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From sound to meaning: hearing, speech and language
Human communication is vastly more complex than that of any other species...
Human communication is vastly more complex than that of any other species we know about. It is so complex that linguists are only just beginning to identify the processes in the brain that are related to understanding language. This unit looks at how language is understood by taking an interdisciplinary approach.
By the end of this unit you should be able to:
- recognise definitions and applications of each of the terms printed in bold in the text;
- understand and apply basic grammatical terminology;
- describe briefly the different types of sounds used in speech in both acoustic and articulatory terms;
- outline the key features of human language as compared to the vocalisations of other species;
- describe the complex psychological processes involved in decoding even simple sentences of spoken language;
- describe briefly how auditory information is converted into brain activity by the human ear;
- describe different types of language impairment caused by brain damage, and relate these to the way language is processed in the intact brain;
- explain the different sources of evidence used by researchers in trying to understand how language is processed in the brain;
- describe the probable stages in the decoding of a sentence of spoken language in the cortex of the brain.
- Duration: 12 hours
- Published on: Thursday 22nd March 2012
- Level: Intermediate
- Posted under: Health Studies
From sound to meaning: hearing, speech and language
Introduction
This unit is an adapted extract from the course Biological psychology: exploring the brain (SD226) [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)]
This unit looks at how language is understood, which includes hearing and how sounds and words are interpreted by the brain. It takes an interdisciplinary approach and should be of wide general interest.
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