Cognition And Language

COGNITION AND LANGUAGE

Summary

All people use thinking in their everyday life. Every moment people are categorizing, comparing, analyzing or evaluating some things, even when they are sleeping and dreaming according to psychologists this is kind of thinking, however, only the minority reasons how they do this. When people are thinking they often face some problems, sometimes it is difficult to solve ones, sometimes it is easier. What methods are used for this? How can thinking be improved? When people are solving problems they express their minds by using language, however, there are many questions about this issue: is babbling some kind of language, do animals have their language and so on.

At first, it is important to define thinking – it is manipulation of mental representations of information. Although, there are many species of animals in the world but only humans use thinking to find a solution, advice or to solve problems. To do this people often use syllogistic reasoning – a formal reasoning when we derive implications from a set of assumptions that we know to be true. Moreover, algorithms and heuristics – rules that lead or may lead to a solution - are often used. All these questions are considered by cognitive psychology.

Speaking about problem solving it is important to say that it involves three major steps: preparing to create a solution, producing solutions, and evaluating the solutions. All people use these steps in order to solve a problem, however, their success of solving depends on the way a problem is framed, mental set, functional fixedness. There are some types of problems too: arrangement problems, problems of inducing structure and transformation problems. People use several methods to solve problems for example, trial and error method – trying various solutions and learning from errors, means-ends analysis – repeated testing when each step brings you closer to a solution. People can experience insight – sudden awareness, burst of comprehension. Some people are very creative in solving problems, they can combine responses or ideas in novel ways – this is divergent thinking. All people can improve their thinking by redefining problems, using fractionations, adopting a critical perspective, considering the opposite, using analogies, heuristics.

When it is spoken about language it is important to know that it is communication of information by symbols according to systematic rules. The basic structure of language rests on grammar which deals with three major components: phonology – study of phonemes, syntax – ways in which words and phrases can be combined to form sentences, semantics – the rules governing the meaning of words and sentences. When person is born he babble – make speechlike but meaningless sounds and this is the beginning of language. After some period he begins using telegraphic speech – when not critical words to message are left out. When person is at the age of five years he acquires the basic rules of language. Moreover, Noam Chomsky claimed that all worlds’ languages have common underlying structure. However, languages are different and people face problems of multilingualism. For example, bilingual education supports idea of students to be taught in both languages: native and foreign. Nevertheless, immersion programs say that students must be plugged into foreign language in all subjects immediately.

Finally, it is obvious that people are very clever features, but often do not realize that they have such spectacular mechanisms, that helps to solve problems, think and express minds by language. Humans must be proud of having such abilities.