Single Idea 3170

[catalogued under 18. Thought / B. Mechanics of Thought / 4. Language of Thought]

Full Idea

Very young children have been shown (Brown and Halon 1970) to be 'reinforced' not for their grammar but for the informational content of what they say.

Gist of Idea

We train children in truth, not in grammar

Source

Georges Rey (Contemporary Philosophy of Mind [1997], 4.2.1)

Book Reference

Rey,Georges: 'Contemporary Philosophy of Mind' [Blackwell 1997], p.113


A Reaction

This is what you would expect. It doesn't follow that the grammar comes from innate mechanisms, because the pressure to get the information right could impose increasing accuracy in grammar.