Problem 9 - language etc

Question 1

deontological prescriptions

Answer 1

-forbid certain behavior regardless of consequences

Question 2

utilitarian prescriptions

Answer 2

-brining greatest food for greatest number of people

Question 3

pragmatics - key word

Answer 3

• concerned with practical language use and comprehension
• related to intended rather than literal meaning
• taking account of current social context (tone, environment)
• meaning minus semantic

Question 4

figurative language

Answer 4

-forms of language not intended to be taken literally

Question 5

standard pragmatic model

Answer 5

3 stages

1) literal meaning is accessed
2) deciding weather literal meaning makes sense in context
3) if it seems inadequate -> search for non literal meaning

• > literal meaning should be accessed faster and automatically
• > non literal meanings are optional

Question 6

graded salience hypothesis

Answer 6

• initial processing is determined by salience or prominence rather than by type of meaning (literal vs non literal)
• novel metaphors are less salient and familiar -> require additional processing
• salience is determined by frequency and familiarity
• less-salient meanings require extra inferential processes -> strong contextual support

Question 7

predication model of metaphor understanding

Answer 7

• two components
  1) latent semantic analysis component
  2) construction integration component

Question 8

1) latent semantic analysis component

Answer 8

• this represents the meanings of words based on their relations with other words in a 300-dimension space
• non directional process of finding commonalities between words

Question 9

2) construction integration component

Answer 9

• uses info from first component to construct interpretations of statements
• argument is a predicate structure (eigenschaft)
• this component selects features of predicate that are relevant to the argument
• inhibits irrelevant predicate features

example: ‘Lawyers are sharks’
- > features such as vicious and aggressive are relevant
- > having fins and swimming are not

Question 10

Evidence for the predication model of metaphor understanding

Answer 10

• Non-reversibility of metaphors
• Lawyers are sharks # Sharks are Lawyers

-> only those features of the predicate relevant to the argument are selected

• > changing the argument changes the features selected
• ‘my lawyer is a shark’ was harder too understand when preceded by a contextual sentence emphasizing the literal meaning of ‘shark’ (e.g. sharks can swim)

Question 11

common ground

Answer 11

• the mutual knowledge and beliefs shared by a speaker and listener
• listener expect that speakers will mostly refer to info that is in the common ground

Question 12

speakers have 2 methods to deal with common ground

Answer 12

1) shared responsibility = speaker asks listener to give him info in the case there is a problem with the common ground
2) cognitive overload = the speaker tries to keep track of his and the listeners’ knowledge, but that often requires excessive cognitive processing

Question 13

Perspective adjustment model - Keysar

Answer 13

-can be very effortful for listener to keep working out the common ground existing between them and the speaker
-instead: listeners use a rapid and non-effortful egocentric heuristic:
=> a strategy in which listeners interpret what they hear based on their own knowledge rather than on knowledge shared with speaker

Question 14

talking and thinking - western cultures

Answer 14

• gift of language is one of the highest valued
• language and thought are seen as related
• western people reveal who they are with what they say

Question 15

talking and thinking - eastern cultures

Answer 15

• they do not see language and thought as related

- do not think that what one says is who one is

Question 16

what if there are really differences in east and west between the relation of talking and thinking?

Answer 16

• we should be able to observe variation in performance on cognitive tasks, between cultures that speak more and those that speak less
• speaking should interfere with thinking on eastern cultures

Question 17

solving Raven’s matrices

• study
• methods

Answer 17

• participants solve Raven’s matrices
• once in silence
• once with a vocal task (either say what they thought during the problem solving or repeat the alphabet)

Question 18

Study: Raven’s matrices

-findings

Answer 18

Westeners:

• talking and thinking = same
• when talking expresses thinking -> no negative impact on performance
• when talking interferes with thinking (articulatory suppression) -> big impairment

Easteners:

• when talking expresses thinking -> impaired
• when talking interferes with thinking -> not really impaired

Question 19

explanation for Raven’s matrices findings

Answer 19

• due to different types of thinking used in each culture
• analytic in west: focus in one part that can easily be expressed in words
• holistic in east: difficult to express thoughts in words -> multiple relations can’t be described at once

Question 20

pen study

Answer 20

• first conduction: write down which pen one chooses
• second condition: say loud which pen they choose
• westerns: felt worse when the pen was taken away when they verbally chose a favorite pen
• > greater commitment to the pen

-asians: evaluation of situation is independent from expression (writing/talking)

Question 21

Explicit VS implicit communication in high context cultures

Answer 21

• east
• people can be less explicit since much is already understood by implicit cues ( how something is said is more important than what is said)

-they can ‘read the air’

Question 22

Explicit vs implicit communication in low context cultures

Answer 22

• west
• less shared information (rules) to guide behavior
• must communicate more explicitly to fill in gaps that could lead to misunderstandings

Question 23

Sapir-Whorf

Whorfian/linguistic relativity hypothesis

Answer 23

• hypothesis: language determines how we think -> strong version, has universally been rejected
• language influences how we think but much thought occurs outside of language
• > weaker version, universally accepted
• > supported by Einstein
• language obliges people to think about certain ideas (die Brücke = female, unlike english)

Question 24

Linguistic relativity and color perception

Answer 24

• proven that cultures that split up the color spectrum differently ( in different words) perceive them different as well
• > categorize them differently
• article: russian blues

Question 25

Linguistic relativity and odor perception

Answer 25

- in english, there aren't many words to describe odors | - > english-speakers are not as good in recognizing different smells

Question 26

linguistic relativity and perceptions of agency (Handlung)

Answer 26

- in english, a sentence that is said in an agentive way 'blames someone' (i broke the vase) - when it is said in a non-agentive way , this is not the case ( the vase broke itself) - in english -> agentive ways are common -> makes more accurate to determine did something - spanish speaking people use the non-agency style more often

Question 27

linguistic relativity and spatial perception

Answer 27

-english describes positions of object as relative to position of speaker (left, right) - other cultures use general descriptions (east of object, west) - >perceive direction of world in terms of cardinal directions and not relative to their body's position

Question 28

numerical cognition

Answer 28

-this aspects support the strong, and usually rejected version of the Whorfian hypothesis - variation between cultures when it comes to numerical understanding - depends on counting system - cultures with poor number system also have poor competence with mathematics -> the absence of linguistic terms for specific numbers restricts the ability to understand numerical concepts => thinking depends on language

Question 29

compound Bilingualism

Answer 29

- person learns two languages in the same context where they are used concurrently - fused presentation of the languages in the brain

Question 30

coordinate bilinguals

Answer 30

-person learns the languages in separate environments -words of the two languages are kept separate with each word having its own specific meaning -

Question 31

functional neuroplasticity

Answer 31

-the study of how experience modifies brain structures and brain function

Question 32

Bilinguals are better at...

Answer 32

- symbol manipulation and reorganization - metalinguistic awareness = solving linguistic problems based on understanding such concepts as the difference between form and meaning - executive control

Question 33

Monolinguals are better at..

Answer 33

- verbal skills - large vocabulary - picture-naming tasks - semantic fluency= comprehending and producing words

Question 34

language processing in bilinguals

Answer 34

- joint activation of languages - > fluent bilinguals show some measure of activation of both languages and some interaction between them at all times - even in contexts that are entirely driven by only one of the languages - joint activation creates attention problem - need to select correct language from competing options - > ordinary linguistic processing more effortful for bilinguals

Question 35

inhibitory control model

Answer 35

-?

Question 36

bilingual interactive model

Answer 36

?

Question 37

Bilingualism and dementia

Answer 37

- lifelong bilingualism protects against age-related cognitive decline - may even postpone the onset of symptoms

Question 38

cognitive reserve

Answer 38

-idea that engagement in stimulating physical or mental activity can act to maintain cognitive functioning in healthy aging and postpone the onset of symptoms in those suffering form dementia

Question 39

Conclusion: bilinguals better at...

Answer 39

-inhibiton -selection -switching -sustained attention -working memory -representation and retrieval => mental flexibility

Question 40

linguistic determinism

Answer 40

- language determines thought | - problematic behavioral measures

Question 41

linguistic relativism

Answer 41

- language-thought interaction | - no neurophysiological evidence

Question 42

individual differences - working memory capacity

Answer 42

- individuals high in WM capacity perform better on comprehension tasks than those low in WM capacity - greater attentional control - less mind wondering - better at discriminating what more important

Question 43

Discourse Processing - key word

Answer 43

- discourse = connected text or speech generally at least several sentences long (=story) - > we draw inferences most of the time when reading or listening to someone

Question 44

discourse processing - 3 types of inferences

Answer 44

1) logical inferences - > inferences depending solely on the meaning of words 2) bridging/backward inferences -> inferences that are drawn to increase the coherence between the current and preceding parts of a text (anaphor resolution, causal inferences) 3) elaborative/forward inferences - >inferences that add details to a text that is being read by making use of our general knowledge -> readers generally draw logical and bridging inferences because they are essential for understanding

Question 45

anaphor resolution

Answer 45

-working out the referent of a pronoun or noun by relating it to some previously mentioned noun or noun phrase

Question 46

two ideas about inferences (2)

Answer 46

1) constructionist approach - > we have a bunch of unrelated ideas while we read 2) minimalist hypothesis - > we make inferences after reading

Question 47

constructionist approach

Answer 47

- on the mark when the reader is attempting to comprehend the text for enjoyment or mastery at a more leisurely pace - bransford - mental models of situation and events referred to in the text

Question 48

minimalist approach

Answer 48

- probably correct when the reader is very quickly reading the text, when the text lacks global coherence, and when the reader has very little background knowledge - goal oriented inferences, nur das nötigste

Question 49

discourse comprehension

Answer 49

- schema theory - Bartlett theory - construction integration model

Question 50

limitations predicate model

Answer 50

-only for A is B metaphor

Question 51

egocentric heuristic

Answer 51

-tendency to consider referent objects that are not in the common ground -everyone sticks to their own common ground - -misunderstandings happen a lot

Question 52

egocentric heuristic, evidence, evaluation, limitation

Answer 52

...

Question 53

working memory - theories, hypothesis

Answer 53

1) high wm -> good focus, reduced mind wandering in conservation -> better comprehension 2) form effective situation models when reading 3) better at discriminating at relevant and irrelevant info - > but IQ and vocabulary are important as well

Question 54

schema theory

Answer 54

- bartlett | - top down

Question 55

3 types of errors that can occur when using schemas for/while recalling

Answer 55

-rationalization: make recall more rational, fit with own cultural expectations -levelling: omitting (löschen) unfamiliar details -sharpening: selecting certain details for embellishment (Verzierung)

Question 56

construction- integration model -Knitsch

Answer 56

- sentences -> erstellt proposition representing its meaning - spreading activation process -> selects propostions -> put into 3 categories - > surface representation - > propositional representation (meaning) - > situation representation ( mental model representing situation and events) -> assumes bottom up

Question 57

findings and limitations - construction integration model

Answer 57

- > top down processing should be included | - emotions are not included

Question 58

event index model

Answer 58

-wer wie wo was warum ....... -5 dimensions

Question 59

event segmentation

Answer 59

- 1 dimension | - > if one thing changes, completely new picture is formed

Question 60

west

Answer 60

- greek background , debating etc - believe and thought related - analytic focus on one thing -> easy to express

Question 61

east

Answer 61

- holistic thinking | - > cant be expressed in words easily