Human & Animal Communication – Comparative Linguistics and Animal
Behavior Study Guide
Mode of Communication - ✔✔How messages are communicated
Some languages use their bodies to communicate (Example = bees dancing)
Semanticity - ✔✔Signals MUST have meaning; if the signals are random, no communication is
taking place
Pragmatic Function - ✔✔Systems of communication serve a USEFUL purpose
Example: warning cries; mating signals
Interchangeability - ✔✔The ability to both send AND receive messages
**Most species have this feature EXCEPT the silkworm moth, which only females can send
chemical mating signal that males can ONLY receive, not produce
Cultural Transmission - ✔✔Some aspect of a communication system must be learned through
interaction with other users of the system
Example: Whales are taught the dialect of their pod's (group's) songs.
Arbitrariness - ✔✔Signals are NOT logically related in form to their meanings.
Most animal systems use ICONIC signals that INDIRECTLY represent their meaning, which is NOT
arbitrary
Discreteness - ✔✔Small parts of language can be combined in different ways to create more
complex messages.
Example: Bees can combine dances (sickle; waggle) to convey different meanings
Behavior Study Guide
Mode of Communication - ✔✔How messages are communicated
Some languages use their bodies to communicate (Example = bees dancing)
Semanticity - ✔✔Signals MUST have meaning; if the signals are random, no communication is
taking place
Pragmatic Function - ✔✔Systems of communication serve a USEFUL purpose
Example: warning cries; mating signals
Interchangeability - ✔✔The ability to both send AND receive messages
**Most species have this feature EXCEPT the silkworm moth, which only females can send
chemical mating signal that males can ONLY receive, not produce
Cultural Transmission - ✔✔Some aspect of a communication system must be learned through
interaction with other users of the system
Example: Whales are taught the dialect of their pod's (group's) songs.
Arbitrariness - ✔✔Signals are NOT logically related in form to their meanings.
Most animal systems use ICONIC signals that INDIRECTLY represent their meaning, which is NOT
arbitrary
Discreteness - ✔✔Small parts of language can be combined in different ways to create more
complex messages.
Example: Bees can combine dances (sickle; waggle) to convey different meanings
