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Linguistics and Psychology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 April 2026

Albert P. Weiss*
Affiliation:
Ohio State University

Extract

For those psychologists for whom psychology is a study of the conditions known as the cultural status of the individual, or the anthropological status of the group, the study of the language mechanisms is taking on a new aspect. Language as a form of behavior through which the individual adjusts himself to a social environment, is not the same thing as language as a medium of expression of so-called subjective desires, hopes, and aspirations. As a form of behavior, language represents biological, physiological, and social conditions; as a medium of expression, it assumes the existence of non-physical forces or types of psychical energy whose existence has not been adequately demonstrated. Therefore, when the psychologist finds himself confronted with the request to make a “psychological” explanation, or a “psychological” interpretation of a careful and detailed linguistic investigation, he is unable to add anything and if anything is added it often only obscures the investigation.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © 1925 Linguistic Society of America

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