Theory of Mind and Pragmatics

While broadly defined as “the ability to reason other’s mental states”, what theory of mind actually involves and how it’s involved in language remains complicated (well at least I think it’s complicated). I am very interested in the breakdown of theory of mind, how it’s developed, and how language/communication involves different mental states.

• Stay tuned for some exciting stuff?

… and Autism

A lot of times, autism is considered a communicative disorder. A lot of times, this is described as autistic people struggling with pragmatics. A lot of times, this is said to be due to a lack of theory of mind. Yet these are strong assumptions that may or may not be true. What defines theory of mind or pragmatic performance? Which autistic groups — or subgroups — are we talking about? How much theory of mind does pragmatics actually involve? Do autistic people really struggle with pragmatics? Do they really struggle with theory of mind? In my research, I hope to revisit some of these existing assumptions about pragmatics in autism.

• My undergraduate thesis centers on if and how differences in information processing between autistic and neurotypical adults influence their choices in referential expression production. I have presented this several times, and you’ll be able to find a poster here eventually.

how I like to think about the case of pragmatics (and communication in general) in autistic people; for a more detailed proposal, check here

Thought, Consciousness, and how that languages

It always amazes me how every single person thinks and feels differently — from sensory processing to phenomenological processes, there is a wide range of introspective experiences that differs in people yet hard to talk about. How do “mental imageries” and “inner speech” connect to each other? How to measure them? And more importantly, how do these connect to language planning/production? I think it would be fascinating to look at how individuals experience thinking differently, and how this kind of “thought” influences language.

• For example, I am interested in whether linguistic processing are involved in musical pitch perception, and waht other factors in language and music experience are relevant.