Optimal categorisation
The Nature of Nominal Classification Systems
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3821512 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Alexandra Grandison (0000-0001-9396-6274, University of Surrey), Michael Franjieh (0000-0002-7832-0907, University of Surrey), Lily Greene (University of Surrey), Greville G Corbett (0000-0002-2667-9870, University of Surrey) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 2 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | e393 |
| Publication date | 2021-12-03 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Cadernos de Linguística e Teoria da Literatura (Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais) (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2675-4916 • E-ISSN: 2675-4916 |
| Publisher | Associacao Brasileira de Linguistica (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.25189/2675-4916.2021.v2.n1.id393 |
| OpenAlex | W4200326322 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 51 |
The debate as to whether language influences cognition has been long standing but has yielded conflicting findings across domains such as colour and kinship categories. Fewer studies have investigated systems such as nominal classification (gender, classifiers) across different languages to examine the effects of linguistic categorisation on cognition. Effective categorisation needs to be informative to maximise communicative efficiency but also simple to minimise cognitive load. It therefore seems plausible to suggest that different systems of nominal classification have implications for the way speakers conceptualise relevant entities. A suite of seven experiments was designed to test this; here we focus on our card sorting experiment, which contains two sub-tasks - a free sort and a structured sort. Participants were 119 adults across six Oceanic languages from Vanuatu and New Caledonia, with classifier inventories ranging from two to 23. The results of the card sorting experiment reveal that classifiers appear to provide structure for cognition in tasks where they are explicit and salient. The free sort task did not incite categorisation through classifiers, arguably as it required subjective judgement, rather than explicit instruction. This was evident from our quantitative and qualitative analyses. Furthermore, the languages employing more extreme categorisation systems displayed smaller variation in comparison to more moderate systems. Thus, systems that are more informative or more rigid appear to be more efficient. The study implies that the influence of language on cognition may vary across languages, and that not all nominal classification systems employ this optimal trade-off between simplicity and informativeness. These novel data provide a new perspective on the origin and nature of nominal classification
Card sorting · Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Judgement · Natural language processing · Salient · Simplicity · sort · Sorting · Categorization, perception, and language · Computer Science · Language, Metaphor, and Cognition · Multisensory perception and integration · Psychology · Artificial Intelligence
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Twelve tips for conducting qualitative research interviews
When language affects cognition and when it does not
Effects of Language on Visual Perception
Kinship Categories Across Languages Reflect General Communicative Principles
Color categories are not universal
Russian blues reveal effects of language on color discrimination
Language, thought, and color
Sex, Syntax, and Semantics
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Statistical power analyses using G*Power 3.1
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Gender and classifiers in concurrent systems
Semantic Typology and Efficient Communication
Extreme classification
Linguistic relativism and colour cognition
Order in Spanish colour words
A study in language and cognition
Relational classifiers
Thematic Analysis
| Highly cited | No |
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