Boston University professor emeritus Jean Berko Gleason spoke on her internationally renowned language research to conclude the Human Development Colloquium Wednesday afternoon in the School of Management.
Gleason’s lecture, “From Wugs to Witches: The Interactional Elephant in the Cognitive Parlor,” gave a “kaleidoscopic view of the research of [Gleason’s] entire career,” Human Development Director Deborah Belle said.
The presentation included her research on language acquisition in children, gender differences in language and children’s acquisition of animal and color terms.
Gleason has used “trick or treating” to study the acquisition of routines in children and transcripts of dinner-table conversations to research the active teaching of politeness by parents.
She also discussed a famous study she participated in using “The Wug Test,” in which Gleason and her collaborators presented children with made up words such as “wug” in order to study what they had internalized about their languages.
“The ‘Wug Test’ has been around for over 40 years,” she said. “It still works and has been done in other languages, and may show universal principles.”
Gleason received a Ph.D. from Harvard-Radcliffe where she worked with Roger Brown, whom she said was one of the foremost thinkers in language development at the time.
Gleason’s work has received international recognition and acclaim, according to graduate student Sonia Chawla.
“She has been named one of 40 women whose ideas shaped the modern world,” she said while introducing Gleason.
Although she no longer teaches at BU, Belle said during her 32-year stint at the university she influenced the department dramatically.
“I think she’s probably one of the most famous members of the department of psychology or probably of any of our faculty on campus,” she said. “She has had a long and illustrious career at BU.”
Professor Hilda Perlitsh said Gleason’s ability to make her research accessible was an important step in studying developmental psychology.
“[Gleason] is a jewel in the crown of the psychology department,” she said. “She brings complexity into our comprehension. You don’t have to be a scientist … [because] she gives you examples that give you a kind of relevance and reality.”
The speakers for the Human Development Colloquium Series were chosen by doctoral students and faculty.
“They really reflect the wide array of [their] interests,” Belle said.
College of Arts and Sciences senior Loren Alberg said she had prior knowledge of Gleason’s research.
“I was really interested in the parts on gender differences and animals,” she said. “The audience seemed interested and alert.”
Most of the 30 people in attendance were members of the psychology department because doctoral students were required to attend the entire series of lectures, graduate student Michael Parker said.
“It was a very responsive, kind and friendly crowd,” Gleason said.
But, while Gleason has had fun with many of her studies involving children, she said not all her work has been easy.
“I have done some work with people with brain damage and it’s hard not to feel compassion for [those] with communication difficulties,” she said.