STRUCTURAL LINGUISTICS AND

BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOLOGY

A school of Thought in Second

Language Acquisition
SCHOOL OF THOUGHT

-a set of ideas or opinions that a

group of people share about a
matter

What is Structural
Linguistics?
 Structural
Linguistics
Is an approach to Linguistics and is part of the overall approach of
structuralism. It is stressed examining language as a static system of
interconnected units. Structural Linguistics involves collecting a
corpus of utterances and then attempting to classify all the
elements of the corpus at their different levels: the phonemes,
morphemes, lexical categories, noun phrase, verb phrase and
sentence types.
In the 1950’s, the structural or descriptive, school
of linguistics, with its advocates Leonard
Bloomfield, Edward Sapir, Charles Hockett,
Charles Fries and others- prided itself in a rigorous
application of scientific observation of human
languages and to identify the structural
characteristics of those languages. An important
axiom of structural linguistics was that languages
can differ from each other without limit and that
no preconceptions could apply across language.

 CHARACTERISTICS
•Descriptive

•Linguist’s job is to describe human languages and

to identify their structural characteristics

•Only interested in observable data

•Language can be broken down into small units

which can be added up to form the whole.

 STRUCTURALISM IN
LANGUAGE LEARNING
1. Meaning is determined by the context where the relationship among the part
takes place.
2. An emphasis on understanding grammatical structure such as sentence
structure, patterns of sentences and appropriate grammar and composition.
3. It focuses on four main skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing.
4. Language forms are seen as a sign system
5. To learn new structures, it is basic to find the new and previous knowledge.
6. Reading and Writing develops from the comprehension of the basic
underlying grammatical structures of the system.
 STRENGTHS
1. Helps learners grasp grammar in an easier way.
2. Supports proper use of the language in verbal
and written expression
.3. Knowledge of foundation of the basic structure
before complex grammar.
4. Inductive method goes from the parts to the
whole comprehension.
✓The structuralist approach implies that in order
for anyone to understand a concept such as
language (Linguistics), they must first understand
the sub sets and how these fit into the structure.
Additionally, an important factor in the
structuralist approach is understanding that
these sub sets all fit and work together
collaboratively.

 Behavioral
psychology/behaviorism
A systematic approach to understanding the
behavior of humans and animals.
a theory suggesting that the environment
shapes human behavior.Behavioral
psychology through second language
acquisition
FOUNDER OF BEHAVIOURISM
John B. Watson - father of
behaviorism
 Behavioral psychology in general
believes that all actions of humans and
animals are learned behaviors which
can be learned and unlearned.
focused not on the internal emotional
and psychological conditions of
people, but rather on their external and
outward behaviors
B. F. Skinner
Operant conditioning
Second language learners learn from repeated
practice and being rewarded for correct
answers.

Example:
The cat sat on the mat.

She sells seashells by the seashore

 GENERATIVE LINGUISTICS

•The word 'generative' is used to describe linguistic

theories or models which are based on the idea that a
single set of rules can explain how all the possible
sentences of a language are formed.

•Noam Chomsky founded the Generative Linguistic

around 1950's together with his transformational
grammar.
 Principles of Generative
Grammar

•The main principle of generative grammar is that

all humans are born with an innate capacity for
language and that this capacity shapes the rules
for what is considered "correct" grammar in a
language. This "universal grammar," according to
linguists like Chomsky, comes from our innate
language faculty.
 Principles of Generative
Grammar

•Grammar should describe how language

is used, not dictate how it should be used.
In other words, the theory should describe
what is observed instead of trying to set
down rules artificially.
 Principles of Generative
Grammar

•The use of grammar shows competence,

not performance. In other words,
generative grammar cannot describe
every sentence that will ever be uttered
by either native or non-native speakers.
EXAMPLES OF GENERATIVE
GRAMMAR
featuring grammatically incorrect and
grammatically correct
1.The man is happy.
Is happy man the

2.She throws the ball.

Throws she the ball.
 Real-World Uses of
Grammar

•Of course, anyone who wants to be an

effective speaker or writer must have at least
a basic grasp of grammar. The further
beyond the basics you go, the more
effectively and clearly you'll be able to
communicate in almost any situation.
 Summary

The most important innovation of generative grammar is shifting the re-

search focus to the child’s language learning ability, and trying to capture

this ability with formal, explicit rules. Generative grammars assume that

the reason why children can acquire language with remarkable success in

spite of the poverty of stimulus is that humans have a species-specific and

domain-specific language faculty.

 Cognitive Psychology

Cognitive Psychology is about the study of mental

processes such as thinking, perception, memory,

language, problem solving and learning. It is a relatively

young part of psychology, but has quickly become one

of

the most popular areas within the profession.

 Cognitive Psychology

Learning how people think and how they process

information not only identifies how the human brain

works, but allows psychologists to discover new ways to

help people cope with a variety of psychological

problems. An example of a method used to explain

memory

is the Modal Model of Memory by Atkinson and

Shiffrin.
 Theories of Cognitive
Psychology
Cognitive Psychology has its origins in the 1960s. Its rise

was the result of a change in the way behaviorism was

perceived. In the 1920s to 1950s, scientists in this branch

claimed that unobservable mental processes do not fall

within the domain of empirical science. This idea was

stepped away from when researchers from different fields

and applied psychology used models of mental processing to explain human

behavior. The founder of the domain is Jean

Piaget, known for his work on the development of children.

He elaborated on the work of other psychologists such

as Max Wertheimer, who proposed the Gestalt theory in the

early twentieth century.

Example of Cognitive Psychology
• involves the study

of the mind andhow people think.

Examples of

things studied
•attention span
•memory reasoning;
• and other functions

and actions of the

brain that are seen

as a complex

mental process.
 •The concept
Metacognition

of learning itself is is about the

also an example
knowledge and

skills that enable

of cognition. This is someone to think

about
about their own

the way in which

thinking.

Metacognition is

the brain makes

knowing about

connections while knowing and thinking

remembering what
about

thinking.
is learned.
Thank you for
listening!
Don't hesitate to ask any questions!