Structuralism and Behaviorism in Language Acquisition
Structuralism in Linguistics
Structuralism is based on the work of key authors in linguistics: Saussure, Bloomfield, and Sapir. Their work marked the birth of modern linguistics and laid the foundations of structuralism.
In the 1940s, the movement established several core ideas:
- Every language is an independent system distinct from others.
- Language is a system of linguistic signs that interact to form basic structures.
- Language is primarily oral and aural.
- Language is a system of structurally related elements that encode meaning.
Behaviorism (Skinner, 1957)
This was the first attempt to offer a scientific explanation for the process of language acquisition.
- Structuralism supports the ideas set forth by behaviorism.
- Language is learned through a process