Does Language Affect Human's Cognitive Function? Another Test from A Deaf Village's Sign Language in the North of Bali


Oleh : I Nyoman Aryawibawa, S.S., M.A., Ph.D.
dibuat pada : 2018
Fakultas/Jurusan : Fakultas Ilmu Budaya/Sarjana Sastra Inggris

Kata Kunci :
frame of reference, relative system, absolute system, intrinsic system

Abstrak :
There are many scholars pointing out how language affects the way humans think in particular in using frame of reference. However, to the best of my knowledge, none of them included sign languages in their studies. To have more reliable and comprehensive results, the sign language should be included for the main reason that it is expected that there is some consistency between the spoken and sign languages used in the same speech community in employing the concept of frame of reference. This research proposal is mainly designed to examine if language affects human’s cognition especially in using spatial relations (frame of reference) of both spoken Balinese and a sign language used in a deaf community in Desa Kolok (Bengkala village) in the district of Buleleng in the north of Bali. As the follow up of the first year’s study involving 40 children using spoken Balinese (ages about 4-12 years old), and 50 adults speaking Balinese (ages about 20-60 years old), the current study will involve 15 children signers (ages about 4-12 years old) and 25 deaf adult signers (ages about 20-60 years old),. This study is qualitative in nature and will use production tasks employing linguistic tasks (object rotation tasks and asking direction techniques) and non-linguistic tasks (objects rearrangements) that are designed to elicit participants’ frame of reference knowledge. In this experiment, a native language assistant who is knowledgable both in Balinese and in the local sign language will be involved to help to tap the knowledge of using frame of reference by the signers. Like the first part of the research, the specific purpose of this experiment is to find out the patterns of using frame of reference by the signers. All the data from the speakers of Balinese and the signers will be compared and analyzed. In other words, using the two different tasks to all the participants, the long term goal at the end of this research is that it is expected that the role of language in human’s cognition especially in using spatial relation or frame of reference can be comprehensively pointed out. This study is expected to contribute methodologically and theoretically to the on-going discussion of universality of the concept of frame of reference, and certainly to the theory of First Language Acquisition especially to the acquisition of frame of reference. Practically, a booklet containing signs of using frames of reference will be produced that can be used in classroom settings at schools in the village.