Adults Fail to Learn a Type of Linguistic Pattern that is Readily Learned by Infants
Adults Fail to Learn a Type of Linguistic Pattern that is Readily Learned by Infants
复制标题
DOI：
10.1080/15475441.2019.1617149
复制
发表时间：
2019-01-01
影响因子：
1.5
通讯作者：
Goffman, Lisa
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gerken, LouAnn;Quam, Carolyn;Goffman, Lisa
从谢泼德、霍夫兰和詹金斯（1961年）的经典作品开始，第二类视觉模式（例如，大的白色正方形或小的黑色三角形）在人类学习的研究中占有特殊的地位。最近对II型语言模式的研究表明，它们在不同语言中相对频繁，并且比IV型家族相似模式更频繁（例如，样本具有3个定义特征中的2个）。研究还表明，人类婴儿善于从很少的样本中学习II型模式，但成人的学习似乎更加混合。由于没有研究直接比较成人和婴儿，实验1测试了两组相同的输入和测试刺激。成年人对两种II型模式之一的学习能力最弱，但婴儿对两种模式的学习能力都很强。实验2对比了成年人学习II型模式和IV型模式的能力。成年人只表现出对后者的学习，用不同的刺激和测试程序复制以前的研究。因此，成年人无法学习一种常见的语言模式，而婴儿很容易学会这种模式。婴儿和成人之间可能的语言学习差异的影响进行了讨论。
Beginning with the classic work of Shepard, Hovland, & Jenkins (1961), Type II visual patterns (e.g., exemplars are large white squares OR small black triangles) have held a special place in investigations of human learning. Recent research on Type II linguistic patterns has shown that they are relatively frequent across languages and more frequent than Type IV family resemblance patterns (e.g., exemplars have 2 out of 3 defining features). Research has also shown that human infants are adept at learning Type II patterns from very few exemplars, but adult learning appears to be more mixed. Because no study had directly compared adults and infants, Experiment 1 tested both groups on the same input and test stimuli. Adults at best showed weak learning of one of two Type II patterns, but infants showed robust learning of both patterns. Experiment 2 contrasted adults' ability to learn a Type II pattern with a Type IV pattern. Adults only showed learning of the latter, replicating previous research with different stimuli and testing procedures. Thus, adults are unable to learn a frequent linguistic pattern, one readily learned by infants. Implications for possible language learning differences between infants and adults are discussed.