Symbol Use and Symbolic Representation: Developmental and Comparative Perspectives

by Namy; Laura

• ISBN13: 9780805845976
• ISBN10: 0805845976
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-08-12
• Publisher: Psychology Pres

Summary

Symbol Use and Symbolic Representation: Developmental and Comparative Perspectivesis the proceedings of a workshop held at Emory University in 2002 to discuss the difficult and age-old issue of what makes a symbol symbolic. The issue shifts towards exploring the relation between apparent symbolic behavior and actual symbolic insight on the part of the user or recipient. The workshop discussed the pitfalls of inferring symbolic understanding from apparently symbolic behaviors and possible criteria that would enable us to ascertain when a symbol is being employed in an intentional, communicative, representational manner. Broken down into three parts, this volume: *focuses on the factors that influence the emergence of symbolic behavior in young, typically developing children; *turns to an examination of individual and population differences in symbolic development and the ways variability in symbol use can inform the cognitive mechanisms underlying symbolic insight; and *explores symbolic understanding in non-human animals. The text ends with a synthesis of recurring themes, questions, concerns, and conclusions, and offers a new perspective on the process of understanding the relation between symbol use and symbolic insight.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Section I: Children's Use of Symbols Across Modalities
Spatial Symbols and Spatial Thought: Cross-Cultural, Developmental, and Historical Perspectives on the Relation Between Map Use and Spatial Cognition	3	(22)
David H. Uttal
What Drives Symbolic Development? The Case of Pictorial Comprehension and Production	25	(22)
Philippe Rochat
Tara Callaghan
The Pygmalion Problem in Early Symbol Use	47	(22)
Judy S. DeLoache
How Children Turn Objects Into Symbols: A Cultural Learning Account	69	(32)
Hannes Rakoczy
Michael Tomasello
Tricia Striano
Section II: Communicative Variability Across Typical and Atypical Populations
Symbolic Communication Without a Language Model: The Starting Point for Language-Learning	101	(22)
Susan Goldin-Meadow
Do Changes in Brain Organization Reflect Shifts in Symbolic Functioning?	123	(32)
Debra L. Mills
Barbara T. Conboy
Chandra Paton
Early Visual--Graphic Symbol Acquisition by Children With Developmental Disabilities	155	(16)
Rose A. Sevcik
MaryAnn Romski
Infusing Symbols Into Joint Engagement: Developmental Themes and Variations	171	(28)
Lauren B. Adamson
Roger Bakeman
Deborah F. Deckner
Section III: Nonhuman Animal Communication and Symbol Use
Individual Differences in Language Competencies in Apes Resulting From Unique Rearing Conditions Imposed by Different First Epistemologies	199	(22)
Sue Savage-Rumbaugh
Par Segerdahl
William M. Fields
Imitation in Apes, Children, and Dolphins: Implications for the Ontogeny and Phylogeny of Symbolic Representation	221	(24)
Stan A. Kuezaj
Robin D. Paulos
Joana A. Ramos
Monkeying Around With Symbolism: Are Vocalizations Simple Symbols . . . or More Like Cymbals?	245	(24)
Harold Gouzoules
Afterword
Symbols Redefined	269	(10)
Laura L. Namy
Sandra R. Waxman
Author Index	279	(10)
Subject Index	289