The Predictability and Abstractness of Language: A Study in Understanding and Usage of the English Language through Probabilistic Modeling and Frequency
Accounts of language acquisition differ significantly in their treatment of the role of prediction in language learning. In particular, nativist accounts posit that probabilistic learning about words and word sequences has little to do with how children come to use language. The accuracy of this claim was examined by testing whether distributional probabilities and frequency contributed to how well 3-4 year olds repeat simple word chunks. Corresponding chunks were the same length, expressed similar content, and were all grammatically acceptable, yet the results of the study showed marked differences in performance when overall distributional frequency varied. It was found that a distributional model of language predicted the empirical findings better than a number of other models, replicating earlier findings and showing that children attend to distributional probabilities in an adult corpus. This suggested that language is more prediction-and-error based, rather than on abstract rules which nativist camps suggest.
[1] Aslin, R.N., Saffran, J.R., & Newport, E.L. (1998). Computation of
conditional probability statistics by 8-month old infants. Psychological
Science, 9, 321-324.
[2] Bannard, C., & Matthews, D. (2008, March 3). Stored Word Sequences
in Language Learning: The Effect of Familiarity on Children-s
Repetition of Four-Word Combinations. Psychological Science, 19(3),
241-48. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02075.x
[3] Chomsky, N. (1967). A Review of B. F. Skinner-s Verbal Behavior. In
L. A. Jakobovits & M. S. Miron (Eds.), Readings in the Psychology of
Language. Prentice-Hall. Retrieved from http://www.chomsky.info/
articles/1967----.htm
[4] Davies, M. (n.d.). Corpus of Contemporary American English. Retrieved
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http://www.americancorpus.org/
[5] Google. (2009). Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
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[6] Levin, B. (1993). English Verb Classes and Alternations: A Preliminary
Investigation. The University of Chicago Press. Retrieved August 14,
2009, from http://books.google.com/books
[7] McDonald, S., & Ramscar, M. (2001). Testing the distributional
hypothesis: The influence of context on judgments of semantic
similarity. In Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Conference of the
Cognitive Science Society (pp. 611-616).
[8] Ramscar, M. (2002). The role of meaning in inflection: Why the past
tense does not require a rule. Cognitive Psychology: 45(2), 45-94.
[9] Ramscar, M., & Dye, M. (2009). Expectation and negative evidence in
language learning: the curious absence of mouses in adult speech.
Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science
Society. Amsterdam, Netherlands.
[10] Ramscar, M., Dye, M., Witten, J., & Klein, J. (2009). Two routes to
cognitive flexibility: Learning and response conflict resolution in the
dimensional change card sort task. Proceedings of the 31st Meeting of
the Cognitive Science Society, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
[11] Ramscar, M., Matlock, T., & Dye, M. (in press). Running down the
clock: the role of expectation in our understanding of time and motion.
Language and Cognitive Processes.
[12] Ramscar, M. & Yarlett, D. (2007). Linguistic self-correction in the
absence of feedback: A new approach to the logical problem of language
acquisition. Cognitive Science: 31, 927-960.
[13] Ramscar, M., Yarlett, D., Dye, M., Denny, K., & Thorpe, K. (in press).
Feature-Label-Order effects and their implications for symbolic learning.
Cognitive Science.
[14] Rescorla, R.A., & Wagner, A.R. (1972). A Theory of Pavlovian
Conditioning: Variations in the Effectiveness of Reinforcement and
Nonreinforcement. In A.H. Black & W.F. Prokasy (Eds.), Classical
Conditioning II: Current Research and Theory (pp. 64-99). New York:
Appleton-Century-Crofts.
[15] Saffran, J.R., Aslin, R.N., & Newport, E.L. (1996). Statistical learning
by 8-month-old infants. Science, 274, 1926-1928.
[16] Yarlett, D. (2008). Language Learning Through Similarity-Based
Generalization. PhD Thesis, Stanford University.
[1] Aslin, R.N., Saffran, J.R., & Newport, E.L. (1998). Computation of
conditional probability statistics by 8-month old infants. Psychological
Science, 9, 321-324.
[2] Bannard, C., & Matthews, D. (2008, March 3). Stored Word Sequences
in Language Learning: The Effect of Familiarity on Children-s
Repetition of Four-Word Combinations. Psychological Science, 19(3),
241-48. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02075.x
[3] Chomsky, N. (1967). A Review of B. F. Skinner-s Verbal Behavior. In
L. A. Jakobovits & M. S. Miron (Eds.), Readings in the Psychology of
Language. Prentice-Hall. Retrieved from http://www.chomsky.info/
articles/1967----.htm
[4] Davies, M. (n.d.). Corpus of Contemporary American English. Retrieved
August 14, 2009, from Brigham Young University Web site:
http://www.americancorpus.org/
[5] Google. (2009). Retrieved August 14, 2009, from
http://www.google.com/
[6] Levin, B. (1993). English Verb Classes and Alternations: A Preliminary
Investigation. The University of Chicago Press. Retrieved August 14,
2009, from http://books.google.com/books
[7] McDonald, S., & Ramscar, M. (2001). Testing the distributional
hypothesis: The influence of context on judgments of semantic
similarity. In Proceedings of the 23rd Annual Conference of the
Cognitive Science Society (pp. 611-616).
[8] Ramscar, M. (2002). The role of meaning in inflection: Why the past
tense does not require a rule. Cognitive Psychology: 45(2), 45-94.
[9] Ramscar, M., & Dye, M. (2009). Expectation and negative evidence in
language learning: the curious absence of mouses in adult speech.
Proceedings of the 31st Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science
Society. Amsterdam, Netherlands.
[10] Ramscar, M., Dye, M., Witten, J., & Klein, J. (2009). Two routes to
cognitive flexibility: Learning and response conflict resolution in the
dimensional change card sort task. Proceedings of the 31st Meeting of
the Cognitive Science Society, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
[11] Ramscar, M., Matlock, T., & Dye, M. (in press). Running down the
clock: the role of expectation in our understanding of time and motion.
Language and Cognitive Processes.
[12] Ramscar, M. & Yarlett, D. (2007). Linguistic self-correction in the
absence of feedback: A new approach to the logical problem of language
acquisition. Cognitive Science: 31, 927-960.
[13] Ramscar, M., Yarlett, D., Dye, M., Denny, K., & Thorpe, K. (in press).
Feature-Label-Order effects and their implications for symbolic learning.
Cognitive Science.
[14] Rescorla, R.A., & Wagner, A.R. (1972). A Theory of Pavlovian
Conditioning: Variations in the Effectiveness of Reinforcement and
Nonreinforcement. In A.H. Black & W.F. Prokasy (Eds.), Classical
Conditioning II: Current Research and Theory (pp. 64-99). New York:
Appleton-Century-Crofts.
[15] Saffran, J.R., Aslin, R.N., & Newport, E.L. (1996). Statistical learning
by 8-month-old infants. Science, 274, 1926-1928.
[16] Yarlett, D. (2008). Language Learning Through Similarity-Based
Generalization. PhD Thesis, Stanford University.
@article{"International Journal of Business, Human and Social Sciences:53469", author = "Revanth Sai Kosaraju and Michael Ramscar and Melody Dye", title = "The Predictability and Abstractness of Language: A Study in Understanding and Usage of the English Language through Probabilistic Modeling and Frequency", abstract = "Accounts of language acquisition differ significantly in their treatment of the role of prediction in language learning. In particular, nativist accounts posit that probabilistic learning about words and word sequences has little to do with how children come to use language. The accuracy of this claim was examined by testing whether distributional probabilities and frequency contributed to how well 3-4 year olds repeat simple word chunks. Corresponding chunks were the same length, expressed similar content, and were all grammatically acceptable, yet the results of the study showed marked differences in performance when overall distributional frequency varied. It was found that a distributional model of language predicted the empirical findings better than a number of other models, replicating earlier findings and showing that children attend to distributional probabilities in an adult corpus. This suggested that language is more prediction-and-error based, rather than on abstract rules which nativist camps suggest.
", keywords = "Abstractness, child psychology, language acquisition, prediction and error.", volume = "4", number = "6", pages = "802-5", }
