Systematicity and arbitrariness in novel communication systems

Theisen-White, Carrie Ann; Oberlander, Jon; Kirby, Simon

doi:10.1075/is.11.1.08the

Article published In: Experimental Semiotics: A new approach for studying the emergence and the evolution of human communication
Edited by Bruno Galantucci and Simon Garrod
[Interaction Studies 11:1] 2010
► pp. 14–32

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Systematicity and arbitrariness in novel communication systems

Carrie Ann Theisen-White | University of Edinburgh

Jon Oberlander | University of Edinburgh

Simon Kirby | University of Edinburgh

Published online: 4 March 2010

https://doi.org/10.1075/is.11.1.08the

Arbitrariness and systematicity are two of language’s most fascinating properties. Although both are characterizations of the mappings between signals and meanings, their emergence and evolution in communication systems has generally been explored independently. We present an experiment in which both arbitrariness and systematicity are probed. Participants invent signs from scratch to refer to a set of items that share salient semantic features. Through interaction, the systematic re-use of arbitrary signal elements emerges.

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