Wisdom in Words: The Relationship between Language Use and the Perception of Wisdom
Short Definition
The current study explores the ambiguity of wisdom by focusing on how it is transmitted and perceived. Language is the medium by which wisdom-related knowledge is usually conveyed. While wisdom is expected to increase with age, aspects of language use often decline with age
Summary Points
- The study “Wisdom in Words” is currently collecting data and coding from speaker participants. Preliminary results support previous research findings of a decline in word retrieval ability with age
- The current study explores the ambiguity of wisdom by focusing on how it is transmitted and perceived. Language is the medium by which wisdom-related knowledge is usually conveyed
- While wisdom is expected to increase with age, aspects of language use often decline with age
- If productive language use declines with age, despite the accrual of knowledge and life experience, then the ability to pass on acquired wisdom is also likely to decline.
- To test this hypothesis, a pilot study is underway to establish the extent to which listeners’ perceptions are influenced by linguistic variables.
- These ratings are designed to tap into dimensions of wisdom derived from the literature on explicit and implicit theories of wisdom.
Text from Wisdom Institute
The study “Wisdom in Words” is currently collecting data and coding from speaker participants. Preliminary results support previous research findings of a decline in word retrieval ability with age, particularly after age seventy, and particularly in tasks involving time constraints. However, word knowledge improves or remains stable with age, and is more closely related to participants’ education level than age. Further studies will explore the relationship of these findings to the ways in which listeners’ perceptions of wisdom are influenced by linguistic variables.
Wisdom in Words: The Relationship between Language Use and the Perception of Wisdom The current study explores the ambiguity of wisdom by focusing on how it is transmitted and perceived. Language is the medium by which wisdom-related knowledge is usually conveyed, and the sophistication of that language is proposed to significantly affect the spirit in which the knowledge is received. If one’s word choice and/or syntactic structure sound clever or profound, one is more likely to be perceived as wise. While wisdom is expected to increase with age, aspects of language use often decline with age. This may be why an age effect has been difficult to obtain in wisdom studies, and why society holds both negative and positive stereotypes of aging. If productive language use declines with age, despite the accrual of knowledge and life experience, then the ability to pass on acquired wisdom is also likely to decline.
To test this hypothesis, a pilot study is underway to establish the extent to which listeners’ perceptions are influenced by linguistic variables. Artificially manipulated language samples differing in grammatical complexity and word choice were created. The samples were written responses to two advice‐giving scenarios, such as what to say to a young girl who wants to run away from home. The study protocol was modified to have “listeners” read the transcripts of these responses, rather than listen to audio‐recorded versions. This was judged to be a more controlled test of the hypothesis, because it factors out vocal characteristics of the speaker which would likely influence perceptions of age and gender, and possibly other factors as well, such as educational level. (A follow‐up study could test these influences by comparing judgments of written and oral samples.) Young adult subjects were asked to read the responses and judge the speakers’ knowledge, judgment, sensitivity, perceptiveness, and ability to communicate ideas, as well as whether or not subjects agree with the advice provided in the responses. Subjects were also asked to estimate the speakers’ age and education levels. These ratings are designed to tap into dimensions of wisdom derived from the literature on explicit and implicit theories of wisdom (e.g. Sternberg, 1985). Gordon and her research team expect that language variables will affect these judgments, over and above the degree to which subjects agree with the response provided.
https://wisdomcenter.uchicago.edu/about/project-1-defining-wisdom