Chapter 6

Language & Perception

Language:

~A rule-governed system of verbal and nonverbal symbols used by members of a speech community to create meaning.

*Phonetic Rules

*Semantic Rules

*Syntactic Rules

Speech Communities

Speech Community:A group who shares a variety of language or

dialect.

Geographic Group

Social or Cultural Group

Native Language

Group

Racial/Ethnic group or

nationality

Age Group

Gender or Sexual

Orientation Group

Educational Group

Phonetic Rules: The Sounds of Language

• Phonemes ~ the sounds that make up a language.

• Articulation ~ the production of the distinctive sounds of a language.

• Pronunciation ~ how we actually make sounds and say words as we speak.– Dialects

Semantic Rules: Words and Meanings

Denotative Meaning: the specific meaning of a word.

Semantic Features: mental categories of word meanings.

Connotative Meanings: the emotional level of the meaning of the word.

Semantic Rules: Words and Meanings

Metaphor: used to make a comparison between two things

Slang: specialized expressions that are unique to a group.

Jargon: a set of expressions that are understood by members of a certain group.

Perceptual Set

~ a previously determined view of an object or an event based on past experiences.

• Stereotype: a way of grouping a whole set of people or events and then generalizing about the group as a whole.

Personal Construct Theory

~ A means of assigning meaning to a situation by perceiving how it is similar to a previous situation.

Understanding Perceptual Differences

• Understand Physical & Physiological Factors

• Psychological States Also Affect Perception

• Social and Cultural Background Influence Perception

~The average person speaks 125-150 words per minute~