Language, mind and brain

Angela D. Friederici, Noam Chomsky, Robert C. Berwick, Andrea Moro, Johan J. Bolhuis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

172 Scopus citations

Abstract

Language serves as a cornerstone of human cognition. However, our knowledge about its neural basis is still a matter of debate, partly because 'language' is often ill-defined. Rather than equating language with 'speech' or 'communication', we propose that language is best described as a biologically determined computational cognitive mechanism that yields an unbounded array of hierarchically structured expressions. The results of recent brain imaging studies are consistent with this view of language as an autonomous cognitive mechanism, leading to a view of its neural organization, whereby language involves dynamic interactions of syntactic and semantic aspects represented in neural networks that connect the inferior frontal and superior temporal cortices functionally and structurally.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)713-722
Number of pages10
JournalNature Human Behaviour
Volume1
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 1 2017
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Psychology
  • Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
  • Behavioral Neuroscience

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