The theory that suggests that language develops through the use of reinforcement?

Lecture Information:

Noam Chomsky's Theory of Language Development:

Chomsky has had an incredible career as America's most prominent linguist of the 20th century.  He has had a number of major contributions to the field of linguistics.  His approach to language acquisition is called Transformational-Generational Grammar.  This theory posits that humans have an innate capacity or instinct for language, an instinct that is sometimes called the "Language Acquisition Device" or LAD.  The innate capacity contains a basic or universal grammar whose precepts align with the specific parameters of the language community into which a child is born as the child acquires that community's language. 

What a child learns in the language acquisition process are the rules of the specific language, rules which are finite, or limited in scope, and yet can produce an infinite number of uniquely creative sentences.  This is the generational part of the name of the theory: a finite set of rules can generate an infinite number of sentences.  The rules that can produce such sentences are divided into categories of rules, and some of them transform basic sentences into other kinds of sentences: sentences into questions, for example.  This part of the theory adds the "transformational" part of the theory's name. 

Chomsky's theory also proposed that the language instinct, similar to an imprinting instinct in birds, disappears as a person ages.  This part of the theory is referred to as the Critical Period Hypothesis: there is a critical period during which language acquisition can take place, and once this period has passed, language acquisition becomes difficult to impossible.  This theory of an instinct that dies off particularly important for English Language learners.  It encompasses a phenomenon that many language teachers have observed: the older a person becomes, the more difficult learning a language seems to become.

Other Common Theories of Language Acquisition:  

Theory of Imitation: the idea that children imitated what they heard around them.  This theory is based on the behaviorism of B. F. Skinner and the work of Pavlov.  This can not be all of the story because there would be no overextensions, no overgeneralizations.  Adults do not say “goed” but children frequently do, so they can’t just be imitating what the adults say.  Also, when parents speak “baby-talk” the children do not respond with “baby-talk.”  The child doesn’t speak with a heightened pitch or say “oopsie-woopsie” or “bunny-wunnie.”

Theory of Feedback or Reinforcement: The idea that parent correction of children’s speech errors is what causes children to produce grammatically well-formed utterances.  This seems to have more of a role than imitation, but it is still a limited role.  Typically, parental correction deals with the truth value of the utterance, not the well-formedness, although at times pronunciation is addressed.  When the grammaticality of an utterance is addressed, there seems to be little impact.  The child often repeats the “error” his/her speech originally carried.  However, some role seems to be played when there is recasting of an utterance.  That is, when a parent reaffirms the truth value of a child’s statement but recasts it in a grammatically well-formed utterance.

Theory of Caregiver Language: The idea that it is necessary for a caregiver to direct talk to a child in a special “caregiver” language or motherese.  The fact that there are cultures that do not engage in this type of talk yet the children acquire language as well, indicates that it is not necessary.  It may be helpful in the acquisition of the language, but is not necessary. (What seems to be necessary, however, is that children be raised in a human social environment in which they are exposed to language I use by those around them.)  Even though caregiver talk is not necessary, and may only be helpful, it is certainly not harmful to the development of language.

Theory of general cognitive development: the idea that language acquisition proceeds at a pace congruent with that of other cognitive functions.  Especially connected together seem to be the development of the concepts of object permanence and seriation and language development.  Object permanence emerges at about the same time as a rapid growth in vocabulary, at 1 � years.  Seriation comes at about age 5.  Theorists that held to this theory: Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky.  But does cognitive development affect language acquisition or does language acquisition affect cognitive development?  And are the two truly related or merely coincidental?  Some indications from case studies of cognitively impaired individuals suggests that the two are more coincidental.

Theory of Nativism: the idea that language acquisition is tied to an inborn trait.  This theory is Chomsky’s.  The basis of this idea is that language acquisition seems to be easy for children, but hard for adults.  The data by which children acquire language is actually very limited.  Language acquisition occurs rapidly, over about a period of two years.  Thus, there must be some universal grammar which is native to all human children.  Part of the language acquisition process for each child is the setting of the parameters within which the language they are surrounded by falls.

Theory of Critical Period: the idea that there is a certain time period within which the language acquisition must occur or it will not occur.  That is, the innate language acquisition device disappears in time, much as the imprinting instinct in ducks does.  This theory is supported by case studies of neglected children and feral children (children who grew up outside of human societies).  The “LAD” seems to decrease at about age 6 and to be severely curtailed at puberty.  What is most curtailed is the ability to acquire syntax and morphology.

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What is reinforcement theory of language acquisition?

What is reinforcement in language development?

What is the theory of language development?

What is Chomsky's theory of language?