#AP Psychology: Language Development - The Ultimate Study Guide 🚀

Hey future psych masters! Let's dive into the fascinating world of language development. This guide is your express ticket to acing the exam, focusing on the core concepts and throwing in some memory tricks to make it stick. Let's get started!

#🗣️ Components of Language and Communication

# Shared System of Arbitrary Symbols

• Language is a shared system of arbitrary symbols that convey meaning. Think of it as a secret code we all agree on! 🤫
• These symbols are expressed as:
  • Phonemes: Basic units of sound (e.g., /k/, /a/, /t/ in 'cat').
  • Morphemes: Smallest units of meaning (e.g., 'un-', 'break', '-able' in 'unbreakable').
  • Semantics: The meaning of words and phrases.
• Phonemes combine to form morphemes, which then create words and phrases.
• Language is rule-governed, using:
  • Grammar: Rules for word order and sentence structure (e.g., subject-verb-object).
  • Syntax: Rules for combining words into phrases and sentences.
• Language is generative, allowing us to create an infinite number of unique ideas by combining symbols in novel ways.

# Rule-Governed Language Production

• All languages follow rules dictating how symbols combine to convey meaning.
• Grammar sets the order of words in a sentence (e.g., "The cat sat on the mat" vs. "Mat the cat on sat").
• Syntax specifies how words form phrases and sentences (e.g., "a big red ball" is correct; "red big a ball"...