PSY 2105 Chapter Notes - Chapter 11: Deep Structure And Surface Structure, Grammar, Transformational Grammar

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSY 2105
• Professor: Mariela Michel

Document Summary

Theories of language development: the theoretical approaches to language follow roughly four traditions, 1) biologically oriented model, 2) cognitive approaches, 3) sociocultural approaches, 4) environmental/learning analyses. For several reasons, theorists rule out the possibility that language is acquired by means of rewards, punishments, and imitation. But adults do not specifically teach children these rules. None of us could accurately describe the intricate system of language regulations we use so effortlessly to produce and understand good speech and to recognize when speech is not good. Genie the wild child: was not exposed to language until 13 years old because of abuse and neglect and after her rescue, she never fully acquired language, especially grammar skills. Chomsky argued that children cannot learn language simply by imitating what they hear, because they can produce and understand an unlimited number of new sentences. Modelling and learning by imitation need not involve exact copying.