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Guijarro-Fuentes P, Gudde HB, González-Peña P, Coventry KR. Children's use of demonstrative words: spatial deictics beyond infancy. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2024; 51:952-964. [PMID: 36330682 DOI: 10.1017/s030500092200054x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Demonstrative words are one of the most important ways of establishing reference in conversation. This work describes Spanish-speaking children's demonstrative production between ages 2 to 10 using data from the CHILDES corpora. Results indicate that children feature all demonstratives in their lexicon - however, the distal term is scarce throughout development. Moreover, patterns of demonstrative use are not adult-like at age 10. We compare adult and child data to conclude that children's development of demonstrative production is largely protracted. Adult use of the distal demonstrative is higher than in young children, although both older children and adults use the medial term ese more than any other demonstratives. In contrast, younger children use proximals relatively more frequently than older children and adults. Suggestions for future research and theoretical implications for the Spanish demonstrative system are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harmen B Gudde
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, UK
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, the Netherlands
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2
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Coventry KR, Gudde HB, Diessel H, Collier J, Guijarro-Fuentes P, Vulchanova M, Vulchanov V, Todisco E, Reile M, Breunesse M, Plado H, Bohnemeyer J, Bsili R, Caldano M, Dekova R, Donelson K, Forker D, Park Y, Pathak LS, Peeters D, Pizzuto G, Serhan B, Apse L, Hesse F, Hoang L, Hoang P, Igari Y, Kapiley K, Haupt-Khutsishvili T, Kolding S, Priiki K, Mačiukaitytė I, Mohite V, Nahkola T, Tsoi SY, Williams S, Yasuda S, Cangelosi A, Duñabeitia JA, Mishra RK, Rocca R, Šķilters J, Wallentin M, Žilinskaitė-Šinkūnienė E, Incel OD. Spatial communication systems across languages reflect universal action constraints. Nat Hum Behav 2023; 7:2099-2110. [PMID: 37904020 PMCID: PMC10730392 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-023-01697-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
The extent to which languages share properties reflecting the non-linguistic constraints of the speakers who speak them is key to the debate regarding the relationship between language and cognition. A critical case is spatial communication, where it has been argued that semantic universals should exist, if anywhere. Here, using an experimental paradigm able to separate variation within a language from variation between languages, we tested the use of spatial demonstratives-the most fundamental and frequent spatial terms across languages. In n = 874 speakers across 29 languages, we show that speakers of all tested languages use spatial demonstratives as a function of being able to reach or act on an object being referred to. In some languages, the position of the addressee is also relevant in selecting between demonstrative forms. Commonalities and differences across languages in spatial communication can be understood in terms of universal constraints on action shaping spatial language and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harmen B Gudde
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
- Helmholtz Institute, Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
- Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg, Delmenhorst, Germany
| | - Holger Diessel
- Department of English, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | | | - Pedro Guijarro-Fuentes
- Department of Spanish, Modern and Classic Philology, University of the Balearic Islands, Palma, Spain
| | - Mila Vulchanova
- Language Acquisition and Language Processing Lab, Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Valentin Vulchanov
- Language Acquisition and Language Processing Lab, Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Emanuela Todisco
- Department of Spanish, Modern and Classic Philology, University of the Balearic Islands, Palma, Spain
- Department of Spanish Language, Linguistics and Literature Theory, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
| | - Maria Reile
- Institute of Estonian and General Linguistics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Merlijn Breunesse
- Centre for the Arts in Society, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Helen Plado
- Institute of Estonian and General Linguistics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
- Võro Institute, Võru, Estonia
| | | | - Raed Bsili
- Danieli Telerobot Srl, Genoa, Italy
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Genoa, Italy
| | - Michela Caldano
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Rositsa Dekova
- Paisii Hilendarski University of Plovdiv, Plovdiv, Bulgaria
| | | | - Diana Forker
- Department of Slavonic Languages and Caucasus Studies, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Yesol Park
- Cognitive Science, Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Lekhnath Sharma Pathak
- Cognitive Science and Psycholinguistics Lab, Central Department of Linguistics, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
- Centre for Neural and Cognitive Sciences, School of Medical Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
| | - David Peeters
- Department of Communication and Cognition, TiCC, Tilburg University, Tilburg, the Netherlands
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | | | - Baris Serhan
- Department of Computer Science, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Linda Apse
- Laboratory for Perceptual and Cognitive Systems, Faculty of Computing, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
| | - Florian Hesse
- Department of German, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Linh Hoang
- Department of English, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Phuong Hoang
- Department of English, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Yoko Igari
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Keerthana Kapiley
- Centre for Neural and Cognitive Sciences, School of Medical Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
| | - Tamar Haupt-Khutsishvili
- Department of Slavonic Languages and Caucasus Studies, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Sara Kolding
- School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Katri Priiki
- School of Languages and Translation Studies, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Ieva Mačiukaitytė
- Institute for the Languages and Cultures of the Baltic, Vilnius University, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Vaisnavi Mohite
- Centre for Neural and Cognitive Sciences, School of Medical Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
| | - Tiina Nahkola
- Institute of Estonian and General Linguistics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Sum Yi Tsoi
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Stefan Williams
- Language Acquisition and Language Processing Lab, Department of Language and Literature, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Shunei Yasuda
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Angelo Cangelosi
- Department of Computer Science, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Jon Andoni Duñabeitia
- Centro de Investigación Nebrija en Cognición, Universidad Antonio de Nebrija, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Languages and Culture, Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Ramesh Kumar Mishra
- Centre for Neural and Cognitive Sciences, School of Medical Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India
| | - Roberta Rocca
- Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Centre for Humanities Computing, Department of Culture, Cognition and Computation, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Jurģis Šķilters
- Laboratory for Perceptual and Cognitive Systems, Faculty of Computing, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
| | - Mikkel Wallentin
- School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Centre of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | | | - Ozlem Durmaz Incel
- Department of Computer Engineering, Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey
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3
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Chen S, Futrell R, Mahowald K. An information-theoretic approach to the typology of spatial demonstratives. Cognition 2023; 240:105505. [PMID: 37598582 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
We explore systems of spatial deictic words (such as 'here' and 'there') from the perspective of communicative efficiency using typological data from over 200 languages Nintemann et al. (2020). We argue from an information-theoretic perspective that spatial deictic systems balance informativity and complexity in the sense of the Information Bottleneck (Zaslavsky et al., (2018). We find that under an appropriate choice of cost function and need probability over meanings, among all the 21,146 theoretically possible spatial deictic systems, those adopted by real languages lie near an efficient frontier of informativity and complexity. Moreover, we find that the conditions that the need probability and the cost function need to satisfy for this result are consistent with the cognitive science literature on spatial cognition, especially regarding the source-goal asymmetry. We further show that the typological data are better explained by introducing a notion of consistency into the Information Bottleneck framework, which is jointly optimized along with informativity and complexity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sihan Chen
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, United States of America.
| | - Richard Futrell
- Department of Language Science, University of California, Irvine, United States of America
| | - Kyle Mahowald
- Department of Linguistics, The University of Texas at Austin, United States of America
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4
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De Felice S, Hamilton AFDC, Ponari M, Vigliocco G. Learning from others is good, with others is better: the role of social interaction in human acquisition of new knowledge. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210357. [PMID: 36571126 PMCID: PMC9791495 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Learning in humans is highly embedded in social interaction: since the very early stages of our lives, we form memories and acquire knowledge about the world from and with others. Yet, within cognitive science and neuroscience, human learning is mainly studied in isolation. The focus of past research in learning has been either exclusively on the learner or (less often) on the teacher, with the primary aim of determining developmental trajectories and/or effective teaching techniques. In fact, social interaction has rarely been explicitly taken as a variable of interest, despite being the medium through which learning occurs, especially in development, but also in adulthood. Here, we review behavioural and neuroimaging research on social human learning, specifically focusing on cognitive models of how we acquire semantic knowledge from and with others, and include both developmental as well as adult work. We then identify potential cognitive mechanisms that support social learning, and their neural correlates. The aim is to outline key new directions for experiments investigating how knowledge is acquired in its ecological niche, i.e. socially, within the framework of the two-person neuroscience approach. This article is part of the theme issue 'Concepts in interaction: social engagement and inner experiences'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara De Felice
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London (UCL), 17–19 Alexandra House Queen Square, London WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Antonia F. de C. Hamilton
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London (UCL), 17–19 Alexandra House Queen Square, London WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Marta Ponari
- School of Psychology, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NP, UK
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5
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Yue M, Sun B. Choice of Mandarin Spatial Demonstratives in Distant Interaction. JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLINGUISTIC RESEARCH 2023:10.1007/s10936-022-09927-y. [PMID: 36656468 DOI: 10.1007/s10936-022-09927-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/26/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Scholars are divided on whether the Speaker's (S') choice of spatial demonstratives in verbal interaction is ego-centric or not. We studied the choice of "zhe (here)/ na (there)" by a Mandarin S instructing Hearer (H) from a few to dozens of meters. Using within-group and between-group experiments in a picture-description paradigm, we found that both S- and H- distance (Ds and Dh) to the Referent constantly influence S' demonstrative choice, and the social relation as a variable (Relation) between S and H also exerts some influence. Our findings support the idea that spatial reference in verbal interaction is somewhat non-egocentric.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Yue
- Department of Linguistics, Zhejiang University, Room 205, Bldg East5B, Zijingang Campus, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
| | - Boyang Sun
- Department of Linguistics, Zhejiang University, Room 205, Bldg East5B, Zijingang Campus, Hangzhou, 310058, China
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6
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Demonstrative systems: From linguistic typology to social cognition. Cogn Psychol 2022; 139:101519. [PMID: 36436352 DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2022.101519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2022] [Revised: 09/11/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
This study explores the connection between language and social cognition by empirically testing different typological analyses of various demonstrative systems. Linguistic typology classifies demonstrative systems as distance-oriented or person-oriented, depending on whether they indicate the location of a referent relative only to the speaker, or to both the speaker and the listener. From the perspective of social cognition, speakers of languages with person-oriented systems must monitor their listener's spatial location in order to accurately use their demonstratives, while speakers of languages with distance-oriented systems can use demonstratives from their own, egocentric perspective. Resolving an ongoing controversy around the nature of the Spanish demonstrative system, the results of Experiment 1 confirmed that this demonstrative system is person oriented, while the English system is distance oriented. Experiment 2 revealed that not all three-way demonstrative systems are person oriented, with Japanese speakers showing sensitivity to the listener's spatial location, while Turkish speakers did not show such an effect in their demonstrative choice. In Experiment 3, Catalan-Spanish bilinguals showed sensitivity to listener position in their choice of the Spanish distal form, but not in their choice of the medial form. These results were interpreted as a transfer effect from Catalan, which revealed analogous results to English. Experiment 4 investigated the use of demonstratives to redirect a listener's attention to the intended referent, which is a universal function of demonstratives that also hinges on social cognition. Japanese and Spanish speakers chose between their proximal and distal demonstratives flexibly, depending on whether the listener was looking closer or further from the referent, whereas Turkish speakers chose their medial form for attention correction. In conclusion, the results of this study support the view that investigating how speakers of different languages jointly use language and social cognition in communication has the potential to unravel the deep connection between these two fundamentally human capacities.
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7
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Qian H, Gao X. Representing strangers in personal space triggers coding of defensive hand movement. Neuropsychologia 2021; 158:107909. [PMID: 34089716 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.107909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Our brain codes manipulable tools as possibilities for action, particularly for those surrounding the body. Recent studies showed people would adjust their motor program when observing others around their own bodies (i.e. in the personal space). However, it remained unclear whether representing a personal space invader can automatically trigger motor coding. To address this, we devised an interaction task to measure the activation of pushing movements in facing a stranger approaching into personal space. The LRP (lateralized readiness potential) analyses revealed that observing a stranger in personal space caused an initial LRP bias associated with pushing movements, and an LRP deflection before responding of pull, suggesting representing personal space invaders activated the motor coding of push. The behavioral results showed the personal space intrusion prolonged the reaction time of participants' subsequent instructed pulling responses. The results of experiment 2 confirmed the behavioral observation of experiment 1 and further revealed the relationship between the response bias of push and social anxiety. Together, the present study demonstrates representing a stranger in personal space activated coding of defensive hand movements and biased subsequent motor responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haoyue Qian
- School of Physics and Electronic Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China; Shanghai Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Xiangping Gao
- Department of Psychology, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China.
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8
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Bogdanova OV, Bogdanov VB, Dureux A, Farnè A, Hadj-Bouziane F. The Peripersonal Space in a social world. Cortex 2021; 142:28-46. [PMID: 34174722 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2020] [Revised: 02/27/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The PeriPersonal Space (PPS) has been defined as the space surrounding the body, where physical interactions with elements of the environment take place. As our world is social in nature, recent evidence revealed the complex modulation of social factors onto PPS representation. In light of the growing interest in the field, in this review we take a close look at the experimental approaches undertaken to assess the impact of social factors onto PPS representation. Our social world also influences the personal space (PS), a concept stemming from social psychology, defined as the space we keep between us and others to avoid discomfort. Here we analytically compare PPS and PS with the aim of understanding if and how they relate to each other. At the behavioral level, the multiplicity of experimental methodologies, whether well-established or novel, lead to somewhat divergent results and interpretations. Beyond behavior, we review physiological and neural signatures of PPS representation to discuss how interoceptive signals could contribute to PPS representation, as well as how these internal signals could shape the neural responses of PPS representation. In particular, by merging exteroceptive information from the environment and internal signals that come from the body, PPS may promote an integrated representation of the self, as distinct from the environment and the others. We put forward that integrating internal and external signals in the brain for perception of proximal environmental stimuli may also provide us with a better understanding of the processes at play during social interactions. Adopting such an integrative stance may offer novel insights about PPS representation in a social world. Finally, we discuss possible links between PPS research and social cognition, a link that may contribute to the understanding of intentions and feelings of others around us and promote appropriate social interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olena V Bogdanova
- Integrative Multisensory Perception Action & Cognition Team (Impact), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon 1, France; INCIA, UMR 5287, CNRS, Université de Bordeaux, France.
| | - Volodymyr B Bogdanov
- Integrative Multisensory Perception Action & Cognition Team (Impact), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon 1, France; Ecole Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'Etat, Laboratoire Génie Civil et Bâtiment, Vaulx-en-Velin, France
| | - Audrey Dureux
- Integrative Multisensory Perception Action & Cognition Team (Impact), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon 1, France
| | - Alessandro Farnè
- Integrative Multisensory Perception Action & Cognition Team (Impact), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon 1, France; Hospices Civils de Lyon, Neuro-Immersion Platform, Lyon, France; Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Italy
| | - Fadila Hadj-Bouziane
- Integrative Multisensory Perception Action & Cognition Team (Impact), INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center (CRNL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon 1, France.
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9
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Abstract
Language allows us to efficiently communicate about the things in the world around us. Seemingly simple words like this and that are a cornerstone of our capability to refer, as they contribute to guiding the attention of our addressee to the specific entity we are talking about. Such demonstratives are acquired early in life, ubiquitous in everyday talk, often closely tied to our gestural communicative abilities, and present in all spoken languages of the world. Based on a review of recent experimental work, here we introduce a new conceptual framework of demonstrative reference. In the context of this framework, we argue that several physical, psychological, and referent-intrinsic factors dynamically interact to influence whether a speaker will use one demonstrative form (e.g., this) or another (e.g., that) in a given setting. However, the relative influence of these factors themselves is argued to be a function of the cultural language setting at hand, the theory-of-mind capacities of the speaker, and the affordances of the specific context in which the speech event takes place. It is demonstrated that the framework has the potential to reconcile findings in the literature that previously seemed irreconcilable. We show that the framework may to a large extent generalize to instances of endophoric reference (e.g., anaphora) and speculate that it may also describe the specific form and kinematics a speaker's pointing gesture takes. Testable predictions and novel research questions derived from the framework are presented and discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Peeters
- Department of Communication and Cognition, TiCC, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, NL-5000 LE, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
| | - Emiel Krahmer
- Department of Communication and Cognition, TiCC, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, NL-5000 LE, Tilburg, The Netherlands
| | - Alfons Maes
- Department of Communication and Cognition, TiCC, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90153, NL-5000 LE, Tilburg, The Netherlands
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10
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Mesh K, Cruz E, van de Weijer J, Burenhult N, Gullberg M. Effects of Scale on Multimodal Deixis: Evidence From Quiahije Chatino. Front Psychol 2021; 11:584231. [PMID: 33510669 PMCID: PMC7835423 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.584231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
As humans interact in the world, they often orient one another's attention to objects through the use of spoken demonstrative expressions and head and/or hand movements to point to the objects. Although indicating behaviors have frequently been studied in lab settings, we know surprisingly little about how demonstratives and pointing are used to coordinate attention in large-scale space and in natural contexts. This study investigates how speakers of Quiahije Chatino, an indigenous language of Mexico, use demonstratives and pointing to give directions to named places in large-scale space across multiple scales (local activity, district, state). The results show that the use and coordination of demonstratives and pointing change as the scale of search space for the target grows. At larger scales, demonstratives and pointing are more likely to occur together, and the two signals appear to manage different aspects of the search for the target: demonstratives orient attention primarily to the gesturing body, while pointing provides cues for narrowing the search space. These findings underscore the distinct contributions of speech and gesture to the linguistic composite, while illustrating the dynamic nature of their interplay. Abstracts in Spanish and Quiahije Chatino are provided as appendices. Se incluyen como apéndices resúmenes en español y en el chatino de San Juan Quiahije. SonG ktyiC reC inH, ngyaqC skaE ktyiC noE ndaH sonB naF ngaJ noI ngyaqC loE ktyiC reC, ngyaqC ranF chaqE xlyaK qoE chaqF jnyaJ noA ndywiqA renqA KchinA KyqyaC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate Mesh
- Lund University Humanities Lab, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Emiliana Cruz
- Department of Anthropology, Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social (CIESAS-CDMX), Mexico City, Mexico
| | | | - Niclas Burenhult
- Lund University Humanities Lab, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Marianne Gullberg
- Lund University Humanities Lab, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.,Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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11
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Diessel H, Coventry KR. Demonstratives in Spatial Language and Social Interaction: An Interdisciplinary Review. Front Psychol 2020; 11:555265. [PMID: 33324275 PMCID: PMC7723831 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.555265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2020] [Accepted: 10/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This paper offers a review of research on demonstratives from an interdisciplinary perspective. In particular, we consider the role of demonstratives in current research on language universals, language evolution, language acquisition, multimodal communication, signed language, language and perception, language in interaction, spatial imagery, and discourse processing. Traditionally, demonstratives are analyzed as a particular class of spatial deictics. Yet, a number of recent studies have argued that space is largely irrelevant to deixis and that demonstratives are primarily used for social and interactive purposes. Synthesizing findings in the literature, we conclude that demonstratives are a very special class of linguistic items that are foundational to both spatial and social aspects of language and cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Holger Diessel
- Department of English, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena, Germany
| | - Kenny R. Coventry
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
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12
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Rocca R, Wallentin M. Demonstrative Reference and Semantic Space: A Large-Scale Demonstrative Choice Task Study. Front Psychol 2020; 11:629. [PMID: 32318007 PMCID: PMC7154112 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatial demonstratives (words like this and that) have been thought to primarily be used for carving up space into a peripersonal and extrapersonal domain. However, when given a noun out of context and asked to couple it with a demonstrative, speakers tend to choose this for words denoting manipulable objects (small, harmless, and inanimate), while non-manipulable objects (large, harmful, and animate) are more likely to be coupled with that. Here, we extend these findings using the Demonstrative Choice Task (DCT) procedure and map demonstrative use along a wide spectrum of semantic features. We conducted a large-scale (N = 2197) DCT experiment eliciting demonstratives for 506 words, rated across 65 + 11 perceptually and cognitively relevant semantic dimensions. We replicated the finding that demonstrative choice is influenced by object manipulability. Demonstrative choice was furthermore found to be related to a set of additional semantic factors, including valence, arousal, loudness, motion, time and more generally, the self. Importantly, demonstrative choices were highly structured across participants, as shown by a strong correlation detected in a split-sample comparison of by-word demonstrative choices. We argue that the DCT may be used to map a generalized semantic space anchored in the self of the speaker, the self being an extension of the body beyond physical space into a multidimensional semantic space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Rocca
- Department of Linguistics, Cognitive Science and Semiotics, School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Psychoinformatics Lab, Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Mikkel Wallentin
- Department of Linguistics, Cognitive Science and Semiotics, School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Interacting Minds Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
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