Concept, word, and sentence: Interrelations in acquisition and development

Abstract

Proposes a conceptual model to account for the child's initial translation of meanings into words. The model is discussed in terms of the characteristics of word acquisition and of the relation between 1st words and 1st sentences. While concept formation theory, semantic feature theory, and Piagetian theory are each alone inadequate to account for this process, each makes a necessary contribution to an adequate solution. The resulting model rests on the assumption that the young child translates the dynamic functional relations of objects into conceptual "core" meanings to which identificational features of concept instances are attached. It differentiates between the meaning of a concept and its referents and relates these to concept generation and concept identification, respectively. Some wider implications of the model for acquiring concepts and general semantic categories and for constructing sentences are briefly considered. (51 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1974 American Psychological Association.