verbal deprivation hypothesis

the hypothesis that children who are denied regular experience of an elaborated code of language—that is, a more formal use of language involving complex constructions and an unpredictable vocabulary—may develop an educational and even cognitive deficit. The concept is controversial as it has been associated with the view that nonstandard or vernacular forms of a language (e.g., Black English) are inherently inferior. The idea that nonstandard forms inhibit higher level cognitive processes (e.g., abstract reasoning) is now discredited, but concerns remain that lack of early exposure to the more formal codes of a language appears to correlate with educational underachievement. [proposed in 1973 by British sociologist Basil Bernstein (1924–2000)]

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Psychology term of the day

November 24th 2024

point scale

any scale for measuring some construct or attribute in which participants’ responses to a series of multiple-choice questions are given numerical values (points). The final score is the total points earned. See also Likert scale; semantic differential.