THE THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

Subject: Psycholinguistics
The Lecturer: Yani Lubis,S.Ag,M.Hum

Compiled by:
ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHING TRAINING
STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY OF NORTH SUMATERA
MEDAN
2020

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 PREFACE

Praise and gratitude we say to God Almighty for his blessings and
grace and to the Prophet Muhammad SAW have brought us from the dark
ages to the bright times as it is today.
So, we are still given the opportunity to be able to complete this
paper about Language Comprehension. This paper I made to meet the
completion of tasks in Psycholinguistics.

In writing this paper, the author realizes that this paper is still not
perfect, both from the way of writing and its contents. Therefore, the
authors are very hopeful of criticism and suggestions, so as to improve this
paper.

Medan,
January 2021

Group 4

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 Table of Contents
PREFACE i
TABLE OF CONTENTii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION1
1.1 Background of Study.................................................................................1
1.2 Problem of Study.......................................................................................2
1.3 Objective of Study......................................................................................2
CHAPTER II DISCUSSION.............................................................................. 3
2.1 The Language Acquisition..........................................................................3
2.2 The Behaviourist Theory............................................................................5
2.3 The Innateness Theory................................................................................5
2.4 The Cognitive Theory.................................................................................6
2.5 The Input/Interactionist Theory..................................................................9
CHAPTER III CLOSING12
3.1 Conclusion13
3.2 Suggestion13
REFERENCES14

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 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Study

Early psycholinguists described our comprehension and production of
language in terms of the rules that were postulated by linguists (Fodor, Bever,
& Garrett, 1974). The connections between psychology and linguistics were
particularly close in the area of syntax, with psycholinguists testing the
psychological reality of various proposed linguistic rules. As the field of
psycholinguistics developed, it became clear that theories of sentence
comprehension and production cannot be based in any simple way on
linguistic theories; psycholinguistic theories must consider the properties of
the human mind as well as the structure of the language. Psycholinguistics has
thus become its own area of inquiry, informed by but not totally dependent on
linguistics.1
Several theories and approaches have emerged over the years to study and
analyze the process of language acquisition. The main schools of thought, which
provide theoretical paradigms in guiding the course of language acquisition are,
innatist theory, cognitivist theory and motherese theory. The Innate theory asserts
that language is an innate capacity and that a child‟s brain contains special
language-learning mechanisms at birth in which the main proponent of this theory is
Chomsky (Pinker, 1994). On the other hand, the cognitive theory by Jean Piaget
(Wilburg, 2010) claims that language is just one aspect of a child‟s overall
intellectual development. Sassonian (2009) asserts that language is a symbolic
representation which allows the children to abstract the world. In this essay I will be
critically examining the input theory that the child-centered “Motherese” is
universal, and there are cultures in which speech is never addressed to language-
learning children. More so, the essay will critically discuss the cognitive theory and
also the Chomsky innateness theory of children having innate ideas to learn
language and also how this language acquisition is learned and developed by social
interacting with environments such as adults and the cognitive development. Also, I

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Abney S “Psycholinguistic Perspectives on Comprehension in SLA”, Journal of
Language Teaching and Research, 2 (6), 2011, p. 1269-1275

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 will be highlighting studies that have critiqued Motherese and the other theories of
not being helpful to children in acquiring language.

1.2 Problem of Study

1.2.1 Language Acquisition
1.2.2 Behaviourist, Innates, Cognitive, Input/Interaction Theory

1.3 Objective of Study

1.3.1 To know what is Language Acquisition
1.3.2 To know what is Behaviourist, Innates, Cognitive, Input/Interaction
Theory

CHAPTER II

DISCUSSION

2.1 The Language Acqusition

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 Language acquisition is the process by which humans acquire the
capacity to perceive and comprehend language, as well as to produce and use
words and sentences to communicate. Language acquisition focuses on learning
through communication and less on learning through form (such as grammatical
structures). Language acquisition usually refers to first-language acquisition,
which studies infants' acquisition of their native language. Children acquire
language through a subconscious process during which they are unaware of
grammatical rules. It is stated that we are generally not consciously aware of the
rules of the languages we have acquired. Instead, we have a ‘feel’ for the
correctness.
Language acquisition is the process by which we are able to develop and
learn a language. This generally includes speaking, listening, writing, and overall
communication. Our ability to acquire language is a uniquely human trait
because although bonobos, a species of primate, can produce vocalizations with
meaning, birds can produce songs, and whales have their own version of a
language, no species on Earth that we know of can express an unlimited amount
of abstract ideas with a limited set of symbols (gestures, words, and sounds).
Language acquisition is the process by which we are able to develop and
learn a language. This generally includes speaking, listening, writing, and overall
communication. Our ability to acquire language is a uniquely human trait
because although bonobos, a species of primate, can produce vocalizations with
meaning, birds can produce songs, and whales have their own version of a
language, no species on Earth that we know of can express an unlimited amount
of abstract ideas with a limited set of symbols (gestures, words, and sounds).
The term language acquisition often refers to the first-language
acquisition, which simply means that it’s the first language learned as an infant
(unless the child learns two or more languages at the same time). However,
there is also the term second-language acquisition, which refers to the process
in both children and adults when they learn additional languages apart from
their native one.
A major concern in understanding language acquisition is how these
capacities are picked up by infants from what appears to be very little input. A
range of theories of language acquisition has been created in order to explain

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this apparent problem including innatism in which a child is born prepared in
some manner with these capacities, as opposed to the other theories in which
language is simply learned.

2.2 Theory of Language Acquisition

Scholars who studied Sanskrit—an ancient language used over 3,000
years ago in what is now India—debated for over 12 centuries about whether or
not a human’s ability to recognize and use the correct meaning of words in
Sanskrit was something passed down by generations and learned from pre-
established conventions (for example, a child learns the word for horse because
he hears older speakers talking about horses) or whether it was innate (“God-
given”).Later, philosophers such as John Locke and Thomas Hobbes got in on the
language party and argued that knowledge (and language, in Locke’s case) come
from abstracted sense impressions. What does that mean? They argue that
language comes from a sensory experience.

A second theory, associated with the behavioral school of

psychology, maintains that language acquisition is explained by
reinforcement. Children learn to speak because their parents give them
positive reinforcement when they speak correctly and negative
reinforcement (correction or criticism) when they speak ungrammatically.
This theory does not hold up under the findings of recent research that
parents reinforce the meaning of what children say rather than its
grammatical correctness. In addition, children often chatter to themselves
or to no one in particular for the sheer pleasure of talking. This activity is
hard to explain in terms of the reinforcement theory.

Skinner suggested that a child imitates the language of its parents

or carers. Successful attempts are rewarded because an adult who
recognises a word spoken by a child will praise the child and/or give it
what it is asking for. Successful utterances are therefore reinforced while
unsuccessful ones are forgotten.

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 A third theory of language acquisition is called nativism. This
theory holds that humans are neurologically "programmed" from birth
with the capacity to acquire language as soon as their nervous system
reaches a certain point of maturation. Noam Chomsky maintained that the
human brain has a built-in language acquisition device, or LAD, that
analyzes the parts of speech in the language that a child hears.

This theory also suggests that there is a universal grammar (a theory by

Noam Chomsky) that is shared across every language in the world because
universal grammar is part of our genetic makeup. Essentially, almost all
languages around the world all have nouns and verbs and similar ways to
structure thoughts. All languages have a finite amount of rules from which we
can build an infinite amount of phrases. The core concepts from these finite
rules are built into our brains (according to Universal Grammar and the Nativist
Theory).

This language acquisition theory explains well how humans seem to

have a far more complicated and complex set of communication patterns than
any other species in the world. It also is a working theory for how children are
able to learn so quickly so many complicated ideas.

Language is thought of as having a finite amount of rules from

which we can build an infinite amount of phrases, and the core of these
rules is somehow programmed into our brains. This is an ideal theory for
explaining how young children can learn such complicated ideas so
quickly, or why there are so many similarities in language around the
world. This theory is comparable to how we think of numbers; regardless
of cultural background, math always works the same way.

Second language acquisition as a sub-discipline of applied

linguistics closely related to psychology and education. The term
acquisition originally refered to the subconscious nature of the learning
process, the learning of second languages and foreign languages involve
the same fundamental processes in different situations, but in recent years
learning and acquisition have become largely synonymous. In second

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 language acquisition, conversations between native and nonnative
speakers, there are more modifications in interaction than in the input
provided by the native speakers.
A third theory, The learning theory is a language acquisition theory that
looks at language learning as learning a new skill and that we learn language
much in the same way that we learn how to count or how to tie shoes via
repetition and reinforcement. When babies babble, adults coo and praise them
for “talking” (and also because it’s pretty adorable).
When the kids grow older, they often are praised for speaking properly
and corrected when they don’t. From this correction and praise comes the
learning theory that language comes from stimulus and stimulus-response.
However, this language acquisition theory, logical as it may be, fails to explain
how new phrases and new words form since it’s all about repeating and
mimicking what people hear from others.
2.3 The Behaviourist Theory
Behaviorism, also known as behavioral psychology, is a theory of learning
based on the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning.
Conditioning occurs through interaction with the environment. Behaviorists
believe that our responses to environmental stimuli shape our actions.1
According to this school of thought, behavior can be studied in a systematic
and observable manner regardless of internal mental states.2 According to this
perspective, only observable behavior should be considered—cognitions,
emotions, and moods are far too subjective.
At this time, researchers were interested in creating theories that could be
clearly described and empirically measured but also used to make contributions
that might have an influence on the fabric of everyday human lives.
. 2.4 The Innates Theory
Clark (2009, p.7) states that “in learning language, children may first rely on
nonlinguistic options, both in their initial understanding and in their own early use”.
The Innateness theory by Noam Chomsky (Pinker, 1994) shows the innatist
limitations of behaviorist view of language acquisition in 1960‟s to the alternative
„generative‟ account of language. The main Argument in this theory is that children
are born with an innate knowledge which guides them in the language acquisition

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task. The children‟s ability makes the task of learning a first language easier than it
would otherwise be (Crain & Lillo-Martin, 1999). Pinker (1994, p.26) claims that “the
universally of complex language is a discovery that fills linguists with awe, and is the
first reason to suspect

2.5 The Cognitive Theory

This is a learning theory which is based on cognitive psychology and

encompasses the manner in which people think and ultimately acquire
knowledge and skills. This theory was developed by Swiss psychologist Jean
Piaget (1896-1980) and focus on exploring the links between the stages of
cognitive development and language skills. The links clearly shows from the
earliest period of language learning up to 18 months, relating to the
development of what Piaget called „sensory motor‟ intelligence, in which
children construct a mental picture of a world of objects that have
independent existence. In other words, cognitive thinking is therefore
concerned with the mental changes in a person‟s mind and these changes are
as a result of the cognitive processes. The processes involved in learning are
outlined by Wilburg namely: observing, categorizing, forming
generalizations, decision making and problem solving which allows the
learners to make sense of the information provided. This theory also deals
with the nature of knowledge itself and how humans come gradually to
acquire, construct and use it. Cognitive theories facilitate the improvement
and growth of children.

CHAPTER III

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 CLOSING

3.1 Conclusion

The language Acquisition Device (LAD), includes principle common to all

human languages, called the Universal Grammar (UG). This is similar to
Pinker(1994, p.43) claims that the evidence corroborating the claim that the
mind contains blueprints for grammatical rules comes, once again out of the
mouths of babes and suckling‟s. For example, looking at the English agreement
suffix- s as in He walks” Chomsky theorized that children were born with a hard-
wired language acquisition device (hereafter, LAD) in their brains (Pinker, 1994).

Behaviorism, also known as behavioral psychology, is a theory of learning

based on the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning.
Conditioning occurs through interaction with the environment. Behaviorists
believe that our responses to environmental stimuli shape our actions.

According to the input or Motherese theory, there are cultures in

which speech is never addressed to language-learning children; therefore it
must be possible to learn to talk by listening to adults talking to each other
or by the environments surrounding them.

3.2 Suggestion
Based on this paper, the author still has a mistake. It is expected
that the criticism and suggestion from the reader in order to can be a
reference for better in the next research. Hopefully, this paper can be
useful to writers and readers

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 References
Abney, S. (1989). A computational model of human parsing. Journal of
Psycholinguistic Research, 18, 129-144
Allopenna, P.D. Magnuson, J.S., & Tanenhaus, M.K. (1998). Tracking the
time course of spoken word recognition using eye movements: Evidence
for continuous mapping models. Journal of Memory and Language, 38,
419-439

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Altmann, G.T.M., & Kamide, Y. (1999). Incremental interpretation at verbs:
restricting the domain of subsequent reference. Cognition, 73, 247-264.
Lieven, E.V.M. (1994). Crosslinguistic and Crosscultural aspects of
Language addressed to children. In C. Gallaway & B.J. Richards, (Eds.)
Input and Interaction in Language Acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Crain, S., & Lillo-Martin, D. (1999). An Introduction to Linguistic Theory
and Language Acquisition. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
Pinker, S. (1994). The language Instinct. England: Clays Ltd.
Wyatt, G.L. (1969). Language Learning and Communication Disorders in
Children. New York: The Free Press.

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