Butler Christopher S., Gonzálvez-García Francisco. Exploring Functional-Cognitive Space

John Benjamins. 2014. — 597 pages. — (Studies in Language Companion Series). — ISBN13: 978-9027259226; ISBN10: 9027259224.This book, intended primarily for researchers and advanced students, expands greatly on previous work by the authors exploring the topography of the multidimensional functional-cognitive space within which functional, cognitive and/or constructionist approaches to language can be located. The analysis covers a broad range of 16 such approaches, with some additional references to Chomskyan minimalism, and is based on 58 questionnaire items, each rated by 29 experts on particular models for their importance in the model concerned. These ratings are analysed statistically to reveal overall patterns of (dis)similarity across models. The questionnaire ratings and experts’ comments are then used, together with the authors’ close reading of the literature, in detailed discussion leading to a final dichotomous rating for each feature in each model, the results again being analysed statistically. The final chapter presents the overall conclusions and suggests how existing collaborations between approaches could be strengthened, and new ones created, in future research.Aims of the book
What’s in a label?
The story so far
Choice of models for investigation
Methodological principles
The structure of the rest of the book
Profiles
Functional Discourse Grammar
Role and Reference Grammar
Systemic Functional Linguistics
The work of Talmy Givón
Interactional Linguistics and its antecedents in Emergent Grammar
Word Grammar
The Columbia School
Cognitive Grammar
Construction Grammar(s)
The collostructional approach
The Lexical Constructional Model
The Parallel Architecture
Features for the characterization of models: The questionnaire
General strategy in the choice of features
The six major groups of features
Relationship with the concept of criteria of adequacy
Communication and motivation
Coverage
The database for description
Explanation
The form of the grammar
Applications
The questionnaire
Statistical analysis of the questionnaire data
Background to the statistical approach
The statistical techniques
Correlations among the sets of questionnaire responses
Multidimensional scaling analysis of questionnaire responses
Hierarchical clustering analysis of questionnaire responses
Overall conclusions from the statistical analysis of the questionnaire data
Characterization of models: Introduction; communication and motivationCommunication and motivation
Characterization of models: CoverageAnalysis of models
Characterization of models: The database for descriptionAnalysis of models
Characterization of models: ExplanationAnalysis of models
Characterization of models: The form of the grammarAnalysis of models
Characterization of models: ApplicationsAnalysis of models
Statistical analysis of final ratings
Introduction: The final ratings
Correlation
Multidimensional scaling
Hierarchical cluster analysis
Overall conclusions from the statistical analysis
Compatibilities and contrastsSimilarities and differences across models
Combining insights from different models
A critical retrospective assessment of the study
Envoi: Towards the future