Language universals have long been attributed to an innate Universal Grammar. An alternative explanation states that linguistic universals emerged independently in every language in response to shared cognitive or perceptual biases. A computational model has recently shown how this could be the case, focusing on the paradigmatic example of the universal properties of colour naming patterns, and producing results in quantitative agreement with the experimental data. Here we investigate the role of an individual perceptual bias in the framework of the model. We study how, and to what extent, the structure of the bias influences the corresponding linguistic universal patterns. We show that the cultural history of a group of speakers introduces population-specific constraints that act against the pressure for uniformity arising from the individual bias, and we clarify the interplay between these two forces.

Individual biases, cultural evolution, and the statistical nature of language universals: the case of colour naming systems / Baronchelli, Andrea; Loreto, Vittorio; Puglisi, Andrea. - In: PLOS ONE. - ISSN 1932-6203. - ELETTRONICO. - 10:5(2015), p. e0125019. [10.1371/journal.pone.0125019]

Individual biases, cultural evolution, and the statistical nature of language universals: the case of colour naming systems

LORETO, Vittorio
Secondo
Membro del Collaboration Group
;
PUGLISI, Andrea
Ultimo
Membro del Collaboration Group
2015

Abstract

Language universals have long been attributed to an innate Universal Grammar. An alternative explanation states that linguistic universals emerged independently in every language in response to shared cognitive or perceptual biases. A computational model has recently shown how this could be the case, focusing on the paradigmatic example of the universal properties of colour naming patterns, and producing results in quantitative agreement with the experimental data. Here we investigate the role of an individual perceptual bias in the framework of the model. We study how, and to what extent, the structure of the bias influences the corresponding linguistic universal patterns. We show that the cultural history of a group of speakers introduces population-specific constraints that act against the pressure for uniformity arising from the individual bias, and we clarify the interplay between these two forces.
2015
Language universals; cognitive and perceptual biases; colour naming systems
01 Pubblicazione su rivista::01a Articolo in rivista
Individual biases, cultural evolution, and the statistical nature of language universals: the case of colour naming systems / Baronchelli, Andrea; Loreto, Vittorio; Puglisi, Andrea. - In: PLOS ONE. - ISSN 1932-6203. - ELETTRONICO. - 10:5(2015), p. e0125019. [10.1371/journal.pone.0125019]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11573/843624
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