2018
Casas, B.; Català, N.; Ferrer-i-Cancho, R.; Hernández-Fernández, A.; Baixeries, J.
The polysemy of the words that children learn over time Journal Article
In: Interaction Studies, vol. 19, no. 3, pp. 389 – 426, 2018.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: child language, vocabulary learning
@article{Casas2019a,
title = {The polysemy of the words that children learn over time},
author = {B. Casas and N. Català and R. Ferrer-i-Cancho and A. Hernández-Fernández and J. Baixeries},
doi = {10.1075/is.16036.cas},
year = {2018},
date = {2018-01-01},
journal = {Interaction Studies},
volume = {19},
number = {3},
pages = {389 – 426},
abstract = {Here we study polysemy as a potential learning bias in vocabulary learning in children. Words of low polysemy could be preferred as they reduce the disambiguation effort for the listener. However, such preference could be a side-effect of another bias: the preference of children for nouns in combination with the lower polysemy of nouns with respect to other part-of-speech categories.
Our results show that mean polysemy in children increases over time in two phases, i.e. a fast growth till the 31st month followed by a slower tendency towards adult speech. In contrast, this evolution is not found in adults interacting with children. This suggests that children have a preference for non-polysemous words in their early stages of vocabulary acquisition. Interestingly, the evolutionary pattern described above weakens when controlling for syntactic category (noun, verb, adjective or adverb) but it does not disappear completely, suggesting that it could result from a combination of a standalone bias for low polysemy and a preference for nouns.},
keywords = {child language, vocabulary learning},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Here we study polysemy as a potential learning bias in vocabulary learning in children. Words of low polysemy could be preferred as they reduce the disambiguation effort for the listener. However, such preference could be a side-effect of another bias: the preference of children for nouns in combination with the lower polysemy of nouns with respect to other part-of-speech categories.
Our results show that mean polysemy in children increases over time in two phases, i.e. a fast growth till the 31st month followed by a slower tendency towards adult speech. In contrast, this evolution is not found in adults interacting with children. This suggests that children have a preference for non-polysemous words in their early stages of vocabulary acquisition. Interestingly, the evolutionary pattern described above weakens when controlling for syntactic category (noun, verb, adjective or adverb) but it does not disappear completely, suggesting that it could result from a combination of a standalone bias for low polysemy and a preference for nouns.
Our results show that mean polysemy in children increases over time in two phases, i.e. a fast growth till the 31st month followed by a slower tendency towards adult speech. In contrast, this evolution is not found in adults interacting with children. This suggests that children have a preference for non-polysemous words in their early stages of vocabulary acquisition. Interestingly, the evolutionary pattern described above weakens when controlling for syntactic category (noun, verb, adjective or adverb) but it does not disappear completely, suggesting that it could result from a combination of a standalone bias for low polysemy and a preference for nouns.
2016
Ferrer-i-Cancho, R.
The optimality of attaching unlinked labels to unlinked meanings Journal Article
In: Glottometrics, vol. 36, pp. 1-16, 2016.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: information theory, vocabulary learning
@article{Ferrer2013g,
title = {The optimality of attaching unlinked labels to unlinked meanings},
author = {R. Ferrer-i-Cancho},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/2117/102539},
year = {2016},
date = {2016-01-01},
journal = {Glottometrics},
volume = {36},
pages = {1-16},
abstract = {Vocabulary learning by children can be characterized by many biases. When encountering a new word, children as well as adults, are biased towards assuming that it means something totally different from the words that they already know. To the best of our knowledge, the 1st mathematical proof of the optimality of this bias is presented here. First, it is shown that this bias is a particular case of the maximization of mutual information between words and meanings. Second, the optimality is proven within a more general information theoretic framework where mutual information maximization competes with other information theoretic principles. The bias is a prediction from modern information theory. The relationship between information theoretic principles and the principles of contrast and mutual exclusivity is also shown.},
keywords = {information theory, vocabulary learning},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Vocabulary learning by children can be characterized by many biases. When encountering a new word, children as well as adults, are biased towards assuming that it means something totally different from the words that they already know. To the best of our knowledge, the 1st mathematical proof of the optimality of this bias is presented here. First, it is shown that this bias is a particular case of the maximization of mutual information between words and meanings. Second, the optimality is proven within a more general information theoretic framework where mutual information maximization competes with other information theoretic principles. The bias is a prediction from modern information theory. The relationship between information theoretic principles and the principles of contrast and mutual exclusivity is also shown.
2013
Baixeries, J.; Elvevåg, B.; Ferrer-i-Cancho, R.
The evolution of the exponent of Zipf's law in language ontogeny Journal Article
In: PLoS ONE, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. e53227, 2013.
Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: child language, vocabulary learning, Zipf's law for word frequencies
@article{Baixeries2012c,
title = {The evolution of the exponent of Zipf's law in language ontogeny},
author = {J. Baixeries and B. Elvevåg and R. Ferrer-i-Cancho},
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0053227},
year = {2013},
date = {2013-01-01},
journal = {PLoS ONE},
volume = {8},
number = {3},
pages = {e53227},
abstract = {It is well-known that word frequencies arrange themselves according to Zipf's law. However, little is known about the dependency of the parameters of the law and the complexity of a communication system. Many models of the evolution of language assume that the exponent of the law remains constant as the complexity of a communication systems increases. Using longitudinal studies of child language, we analysed the word rank distribution for the speech of children and adults participating in conversations. The adults typically included family members (e.g., parents) or the investigators conducting the research. Our analysis of the evolution of Zipf's law yields two main unexpected results. First, in children the exponent of the law tends to decrease over time while this tendency is weaker in adults, thus suggesting this is not a mere mirror effect of adult speech. Second, although the exponent of the law is more stable in adults, their exponents fall below 1 which is the typical value of the exponent assumed in both children and adults. Our analysis also shows a tendency of the mean length of utterances (MLU), a simple estimate of syntactic complexity, to increase as the exponent decreases. The parallel evolution of the exponent and a simple indicator of syntactic complexity (MLU) supports the hypothesis that the exponent of Zipf's law and linguistic complexity are inter-related. The assumption that Zipf's law for word ranks is a power-law with a constant exponent of one in both adults and children needs to be revised.},
keywords = {child language, vocabulary learning, Zipf's law for word frequencies},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
It is well-known that word frequencies arrange themselves according to Zipf's law. However, little is known about the dependency of the parameters of the law and the complexity of a communication system. Many models of the evolution of language assume that the exponent of the law remains constant as the complexity of a communication systems increases. Using longitudinal studies of child language, we analysed the word rank distribution for the speech of children and adults participating in conversations. The adults typically included family members (e.g., parents) or the investigators conducting the research. Our analysis of the evolution of Zipf's law yields two main unexpected results. First, in children the exponent of the law tends to decrease over time while this tendency is weaker in adults, thus suggesting this is not a mere mirror effect of adult speech. Second, although the exponent of the law is more stable in adults, their exponents fall below 1 which is the typical value of the exponent assumed in both children and adults. Our analysis also shows a tendency of the mean length of utterances (MLU), a simple estimate of syntactic complexity, to increase as the exponent decreases. The parallel evolution of the exponent and a simple indicator of syntactic complexity (MLU) supports the hypothesis that the exponent of Zipf's law and linguistic complexity are inter-related. The assumption that Zipf's law for word ranks is a power-law with a constant exponent of one in both adults and children needs to be revised.
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