Tell Journal, Volume 6, Number 1, April 2018 ISSN :

2338-8927 47 THE ROLE OF PSYCHOLINGUISTICS IN

LANGUAGE LEARNING AND TEACHING Norita Purba
Applied Linguistics, Graduate School, Yogyakarta
State University.
ABSTRACT
Psycholinguistics has provided numerous theories that
explain how a person acquires a language, produces and
perceives both spoken and written language. The theories
have been used in the field of language teaching. Some
experts use them as the basic theories in developing
language teaching methods. It is known as
psycholinguistics approach. Psycholinguistic approach
views learning as a cognitive individual process
happening within the individual and then moves to the
social dimension. As an approach, there are some
methods which were developed based on
psycholinguistics theories such as natural method, total
physical response method, and suggestopedia method.
These methods apply psycholinguistic principles that how
a person acquires his/her mother tongue or first language
(First Language Acquisition), learns his/her second or third
language (Second Language Learning), perceives a
language (Language Perception), and produces language
(Language Production). Language perception refers to
listening and reading, while the language production
refers to speaking and writing. Listening, reading,
speaking and writing are called as the four of language
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skills. Specifically, psycholinguistics helps to understand
the difficulties of these four skills both intrinsic difficulties
and extrinsic difficulties. Psycholinguistics also helps to
explain the errors students do in the language learning.
Moreover psycholinguistics also defines some kinds of
brain disorders that affect language learning performance
such as agraphia and aphasia which must be treated
properly. Psycholinguistics mainly helps teachers to
consider the use of appropriate method to teach that four
language skill. Keywords: psycholinguistics, approach,
method, teaching Psycholinguistics is an integration of
two disciplines; psychology and linguistics. Psychology is
the study of mind and behavior; linguistics is the study of
language. So, in general, psycholinguistics can be defined
as the study of mind and language. It is concerned with
the relationship between the human mind and the
language as it examines the processes that occur in brain
while producing and perceiving language.
Psycholinguistics covers three main points; language
production, language perception and language
acquisition. Language production refers to the processes
involved in creating and expressing meaning through
language. Language perception refers to processes
involved in interpreting and understanding both written
and spoken language. Language acquisition refers to
processes of acquiring a native or a second language.
Psycholinguistics has provided numerous theories that
explain the three points above. The theories have been
very useful in the field of language teaching. Some
experts use them as the basic theories in developing
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language teaching methods. It is known as a
psycholinguistic approach. Psycholinguistic approach
views that language and thought as related but
completely independent phenomena. Learning is viewed
as a cognitive individual process happening within the
individual and then moves to the social dimension.
Psycholinguistics as a study of the psychology of
language is realized in language teaching. It helps to
study the psychological factors that are possibly involved
in languages learning. Psycholinguistics focuses on the
application of the actual language and communication. It
is necessary to make a decision in applying various
methods that allow students to easily understand a
language. As an approach, there are some methods which
were developed based on psycholinguistics theories and
the methods have been used widely in the field of
language teaching over the countries. Some kinds of the
method will be explained in this paper.

Psycholinguistics has developed rapidly and expanded

into several sub-disciplines as cited in Chaer
(2015) below:

1. Theoretical psycholinguistics. It focused on theories of

language relating to human mental processes in
language, such as phonetics, diction, syntax design,
discourse, and intonation.

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2. Developmental psycholinguistics. It is related to
language acquisition, both first language acquisition (L1)
and second language acquisition (L2). It examines
phonological, semantic, and syntactic acquisition, process
in stages, gradually, and integrated.

3. Social psycholinguistics related to the social aspects

of language, including social identity.

4. Educational psycholinguistics discussed general

aspects of formal education at school, including the role
of language in teaching reading teaching proficiency, and
improving language ability to express thoughts and
feelings.

5. Neuro-psycholinguistics focused on the relationship

between language, language production, and the human
brain. Neurology experts have managed to analyze the
biological structure of the brain and analyzed what
happens with the input language and how language
output programmed and set up in the brain.

6. Experimental psycholinguistics covered and

experimented in all language productions and language
activities, language behavior, and language outcome.

7. Applied psycholinguistics concerned with the

application of the findings of six sub-disciplines of
psycholinguistics explained before in certain areas that
require it, including psychology, linguistics, language

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learning, neurology, psychiatry, communications, and
literature.

Language Learning and Language Acquisition

Field (2004) states that the term is used for infants
acquiring their native language (first language
acquisition) and for those learning a second or foreign
language (second language acquisition). The use of the
terms is still unproblematic. Some experts use the term
‘language learning’ and some use the term ‘language
acquisition’. Chaer (2015) explains that term ‘language
learning’ is used because some experts believe that a
second language can be mastered by learning the
language intentionally and consciously. This is different
from the first language and mother tongue which is
acquired naturally and unconsciously without a formal
setting. The term language acquisition is used because it
is believed that a second language or third language is
acquired either formally or informally. In this paper, which
is used is a term that refers to the language learning
second language acquisition.
There are two types of language learning:
naturalistic language learning and formal language
learning. Naturalistic language learning is learning a
language naturally, consciously, and unintentionally. This
usually occurs in bilingual or multilingual societies.
Otherwise, formal language learning takes place in the
classroom with teachers, materials and learning aids.

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Thus, this paper will use the term ‘language learning’
which will refer to the processes of a person masters a
second language or a foreign language in a formal
education setting.

Factors Affecting Language Learning

Some students learn a new language more quickly and
easily than others. This fact is related to the crucial
factors influencing success that are largely beyond the
control of the learner. According to Lightbown and Spada
(2006:58-74) mention some factors affecting language
learning.

a. Intelligence
The term 'intelligence' has traditionally been used to
refer to performance on certain kinds of tests. These
tests are often associated with success in school, and a
link between intelligence and second language
learning has sometimes been reported.
b. Aptitude
Specific abilities thought to predict success in language
learning have been studied under the title of language
learning 'aptitude'. Research has characterized
aptitude in terms of the ability to learn quickly. Thus,
we may hypothesize that a learner with high aptitude
may learn with greater ease and speed, but those
other learners may also be successful if they
persevere.
c. Learning Style
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 The term 'learning style' has been used to describe an
individual’s natural, habitual, and preferred way of
absorbing, processing, and retaining new information
and skills. Some people say that they cannot learn
something until they have seen it. Such learners would
fall into the group called 'visual' learners. Other people,
who may be called 'aural' learners, seem to learn best
'by ear'. For others, referred to as 'kinesthetic' learners,
a physical action such as miming or role-play seems to
help the learning process. These are referred to as
perceptually based learning styles.
d. Personality
A number of personality characteristics have been
proposed as likely to affect second language learning.
It is often argued that an extroverted person is well
suited to language learning. Another aspect of
personality that has been studied is inhibition. It has
been suggested that inhibition discourages risk-taking,
which is necessary for progress in language learning.
Furthermore, learner anxiety-feelings of worry,
nervousness, and stress that many students
experience when learning a second language- has
been extensively investigated. Recent research
investigating learner anxiety in second language
classrooms acknowledges that anxiety is more likely to
be dynamic and dependent on particular situations and
circumstances. Several other personality
characteristics such as self-esteem, empathy,
dominance, talkativeness, and responsiveness have
also been studied. However, it has been not easy to
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 empirically demonstrate the effect of personality in
language learning.
e. Motivation
(Intrinsic) Motivation has been defined in terms of
two factors: learners' communicative needs and their
attitudes towards the second language. If learners
need to speak the second language in a wide range of
social situations or to fulfil professional ambitions, they
will perceive the communicative value of the second
language and will therefore be motivated to acquire
proficiency in it. Likewise, if learners have good
attitudes towards the speakers of the language, they
will desire more to learn it.
f. Motivation (Extrinsic)
Teachers also influence on students’ behavior and
motivation in language learning. Teacher is one of
students' reasons for studying the second language or
having good attitudes toward the language learning.
Teachers can give a positive contribution to students'
motivation to learn if classrooms are places that
students enjoy coming to because the content is
interesting and relevant to their age and level of
ability, the learning goals are challenging yet
manageable and clear, and the atmosphere is
supportive.
g. Culture and Status
There is some evidence that students in situations
where their own culture has a lower status than that of
the culture in which they are learning the language

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 make slower progress. Social factors at a more general
level can affect motivation, attitudes, and language
learning success. One such factor is the social dynamic
or power relationship between the languages.
h. Age
Second language learning is influenced by the age of
the learner. Children, who already have solid literacy
skills in their own language, seem to be in the best
position to acquire a new language efficiently.
Motivated, older learners can be very successful too,
but usually struggle to achieve native-speaker-
equivalent pronunciation and intonation. Research
found that age distinguishes children and adults in
learning a second language in certain aspects such as
phonology, morphology, and syntax.

Psycholinguistics Approach and Four Language

Skills
Psycholinguistics theories have explained the mental
processes that occur in the human brain during a
person produces and perceives a language. Language
perception includes the activity of listening and
reading, while the language production includes the
activity of speaking and writing. The four activities are
called as the four of language skills. The following will
be described some benefits of psycholinguistics
theories in language learning and teaching as
explained by Demirezen (2004).

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1. Psycholinguistics Approach and Listening Skill
Psycholinguistics researchers have indicated that in
teaching listening, the intrinsic and extrinsic difficulties
should be overcome in order to reach to a highly
qualified listening activity. Intrinsic difficulty refers to
the speed of the speech, number of unknown words,
and prior knowledge about topic. Extrinsic difficulty
refers to students’ interest, motivation, purpose of
listening activity, and noise in the environment.
Psycholinguistics knowledge will help teacher to reduce
the intrinsic and extrinsic difficulties. Teacher can
prepare a listening text with topic that is familiar for
students, consisting of 100 words, and including 10
new vocabulary items. Teacher also minds about the
reading speed and the noise of environment. Moreover,
teacher can increase students’ interest and motivation
by designing an interesting and comfortable class.

2. Psycholinguistics Approach and Reading Skill

Psycholinguistics approach resorts to text-based
approach as a case of bottom-up processing so as to
emphasize the comprehension activity and top-dawn
processing to stress the fact that comprehension rests
primarily on students’ knowledge base.
Bottom-up processing happens when someone tries to
understand language by looking at individual meanings
or grammatical characteristics of the most basic units
of the text and moves from these to trying to
understand the whole text. Top-down processing of
language happens when someone uses background
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 information to predict the meaning of language they
are going to read to. Rather than relying first on the
actual words, they develop expectations about what
they will read and confirm or reject these as they read.
This theory emphasizes that the understanding the
meaning of a text essentially rests on the prior
knowledge of students. Psycholinguistics helps learners
to reduce the intrinsic difficulties in reading activity by
arousing the interest of the students onto the reading
text. Teachers need to provide authentic and
contextual reading material because if students are not
properly exposed to authentic materials, they may fail
in seeing their relevance to the real world.

3. Psycholinguistics Approach and Writing Skill

Psycholinguistics helps in understanding the students’
mistakes in writing. It has a clear contribution on
spelling mistakes since in English words are not spelled
as they sound. There is a hardship on this case
because storing of the spelling of words and retrieve
them on demand is very difficult.
Psycholinguistics approach indicates that there are
mistakes in writing caused by agraphia, which must be
treated properly. Psycholinguistics helps to find
interesting topic to write. It serves to decrease the
level of the difficulties in writing. It helps to specify the
writing levels and writing types. It pins down the
mechanical mistakes on punctuation and suggests
certain cures for them.
4. Psycholinguistics Approach and Speaking Skill
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Psycholinguistic approach has a workable control over the
field of teaching speaking as a skill. It has specified
several difficulties on speaking such as students’-oriented
difficulty. Psycholinguistics also explains that personality,
like introvert and extrovert students, affects students’
performance in language learning. Speaking defects like
voice disorders, stuttering, and disarticulation are also
psychological in origin caused by personality factor.
There are also some traumatic disorders such as aphasia
and autism caused by localized in damage. It is
recommending therapies and counseling practices for
such difficulties. Thus, the investigations of
psycholinguistic approach have provided solutions for
almost each type of language learning difficulty.
With the knowledge, teachers can apply the appropriate
techniques to teach speaking skills by considering the
condition of the learner and find interesting topics to be
discussed in speaking class.

Language Teaching Methods of Psycholinguistics

Approach
An approach in language teaching consists of theories of
the nature of language and the theories of language
learning. Language teaching methods are concretization
of language teaching approaches. A method of language
teaching can be well understood if its fundamental
theories are clearly understood. Fundamental theories in
developing language teaching methods are divided into

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two main theories: the theory of language and the theory
of language learning.
There are three fundamental theoretical views in
developing the language teaching method: structural
theory, functional theory, and interactional theory.
Structural theory views language as a system of
grammatical unit: phrases, clauses, sentences, affixes,
and soon. Functional theory views language from its
function as a mean of communication: informational,
emotional, persuasive, and social. Interactional theory
views language as a mean to realize interpersonal
relationship and as a performance of social transaction
between individual and society. Each view implicates
differently in the development of language teaching
method.
Beside the theory of language, the developing of
language teaching method is also based on the theory of
language learning that related to two main questions; (1)
what cognitive process that involved in language
learning, and (2) what condition are needed to reach a
high quality of language learning activity.
Psycholinguistics has clearly answered these two
questions. Therefore, psycholinguistics has been used
widely as fundamental theory in developing language
teaching method. Some methods which were developed
based on psycholinguistic approach are described as
following (Harras and Andika, 2009)

1. Natural Method

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This method is developed by Tracy D. Terrel. This method
believes that language learning is a reproduction of the
way humans naturally acquire their native language. This
method rejects earlier methods such as the audiolingual
method. Psycholinguistic principles in language learning
according to this method are as following.

a. Language mastery relies on learning language

skills in natural context and less on conscious learning of
grammatical rules.

b. Learning a language is an effort to develop

communicative competence, the ability to understand the
speech of native speakers and native speakers
understand the learners’ speech without any error which
can interfere with meaning.

c. Comprehension is more primary than production.

d. The model that underlies this method is five
monitors theory: (1) acquisition-learning hypothesis, (2)
natural order hypothesis, (3) monitor hypothesis, (4)
feedback hypothesis, (5) affective filter hypothesis.
The consistency of this method is shown by natural
techniques developed by teacher. Teacher stimulates the
learners to competence activity such as problem solving,
game, and humanistic affective. Problem solving is
designed to train learners to find out the right situational
answer or solution. Games are considered as an interlude
activity, but it is designed to improve

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students’ language competence. Humanistic affective is
designed to implicate opinions, feelings, ideas, and
reaction to language learning activity.

2. Total Physical Response Method

This method is developed by psychologist from San Jose
State College, United States, James J. Asher (1966).
Psycholinguistic principles in language learning according
this method are as following.

a. Language competence will improve significantly

by involving kinesthetic sensory system in language
learning. This related to the fact that children are given
utterances that require them to move physically.

b. Comprehension is primary rather than speech

production. Students are directed to achieve
comprehension competences before they try to speak or
write.

Related to kinesthetic theory, it is believed that there is a

positive correlation between physical movements and
students’ language achievement. It becomes the focus in
designing and applying appropriate language teaching
technique in a certain topic.
A spacious classroom is required in applying this method.
The class ideally consists of 20-25 students. This method
can be applied to teach children or adults. Grammatical

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rules are presented in imperative sentences because
basically all materials are presented in imperative
sentences. In this method, dictionary is unneeded
because the meaning of words will be expressed by
physical activities. Students usually do not get homework
because language learning is performed together in the
classroom.

3. Suggestopedia
This method is developed by Georgy Lazanov, a
psychiatrist in Bulgaria in 1975. Psycholinguistic
principles in language learning according to this method
are as following.

1. Humans can be directed to do something by giving

them a relaxed atmosphere and an open and peaceful
mind. These will stimulate nerves to easily respond and
store the information for longer.

2. Before the lesson started, students are persuaded to

relax their body and mind in order to gather
hypermnestic ability, it is an incredible super memory.

3. The classroom is set up with dim light, comfortable

seats, relaxed atmosphere and classical music.

4. Laboratorial program and strict grammar exercise are

rejected in the class.

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5. Generally, material is presented in a long dialogue. The
characteristics of the dialogue are: (a) emphasizes
vocabularies and content, (b) related to the real life, (c)
practical utility, (d) relevant emotionally, and (e) some
words are underlined and given the phonetic
transcription.

Each meeting in this method is divided into three-time

allocations. The first is reviewing the previous topic
through discussion, games, sketch, or role playing. If
students do some mistakes, teacher corrects it carefully
to keep a positive atmosphere. The second is distributing
the dialogue traditionally. The third is relaxing students.
This is divided into two: active activity and passive
activity.

Language change: external as well as internal

factors.
External like geography / social prestige
Internal like ease of articulation / analogy or re-
interpretation / language contact
See the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vjt3g37SuQg

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