“动手不动口”:手部动作与语言进化的关系

Use gesture instead of speech:Hand action and language evolution

语言进化是进化心理学研究领域的重要问题。镜像系统假说、工具制造假说与传授假说从不同角度对手部动作与语言进化间的关系进行了解释,三种假说都认为人类语言起源于手部动作经验。相关实证研究发现:手语与口语具有一致性特征、语言与手部动作具有共同的神经基础、手势发展可以预测语言发展水平以及手势可以提高工具制造知识的传播效率,这些研究为三种假说的具体观点提供了实证支持。未来该领域的研究需要关注手势语与口语在进化中的发展关系,以及人类语言进化与其他认知特征的进化关系。

Language evolution is an important issue of evolutionary psychology.Mirror System Hypothesis,Tool-making Hypothesis and Teaching Hypothesis explain the relationship between hand action and language evolution from different perspectives.All three hypotheses agree that human language originates from the experience of hand movements.Relevant empirical researches found that sign language and spoken language have some common features,language and hand movements share common neural circuits,gesture development can predict the level of language ability,and gesture can enhance the transmission efficiency of knowledge about tool making.These studies provide empirical support for specific inferences of above three hypotheses.Future research in this field needs to focus on the evolutionary relationship between sign language and spoken language,as well as the relationship between human language and other cognitive characteristics.