Summary Psychology of Language - week
1–4
18/09/2025
Week 1: Language as a cognitive system; computational
system of mind
Terminology week 1
1. linguistics: The study of language per se, rather than the study of a language. An academic
linguist is interested in explaining what it means to know a language, and what knowledge of
language might comprise. Critically, the study of linguistics can encompass all languages, in the
quest to determine what aspects of language might be universal versus what might be
idiosyncratic or particular to individual languages
2. psycholinguistics: Psycholinguistics is the study of the psychological processes involved in
language use. It is a branch of both linguistics and psychology.
a. The language faculty: human language capacity is a property of the brain. There are
language-specific rules that are instantiated in certain areas of the brain → studying
language is therefore also studying the structure of the human mind
3. neuropsychology: Neuropsychology is the study of the relationship between behavior, emotion,
and cognition and brain functions.
4. communication: Communication is the exchange of information. Language can be used as a tool
of communication.
5. Language: Language involves the use of words and syntax to convey meaning.
6. speech: Speech refers to the production and articulation of spoken language. Speech is a key
component of human communication, involving the use of the vocal apparatus to produce
sounds that convey meaning and intention.
7. syntax: The rules that determine how words are put together to make sentences
8. lexicon: The mental dictionary comprising a speaker’s knowledge of words and morphemes.
Grammatical information about words is also included in the lexicon, such as part of speech
(noun, verb) as well as information on verb argument structure.
9. case: naamval → inflections added to mark a grammatical property of a noun
10.inflection: inflectional suffixes that have a grammatical meaning → tense, case, number
11.proto-Indo-European: a reconstructed language that traces back to several indo-european
language (South Asia and most of Europe) → the common ancestor
1
, 12.language evolution: Language evolution refers to the biological and cultural processes that have
led to the emergence and development of the cognitive capacities that underlie human
language. This includes the evolution of the neural mechanisms and computational principles
that enable language acquisition, production, and comprehension.
13.Broca’s area: Broca’s area is anatomically defined as Brodmann areas 44 and 45 in the inferior
frontal gyrus of the left brain hemisphere. Broca’s area is often considered to play a major role in
language production.
14.Wernicke’s area: Wernicke’s area is a region in the brain that has traditionally been associated
with language comprehension and understanding. Unlike Broca’s area, it is not clear whether
Wernicke’s area can be defined as a single, circumscribed anatomical region. It is traditionally
associated with the posterior part of the superior temporal gyrus, in the temporoparietal region
of the brain.
15.FOXP2: FOXP2 is a transcription factor gene that plays a critical role in the development of
speech and language abilities. Mutations in the FOXP2 gene have been argued to cause speech
and language disorders in humans.
16.model: A scientific model is a representation or abstraction of a real-world phenomenon or
system. A scientific model is used to study, predict, and understand that phenomenon or system.
17.hypothesis: A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a set of phenomena or facts.
18.theory: A scientific theory is a coherent set of falsifiable propositions, principles, and models
that provide a comprehensive and testable explanation for observed phenomena in the natural
world.
19.falsify: to provide evidence that cannot be explained by the theory
20.nativism vs. empiricism: A debate in cognitive science. Nativism emphasizes the importance of
innate knowledge and abilities, while empiricism emphasizes the role of experience and the
environment.
21.modularity vs. interactivity: Modularity assumes the mind is composed of distinct,
computationally separate modules, while interactivity posits that different cognitive functions
and brain regions work in parallel and influence each other, challenging the strict modular view.
22.domain-specific: Domain specificity is the hypothesis that different aspects of cognition make
use of different primitives and different mental or neurological processes.
Language:
● primarily a system for (intended) communication. Also used for social bonding, expressing
emotions, play, and guiding (maybe determining) our thoughts.
● A system of words and rules for combining them:
○ lexicon: knowledge of words, their meaning and their phonology is stored here.
○ syntactic rules: rules on how to combine words
○ grammar: a more general way to describe the complete set of rules that describe a
language (syntax), how words can be made up (morphology), which sounds are
permitted and how they are combined (phonology)
2
, Languages differ in whether they have case, different word orders, different sound systems, different
scripts and whether they are agglutinative or fusional. But: all languages have words, and have rules to
combine words.
Language ≠ speech → speech is one of the possible modalities of language, but language can exist
without speech (sign languages, dead languages), and speech can exist without languages (babbling,
aphasia)
Language change → languages belong to language families → Most languages of Europe and West Asia
are all derived from proto-Indo-European. Exceptions are Basque, and the Finno-Ugric family.
Where did language come from?
It is unclear when humans started speaking. Two theories:
● Neanderthals already possessed a hyoid bone, and the mutation in the FOXP2 gene, but had an
insufficient larynx.
● FOXP2: responsible for controlling complex movements and co-ordinating sensory input and
output, mutated: enlarged Broca’s region.
Or,
● Spoken language originated from hand and arm gestures
● The mutation in FOXP2 could have led to that we could make complex sequences of vocal
gestures, and no longer needed to rely on the hands to communicate.
Empiricism vs. Nativism
Language acquisition involves different types of knowledge: some is biologically preprogrammed (like
learning to see), while other knowledge is acquired after birth (like learning to read). The brain often
extracts knowledge implicitly, without explicit learning.
The debate between Nativism and Empricism addresses where this knowledge comes from
Empiricism Nativism
Children are born a blank slate and learn the way Humans are innately predisposed to acquire
animals do: through imitation of the input. language due to a genetic program, similar to
how we are predisposed to learn to see.
Nativists believe that the ability to acquire human
language automatically is innate, proposing a
Language Acquisition Device (LAD).
Learning is seen as forming associations between Chomsky disproved this: the principles of learning
stimuli, such as parents pointing to objects and derived from animal research were inadequate in
naming them. However, even empiricists accounting for how children learn language, and
acknowledge that learning from the environment the creativity of both children and adults: we can
cannot be from a completely empty slate, produce an infinite variety of sentences, which of
3
1–4
18/09/2025
Week 1: Language as a cognitive system; computational
system of mind
Terminology week 1
1. linguistics: The study of language per se, rather than the study of a language. An academic
linguist is interested in explaining what it means to know a language, and what knowledge of
language might comprise. Critically, the study of linguistics can encompass all languages, in the
quest to determine what aspects of language might be universal versus what might be
idiosyncratic or particular to individual languages
2. psycholinguistics: Psycholinguistics is the study of the psychological processes involved in
language use. It is a branch of both linguistics and psychology.
a. The language faculty: human language capacity is a property of the brain. There are
language-specific rules that are instantiated in certain areas of the brain → studying
language is therefore also studying the structure of the human mind
3. neuropsychology: Neuropsychology is the study of the relationship between behavior, emotion,
and cognition and brain functions.
4. communication: Communication is the exchange of information. Language can be used as a tool
of communication.
5. Language: Language involves the use of words and syntax to convey meaning.
6. speech: Speech refers to the production and articulation of spoken language. Speech is a key
component of human communication, involving the use of the vocal apparatus to produce
sounds that convey meaning and intention.
7. syntax: The rules that determine how words are put together to make sentences
8. lexicon: The mental dictionary comprising a speaker’s knowledge of words and morphemes.
Grammatical information about words is also included in the lexicon, such as part of speech
(noun, verb) as well as information on verb argument structure.
9. case: naamval → inflections added to mark a grammatical property of a noun
10.inflection: inflectional suffixes that have a grammatical meaning → tense, case, number
11.proto-Indo-European: a reconstructed language that traces back to several indo-european
language (South Asia and most of Europe) → the common ancestor
1
, 12.language evolution: Language evolution refers to the biological and cultural processes that have
led to the emergence and development of the cognitive capacities that underlie human
language. This includes the evolution of the neural mechanisms and computational principles
that enable language acquisition, production, and comprehension.
13.Broca’s area: Broca’s area is anatomically defined as Brodmann areas 44 and 45 in the inferior
frontal gyrus of the left brain hemisphere. Broca’s area is often considered to play a major role in
language production.
14.Wernicke’s area: Wernicke’s area is a region in the brain that has traditionally been associated
with language comprehension and understanding. Unlike Broca’s area, it is not clear whether
Wernicke’s area can be defined as a single, circumscribed anatomical region. It is traditionally
associated with the posterior part of the superior temporal gyrus, in the temporoparietal region
of the brain.
15.FOXP2: FOXP2 is a transcription factor gene that plays a critical role in the development of
speech and language abilities. Mutations in the FOXP2 gene have been argued to cause speech
and language disorders in humans.
16.model: A scientific model is a representation or abstraction of a real-world phenomenon or
system. A scientific model is used to study, predict, and understand that phenomenon or system.
17.hypothesis: A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a set of phenomena or facts.
18.theory: A scientific theory is a coherent set of falsifiable propositions, principles, and models
that provide a comprehensive and testable explanation for observed phenomena in the natural
world.
19.falsify: to provide evidence that cannot be explained by the theory
20.nativism vs. empiricism: A debate in cognitive science. Nativism emphasizes the importance of
innate knowledge and abilities, while empiricism emphasizes the role of experience and the
environment.
21.modularity vs. interactivity: Modularity assumes the mind is composed of distinct,
computationally separate modules, while interactivity posits that different cognitive functions
and brain regions work in parallel and influence each other, challenging the strict modular view.
22.domain-specific: Domain specificity is the hypothesis that different aspects of cognition make
use of different primitives and different mental or neurological processes.
Language:
● primarily a system for (intended) communication. Also used for social bonding, expressing
emotions, play, and guiding (maybe determining) our thoughts.
● A system of words and rules for combining them:
○ lexicon: knowledge of words, their meaning and their phonology is stored here.
○ syntactic rules: rules on how to combine words
○ grammar: a more general way to describe the complete set of rules that describe a
language (syntax), how words can be made up (morphology), which sounds are
permitted and how they are combined (phonology)
2
, Languages differ in whether they have case, different word orders, different sound systems, different
scripts and whether they are agglutinative or fusional. But: all languages have words, and have rules to
combine words.
Language ≠ speech → speech is one of the possible modalities of language, but language can exist
without speech (sign languages, dead languages), and speech can exist without languages (babbling,
aphasia)
Language change → languages belong to language families → Most languages of Europe and West Asia
are all derived from proto-Indo-European. Exceptions are Basque, and the Finno-Ugric family.
Where did language come from?
It is unclear when humans started speaking. Two theories:
● Neanderthals already possessed a hyoid bone, and the mutation in the FOXP2 gene, but had an
insufficient larynx.
● FOXP2: responsible for controlling complex movements and co-ordinating sensory input and
output, mutated: enlarged Broca’s region.
Or,
● Spoken language originated from hand and arm gestures
● The mutation in FOXP2 could have led to that we could make complex sequences of vocal
gestures, and no longer needed to rely on the hands to communicate.
Empiricism vs. Nativism
Language acquisition involves different types of knowledge: some is biologically preprogrammed (like
learning to see), while other knowledge is acquired after birth (like learning to read). The brain often
extracts knowledge implicitly, without explicit learning.
The debate between Nativism and Empricism addresses where this knowledge comes from
Empiricism Nativism
Children are born a blank slate and learn the way Humans are innately predisposed to acquire
animals do: through imitation of the input. language due to a genetic program, similar to
how we are predisposed to learn to see.
Nativists believe that the ability to acquire human
language automatically is innate, proposing a
Language Acquisition Device (LAD).
Learning is seen as forming associations between Chomsky disproved this: the principles of learning
stimuli, such as parents pointing to objects and derived from animal research were inadequate in
naming them. However, even empiricists accounting for how children learn language, and
acknowledge that learning from the environment the creativity of both children and adults: we can
cannot be from a completely empty slate, produce an infinite variety of sentences, which of
3
