills measured by typical IQ tests.

  • Creative: Ability to deal with new situations, invent, and generate novel ideas.

  • Practical: “Street smarts,” knowing how to adapt to and handle everyday, real‑world tasks.

• Example:

  • Analytical: Solving math problems on the SAT.

  • Creative: Coming up with an original business idea.

  • Practical: Knowing how to talk to a boss to get a raise or how to navigate a new city efficiently.

WAIS

• Definition: The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) is a widely used IQ test designed to measure intelligence and cognitive ability in adults and older adolescents.

• Example: A clinical psychologist might give the WAIS‑IV to a 25‑year‑old to assess overall IQ plus specific abilities like working memory, processing speed, verbal comprehension, and perceptual reasoning.

WISC

• Definition: The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) is an IQ test used to measure cognitive ability in children roughly ages 6–16.

• Example: A school psychologist may administer the WISC‑V to a 9‑year‑old to evaluate learning strengths and weaknesses and help decide if special education services are needed.

Nature vs nurture

• Definition: In intelligence, nature vs nurture refers to the debate over how much IQ is shaped by genetic factors (nature) versus environmental influences like education, nutrition, and family (nurture).

• Example: Twin studies suggest genes matter (identical twins have more similar IQs), but adoption and schooling can significantly raise or lower measured IQ, showing strong environmental effects.

Person‑situation controversy

• Definition: The person‑situation controversy is the debate over whether behavior is better explained by stable personality traits (the “person”) or by situational factors (the “situation”).

• Example: Someone might be quiet in a classroom but very outgoing with close friends; this raises the question of whether their behavior is driven more by their trait “extraversion” or by context.

Stereotype threat

• Definition: Stereotype threat occurs when people fear confirming a negative stereotype about their group, which increases anxiety and can worsen their performance on tasks like tests.

• Example: A woman reminded of the stereotype “women are bad at math” right before a math test may perform worse than she would without that reminder.

Cultures and intelligence

• Definition: Different cultures emphasize and define intelligence differently—some focus more on academic skills, others on social responsibility, practical skills, or wisdom.

• Example: Western tests often stress analytical problem‑solving, whereas some non‑Western cultures might see being a good community member or showing social harmony as central to being “intelligent.”

Flynn effect

• Definition: The Flynn effect is the observed rise in average IQ scores over the last century, as newer generations score higher on standardized intelligence tests than earlier ones.

• Example: If the average IQ on a test was set to 100 in 1970, people taking the same test decades later might average higher scores (e.g., 110), so test makers must renorm tests to reset the average to 100.

The Big 5

• Definition: The Big Five are five broad trait dimensions often summarized as OCEAN: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

• Example:

  • High conscientiousness: organized, on time with assignments.

  • High extraversion: outgoing, energized by parties.

  • High neuroticism: more prone to anxiety and mood swings.

Flow state

• Definition: Flow is a highly focused, enjoyable mental state where a person is completely absorbed in a challenging but doable activity and loses track of time and self‑consciousness.

• Example: A gamer, musician, or athlete so immersed in what they are doing that hours pass without noticing and performance feels almost effortless is in a flow state.

Psychodynamic theory of personality

• Definition: Psychodynamic theory (from Freud and followers) explains personality in terms of unconscious processes, early childhood experiences, and internal conflicts among id, ego, and superego.

• Example: An adult who sabotages relationships might, in psychodynamic terms, be influenced by unconscious fears and unresolved childhood attachment conflicts they are not aware of.

Maslow’s self‑actualization

• Definition: Self‑actualization is Maslow’s idea of reaching one’s full potential—becoming the most authentic, creative, and fulfilled version of oneself, at the top of his hierarchy of needs.

• Example: An artist who has secure relationships, financial stability, and good self‑esteem, and now focuses on creating meaningful work and personal growth, is pursuing self‑actualization.

Cocktail party effect

• Definition: The cocktail party effect is the ability to focus attention on one conversation in a noisy environment while filtering out others, yet still notice personally relevant information like your own name.

• Example: At a loud party, you follow what your friend is saying but immediately notice when someone across the room mentions your name.

Expectancy theory

• Definition: In personality/motivation, expectancy theory (Rotter’s social learning approach) says behavior is influenced by expectations about whether our actions will lead to desired outcomes (and how much we value those outcomes).

• Example: A student studies hard because they expect that effort will lead to good grades and believe good grades will help them reach their goals; another who expects grades will not change no matter what may not bother studying.

Self‑concept

• Definition: Self‑concept is the collection of beliefs and knowledge you have about yourself—your traits, roles, abilities, and identities (“who I am”).

• Example: “I am a hardworking student, an introvert, and a good friend” are parts of someone’s self‑concept.

Self‑esteem

• Definition: Self‑esteem is your overall evaluation and emotional judgment of yourself—how much you like, value, and feel good about who you are.

• Example: Two people may both think “I’m shy” (same self‑concept), but one feels okay and accepts it (higher self‑esteem), while the other feels ashamed and hates that about themselves (lower self‑esteem)