Language functional differences and analysis

    As mentioned in the physiology of type page, “typereading2.html” and elsewhere I believe there is a different language structure in each quadrant of the brain. When you speak with another person you will likely use your whole brain.  In the following citation when you consider the significance of the percentages of left-handers who 'use' the left side of their brain for language please also consider the significance of the qualities of language the researchers are testing for as well as the research on personality and cortical efficiency that indicates 3 of 4 people have a preference for Sensing (left posterior lobe) where Wernicke's area is located compared to those with a preference for Intuition (right frontal lobe) where I contend an unnamed(?) language structure analogous to Broca's area is located.

1--One Brain...or Two?--2
"In 95% of right-handers, the left side of the brain is dominant for language. Even in 60-70% of left-handers, the left side of brain is used for language. Back in the 1860s and 1870s, two neurologists (Paul Broca and Karl Wernicke) observed that when people had damage to a particular area on the left side of the brain that they had speech and language problems. They noticed that people with damage to these specific areas on the right side usually did not have any language problems. The two language areas of the brain that are important for language now bear their names: Broca's area and Wernicke's area."

    Dr. Benzinger I think does a good job in attempting to identify the qualities of linguistic expression for which the structures in the right hemisphere are responsible.  Other areas of research that supports these language structures are those involved with understanding the deaf and sign language.

The Physiology of Jung’s Four Functions & Their Organization
By Katherine Benziger, Ph.D., © March 1998; September 1999
"An example which is often sited to argue for integration is language. Yes, it is true that in some persons talking can involve sections of all four regions. This is true. However, it is also true that the integrated process of speaking a language involves the combining of highly predictable, specialized elements from each of the four regions. Speech itself, articulating words in a structured manner is managed by the Werneke area in the left frontal lobe. The vocabulary is processed by the area in the posterior left known as Broca’s area or the "language lump". The tonals which some people use to clarify or emphasize meaning (e.g. especially when humor such as sarcarasm is involved) are managed by the posterior right. And, the gestures which some people use to further enrich communication are managed by the right frontal lobe."

     Here in a news story published two years after the content on this page was assembled is further evidence supporting language differentiation.

More Brain Power Needed for Mandarin Than English
Mon, Jun 30, 2003
LONDON (Reuters) - Mandarin speakers use more areas of their brains than people who speak English, scientists said on Monday, in a finding that provides new insight into how the brain processes language.

Unlike English speakers, who use one side of their brain to understand the language, scientists at the Wellcome Trust research charity in Britain discovered that both sides of the brain are used to interpret variations in sounds in Mandarin.

"We were very surprised to discover that people who speak different sorts of languages use their brains to decode speech in different ways; it overturned some long-held theories," said Dr. Sophie Scott, a psychologist at the charity.

Using brain scans on volunteers, Scott discovered that different areas of the brain are used to interpret words and intonation.

The left temporal lobe of the brain is active when English speakers hear the language but Mandarin speakers use the left and right lobe, which is normally used to process melody in music and speech.

Intonation is important in Mandarin because it gives different meanings to the same word. The word "ma" for example can mean mother, scold, horse or hemp, depending on the tone.

"We think Mandarin speakers interpret intonation and melody in the right temporal lobe to give the correct meaning to the spoken word," Scott said in a statement.

 

    One of the sensations I experienced following enlightenment was that I could "think” in four different languages. These languages correspond with the concepts, style and word choice specific to each of the four functions. I compared it to the experience other people have described when learning a new spoken language.  While they are learning the second language they perform translations in their head back and forth from their native language until one day, bang! They start “thinking” in the second language and no longer need to translate it.

    As a simple but significant example of 'functional' language, a person whose dominant extroverted function is a judging function, either T or F, will more often make declarative statements, and someone whose dominant extroverted function is a perceiving function, either S or N, will likely pose questions or consider possibilities. For example;

    You may notice that the content of each statement whether a declaration or question is also flavored by the qualities and concepts of that function as well as their auxiliary function. Sadly most of our lives are so hectic and unhealthy that nearly everyone has a tendency to rely on only their first two functions even in situations where they are not appropriate. For example, in a personal or romantic relationship it is typically not appropriate to reason objectively. You don’t tell someone the probabilities of your love for them (T) you tell them in degrees, such as “how much” you love them by comparing your love to other subjective likes and dislikes (F).

Here are two good articles concerning and describing type languages, dialects and styles.
www.hpsys.com/resrch%7E1.htm
www.hpsys.com/commart.htm

“During APT XI in Kansas City, I was reminded of the power of type languages. In some sessions, participants were divided into dominant function subgroups to solve a problem. In one particular session, I found myself (INTJ) sitting in the dominant iNtuiting group with nine ENFPs. Needless to say, the rest of the group and I did not agree on what the actual problem was, much less how to go about solving it. The other sub-groups also had difficulty reaching consensus.”
 

Here’s another great article on how to distinguish iNtuiting from extroverted Sensing.