Concepts, abstractness, and inner speech

Abstract

We explore the role of inner speech (covert self-directed talk) during the acquisition and use of concepts differing in abstractness. Following Vygotsky, inner speech results from the internationalization of linguistically mediated interactions that regulate cognition and behaviour. When we acquire and processabstract concepts, uncertainties about word meaning might lead us to search actively for their meaning.Inner speech might play a role in this searching process and be differentially involved in concept learning compared to use of known concepts. Importantly, inner speech comes in different varieties – e.g., it can be expanded or condensed (with the latter involving syntactic and semantic forms of abbreviation). Do we useinner speech differently with concepts varying in abstractness? Which kinds of inner speech do we preferentially use with different kinds of abstract concepts (e.g., emotions vs. numbers)? What other features of inner speech, such as dialogicality, might facilitate our use of concepts varying in abstractness(byallowing us to monitor the limits of our knowledge in simulated social exchanges, through a process we term inner social metacognition)? In tackling these questions, we address the possibility that different varieties of inner speech are flexibly used during the acquisition of concepts and their everyday use.

Concepts for Which We Need Others More: The Case of Abstract Concepts

“…That is, they may use forms of dialogic inner speech in which they simulate dialogue with themselves or reenact dialogic interactions with others (Alderson-Day et al, 2018). Through inner speech, people might even derive information that they do not initially possess or that they believe they do not possess (inner social metacognition; Borghi & Fernyhough, 2022). Finally, does reduced use of inner speech lead to decreased abilities in processing abstract concepts?…”

Rethinking the role of language in embodied cognition

“…A consequence of this uncertainty is that we tend to rely more on others for an understanding of their meaning [89]. Inner speech can help us manage this uncertainty in a couple of ways [90]. First, it can help us monitor our own concepts by enabling us to trace a word's meaning through its connections to other words.…”

Concepts in interaction: social engagement and inner experiences

“…to form and use abstract concepts [7] (e.g. [8,9]). Embodied and grounded approaches to cognition have successfully underlined the role of sensorimotor processes and, recently, of interoception for concepts [10][11][12].…”

“…Other papers focus more explicitly on language and its relationship with concepts, showing the importance of inner language, verbal labels and word associations for concrete and abstract concepts, and highlighting the role of language in enhancing cognition. Across the various sections, the theme issue offers many insights into the differences between kinds of concepts, from the significant distinction between concrete and abstract ones [2,8,9,56,57], to specific concepts like the religious [58], the social [59,60], the olfactory [61] and the emotional ones [38,42].…”

“…While our theme issue focuses on the investigation of concepts and categorization through the lens of social interaction, it also has implications in other areas, for example, for research on metacognition [3,9,61,62], and theoretical perspectives such as ecological psychology and extended cognition [5,63,64].…”