The Whorfian time warp:representing duration through the language hourglass

How do humans construct their mental representations of the passage of time? The universalist account claims that abstract concepts like time are universal across humans. In contrast, the linguistic relativity hypothesis holds that speakers of different languages represent duration differently. The precise impact of language on duration representation is, however, unknown. Here, we show that language can have a powerful role in transforming humans’ psychophysical experience of time. Contrary to the universalist account, we found language-specific interference in a duration reproduction task, where stimulus duration conflicted with its physical growth. When reproducing duration, Swedish speakers were misled by stimulus length, and Spanish speakers were misled by stimulus size/quantity. These patterns conform to preferred expressions of duration magnitude in these languages (Swedish: long/short time; Spanish: much/small time). Critically, Spanish-Swedish bilinguals performing the task in both languages showed different interference depending on language context. Such shifting behavior within the same individual reveals hitherto undocumented levels of flexibility in time representation. Finally, contrary to the linguistic relativity hypothesis, language interference was confined to difficult discriminations (i.e., when stimuli varied only subtly in duration and growth), and was eliminated when linguistic cues were removed from the task. These results reveal the malleable nature of human time representation as part of a highly adaptive information processing system

Motion event categorisation in a nativised variety of South African English

The present study seeks to expand the current focus on acquisition situations in linguistic relativity research by exploring the effects of nativisation (the process by which a L2 is acquired as a L1) on language-specific cognitive behaviour. Categorisation preferences of goal-oriented motion events were investigated in South African speakers who learnt English as a L1 from caregivers who spoke English as a L2 and Afrikaans as a L1. The aim of the study was to establish whether the categorisation patterns found in the nativised English variety: (1) resemble patterns of L2 speakers of English with Afrikaans as a L1, (2) resemble patterns of L1 English speakers of a non-nativised English variety and (3) do not pattern with either of the above, but instead exhibit a distinct behaviour. It was found that simultaneous, functional bilinguals (Afrikaans and nativised English) patterned with L1 Afrikaans speakers, but the extent to which they did so was modulated by their frequency of use of Afrikaans. Functionally monolingual speakers of nativised English, on the other hand, patterned with L1 speakers of British English. This suggests that bilingualism, rather than nativisation, was a reliable predictor of event categorisation preferences

Sifat Alami Gramatika Indonesia: Sistem Partikel Linguistik, Fungsi Penataan Konseptual, dan Representasi Kognitif

Our article aims to characterize the conceptual architecture of Indonesian grammar theoretically through a cognitive semantic approach. In its implementation, we applied introspective reflection on language data in the form of sentences that have been collected into a corpus. Applying the Conceptual Structuring System (Talmy, 2000b), we introspected the semantic function of grammar elements and their coherence with lexical elements that constitute sentences. We propose that conceptualization in the Indonesian language relies on the system of pairing and connecting morphemes, or what will be regarded here as linguistic particles. In other words, a sentence is a composition of complex particles that externalizes the organization of ideas, thoughts, or concepts as a predication construed into cognitive representations in the form of event schemas. Furthermore, the conceptual organization expressed as predication configures conceptual meaning with respect to spatiotemporal domains. This article sheds light on the cognitive architecture that conceptualizes Indonesian grammar, contributing to a deeper understanding of its structural characteristics and the experience of language meaning-making.  AbstrakPenelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkarakterisasikan arsitektur konseptual gramatika Indonesia secara teoretis melalui pendekatan semantik kognitif. Pada pelaksanaannya peneliti menerapkan refleksi introspektif atas data bahasa berupa kalimat yang telah dikumpulkan ke dalam korpus. Menerapkan Sistem Penataan Konseptual (Talmy, 2000b), peneliti mengintrospeksi fungsi semantik unsur gramatika dan kesinambungannya dengan unsur leksikal yang mengkonstitusikan kalimat. Peneliti memproposisikan konseptualisasi dalam bahasa Indonesia bertumpu pada sistem pemasangan dan penghubungan morfem atau apa yang akan disebut di sini sebagai partikel linguistik. Dalam kata lain, kalimat adalah susunan partikel kompleks yang mengeksternalisasikan organisasi ide, pikiran, atau konsep sebagai sebuah predikasi yang ditafsirkan ke dalam representasi kognitif berupa skema kejadian. Selanjutnya, organisasi konseptual yang dinyatakan sebagai predikasi mengkonfigurasi makna konseptual berdasarkan domain ruang dan waktu. Artikel ini mencerahkan arsitektur kognitif yang dikonseptualisasikan gramatika Indonesia, dalam cara yang mengkontribusikan pemahaman lebih dalam tentang karakteristik struktural dan pengalaman pemaknaan bahasa

Two languages, two minds: flexible cognitive processing driven by language of operation.

People make sense of objects and events around them by classifying them into identifiable categories. The extent to which language affects this process has been the focus of a long-standing debate: Do different languages cause their speakers to behave differently? Here, we show that fluent German-English bilinguals categorize motion events according to the grammatical constraints of the language in which they operate. First, as predicted from cross-linguistic differences in motion encoding, bilingual participants functioning in a German testing context prefer to match events on the basis of motion completion to a greater extent than do bilingual participants in an English context. Second, when bilingual participants experience verbal interference in English, their categorization behavior is congruent with that predicted for German; when bilingual participants experience verbal interference in German, their categorization becomes congruent with that predicted for English. These findings show that language effects on cognition are context-bound and transient, revealing unprecedented levels of malleability in human cognition

Vector-based Approach to Verbal Cognition

Human verbal thinking is an object of many multidisciplinary studies Verbal cognition is often an integration of complex mental activities such as neurocognitive and psychological processes In neuro-cognitive study of language neural architecture and neuropsychological mechanism of verbal cognition are basis of a vector based modeling Human mental states as constituents of mental continuum represent an infinite set of meanings Number of meanings is not limited but numbers of words and rules that are used for building complex verbal structures are limited Verbal perception and interpretation of the multiple meanings and propositions in mental continuum can be modeled by applying tensor methods A comparison of human mental space to a vector space is an effective way of analyzing of human semantic vocabulary mental representations and rules of clustering and mapping As such Euclidean and non-Euclidean spaces can be applied for a description of human semantic vocabulary and high order Additionally changes in semantics and structures can be analyzed in 3D and other dimensional spaces It is suggested that different forms of verbal representation should be analyzed in a light of vector tensor transformations Vector dot and cross product covariance and contra variance have been applied to analysis of semantic transformations and pragmatic change in high order syntax structures These ideas are supported by empirical data from typologically different languages such as Mongolian English and Russian Moreover the author argues that the vectorbased approach to cognitive linguistics offers new opportunities to develop an alternative version of quantitative semantics and thus to extend theory of Universal grammar in new dimension

Diferentes maneiras de observar eventos: o aprendizado de língua estrangeira e a aquisição de padrões de perspectivação conceitual de ações na L2

Given the growing body of evidence on the interaction between language and thought, the overall aim of the current study is to verify whether there is a developmental pattern in the cognitive behavior of Persian L2 learners of English as a foreign language with regard to action construal level. Specifically, this study investigates whether acquiring English as a foreign language would affect the construal level of Persian EFL learners with different levels of bilingualism. A group of 40 Persian monolinguals, a group of 40 low-level Persian EFL bilinguals (bilinguals with low L2 proficiency), and a group of 40 high-level Persian EFL bilinguals (bilinguals with high L2 proficiency) were recruited. Participants were divided into the above groups based on their performance on Oxford Quick Placement Test (QPT). The participants’ action construal level was measured using Behavior Identification Form (BIF) (Vallacher and Wegner, 1989). The results of a one way ANOVA and a post-hoc Tukey test indicated that while low-level participants behaved relatively similar to Persian monolinguals, the construal of high-level learners was significantly different from monolinguals and low-level bilinguals. These findings provide evidence of a developmental pattern regarding the acquisition of construal level, supporting the claim of previous research that learning an additional language can affect the construal of language learners. Keywords: language acquisition, foreign language, construal, action construal, construal level.Tendo em vista o crescente conjunto de evidências sobre a interação entre língua e pensamento, o objetivo geral deste estudo é verificar se há um padrão de desenvolvimento no comportamento cognitivo de aprendizes persas de inglês como língua estrangeira (ILE) no que diz respeito ao nível de perspectivação conceitual de ações. Especificamente, este estudo investiga se a aquisição do ILE afeta o nível de perspectivação conceitual de aprendizes persas de ILE com diferentes níveis de bilinguismo. Foram recrutados um grupo de 40 persas monolíngues, um grupo de 40 persas bilíngues com baixo nível em ILE (bilíngues com baixa proficiência na L2) e um grupo de 40 persas bilíngues com alto nível em ILE (bilíngues com alta proficiência na L2). Os participantes foram divididos em tais grupos com base em seu desempenho no teste de nivelamento Quick Placement Test (QPT), de Oxford. Mediu-se o nível de perspectivação conceitual de ações dos participantes por meio do formulário Behavior Identification Form (BIF), de Vallacher e Wegner. Os resultados do ANOVA de uma via e de um teste de Tukey post-hoc indicaram que os participantes com baixo nível tiveram comportamento relativamente semelhante ao dos monolíngues, ao passo que os aprendizes com alto nível demonstraram uma perspectivação conceitual significativamente diferente da dos outros grupos. Esses achados evidenciam um padrão de desenvolvimento na aquisição do nível de perspectivação conceitual, reforçando estudos anteriores que afirmam que o aprendizado de uma língua adicional pode afetar o nível de perspectivação conceitual de aprendizes de línguas. Palavras-chave: aquisição da linguagem, língua estrangeira, perspectivação conceitual, perspectivação conceitual de ações, nível da perspectivação conceitual

Second language influence on first language motion event encoding and categorization in Spanish-speaking children learning L2 English

Studies show cross-linguistic differences in motion event encoding, such that English speakers preferentially encode manner of motion more than Spanish speakers, who preferentially encode path of motion. Focusing on native Spanish speaking children (aged 5;00-9;00) learning L2 English, we studied path and manner verb preferences during descriptions of motion stimuli, and tested the linguistic relativity hypothesis by investigating categorization preferences in a non-verbal similarity judgement task of motion clip triads. Results revealed L2 influence on L1 motion event encoding, such that bilinguals used more manner verbs and fewer path verbs in their L1, under the influence of English. We found no effects of linguistic structure on non-verbal similarity judgements, and demonstrate for the first time effects of L2 on L1 lexicalization in child L2 learners in the domain of motion events. This pattern of verbal behaviour supports theories of bilingual semantic representation that postulate a merged lexico-semantic system in early bilinguals

Applied Language Typology:Applying typological insights in professional practice

In this paper we introduce and outline a new research area, Applied Language Typology (ALT). ALT builds on fundamental typological findings in morphology, syntax and semantics. ALT examines the attested and potential practical consequences of these contrasts for different professional contexts of communication, such as translation, the law and second language learning and teaching. We propose three general organising principles that underlie ALT, illustrating how these principles enable us to identify exact points of language contrasts that result in significant practical difficulty, and we suggest future directions in ALT research for the benefit of academics and language practitioners

Eye movements during listening reveal spontaneous grammatical processing

Recent research using eye-tracking typically relies on constrained visual contexts in particular goal-oriented contexts, viewing a small array of objects on a computer screen and performing some overt decision or identification. Eyetracking paradigms that use pictures as a measure of word or sentence comprehension are sometimes touted as ecologically invalid because pictures and explicit tasks are not always present during language comprehension. This study compared the comprehension of sentences with two different grammatical forms: the past progressive (e.g., was walking), which emphasizes the ongoing nature of actions, and the simple past (e.g., walked), which emphasizes the end-state of an action. The results showed that the distribution and timing of eye movements mirrors the underlying conceptual structure of this linguistic difference in the absence of any visual stimuli or task constraint: Fixations were shorter and saccades were more dispersed across the screen, as if thinking about more dynamic events when listening to the past progressive stories. Thus, eye movement data suggest that visual inputs or an explicit task are unnecessary to solicit analog representations of features such as movement, that could be a key perceptual component to grammatical comprehension