How does language shape formation of concepts? Empirical investigation of generics and conditionals in French

Abstract

This study explores how language influences concept formation, specifically how linguistic expressions signal what is central or essential to forming concepts of kinds. Prior research on preschool children suggests that generics (e.g., “Birds fly”) create strong associations between a kind and its properties, signaling essential features. To gain a deeper understanding of how language influences concept formation and its developmental trajectory, we examined two linguistic expressions—generics and conditionals—and compared them to a third type: demonstrative sentences, i.e., sentences with the pronoun this (e.g., “This bird flies”). We hypothesize that, beyond generics, conditionals may also act as a cue indicating that certain information is essential in concept formation. Three French-speaking groups—late adolescents, young adults, and adults—participated in an elicitation task. While Experiment 3 (adults) confirmed the importance of both generics and conditionals in concept formation, Experiments 1 and 2 (late adolescents and young adults) found no significant differences between the linguistic expressions. These results indicate that conditionals, generics, and demonstratives influence the conceptualization of kinds in a comparable way in late adolescents and young adults whereas at adulthood conditionals and generics are strongest cues for considering a given property as essential to a kind.