Psychology and Language

[Espresso Beans]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am bran-new to the forums and this is my first post. I'm really happy I finally googled science forums to post in because this is a field that I aboustly love - I became a nurse largely because of my obession with science. I will also say that I am a very bad speller and I dislike (hate) individauls who nit pick my spelling or grammer while missing my general point, arugement or statement. Its my hope that all of you help me step my intellectual game up.

 

I have heard (largely through Indigenous studies and Native indivdiauls) that language and culutre
shape their experience in the world. As in Mohawk, Cree, Greek, English, etc shape an individauls prespective of the world and therefore shape how that individaul will intreact with others, the enviroment, and every
other dimension of the human experince.

 

Does anybody know of an scientific backing or any other evidence from other places (like the arts) that supports this claim? From a psychological prespective, does my experince as an English speaker (the only language I speak) differ from somebodys who speaks another language? Do I "see" the world differently and treat it differently based on my language? Would I be a different person and interact with the world differently if I spoke a different language?

 

 

[proximity1]

...language and culutre shape their experience in the world. As in Mohawk, Cree, Greek, English,

etc shape an individauls prespective of the world and therefore shape how that individaul will intreact with others, the enviroment, and every other dimension of the human experince. ...

 

RE: Does anybody know of an scientific backing or any other evidence from

other places (like the arts) that supports this claim?

 

Many areas of study lend evidence to this view--to which I subscribe whole-heartedly. You can read studies on the origin, character and effects of language in psychology, in anthropolgy, in neuroscience--neurobiology--in linguistics, and in comparative history and, of course, in philosophy. The sources are so wide-ranging that no matter where you begin, your reading will branch out and stretch into multiple areas of enquiry. And all of that only means that your interest is in something vast and important and fascinating.

 

In looking into texts, you can mine the bibliographies and the sources which the author you're reading cites.

 

Here are some reading suggestions (by author name):

 

Daniel Everett ; Ernest Lepore and Barry C. Smith Neil Postman (because he had the insight to recognize that language is a form of technology) ; and Wikipedia's page for "The Philosohy of Language"

 

 

 

From a psychological prespective, does my experince as an English speaker (the only language I speak) differ from somebodys who speaks another language?

 

To some degree, it seems to me, yes.

 

Do I "see" the world differently and treat it differently based on my language?

 

Yes. Since almost everything you see, hear and say is mediated by your language, which is an inescapable frame of experience.

 

Would I be a different person and interact with the world differently if I spoke a different language?

 

This follows from the above.

Edited April 6, 2013 by proximity1

[Popcorn Sutton]

There was an experiment a while ago on speakers of english and speakers of a native american language. It suggested that they at least see colors differently. Some languages only have two colors, dark and light.

 

What they did was show a just noticeable difference between colors to both the english speakers and the native speakers. The english speakers called one blue and one green. The native speakers called them both somoyok.

[Ringer]

There was an experiment a while ago on speakers of english and speakers of a native american language. It suggested that they at least see colors differently. Some languages only have two colors, dark and light.

 

What they did was show a just noticeable difference between colors to both the english speakers and the native speakers. The english speakers called one blue and one green. The native speakers called them both somoyok.

They don't see colors differently, they just distinguish them differently. Say if they put yellow and purple in the same group you could ask them if they were the same thing they would tell you they weren't the exact same. Just like even if you don't know every type of blue's names you can tell the difference between two different kinds of blues, but you still think of them both as blue.