Psychology 2410A/B Chapter Notes - Chapter 9: Nicaraguan Sign Language, Bayes Estimator, Kanzi

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 2410A/B
• Professor: Adam Cohen

Document Summary

Most common distinctions have been between phonology, semantics, synatax, and pragmatics. Phonology: sounds patterns of a language and rules for combining sounds into words. Phonemes: smallest units of sound that create differences in meaning: eg: words pin and thin the differences are /p/ and /th/ and these sound units (phonemes) change meaning of two words. Semantics: tells us meaning of individual words and how words combine to convey larger meanings. As kids gain semantic knowledge, they develop more extensive and elaborate conceptual knowledge of categories: thought its also possible to understand some conceptual categories without having words for them. Syntax: refers to set of rules concerning how words are combined into a sentence. Grammar: knowledge of syntax equated with knowledge of grammar: also refers to knowledge of other rules beyond those governing relations between words, such as relations between elements inside words.