Integrational linguistics

Integrational linguistics or integrationism is a new development in the theory of communication. The integrationist approach emerged from the work of a group of linguists at the University of Oxford during the 1980s and has since been developed internationally.

Integrationism has far-reaching implications for many social, political, legal, philosophical and psychological issues of our time. It offers a radical departure from traditional Western assumptions about language and communication.

*it abandons the idea of communication as a 'sender-receiver' process
*it rejects code-based and rule-based models of language
*it questions the existence of any natural or universal distinction between language and non-language
*it discards the notion of separate, independent 'channels' of communication

The radical integrationist alternative is to treat communication as an open-ended continuum of integrated activities, shaped by the initiative of individuals.This means

*that there is continuous and simultaneous creation of meaning at all levels of interaction, both verbal and nonverbal
*that all signs are products of the communication situation
*that there are no autonomous, context-free signs

From an integrationist perspective, the primary function of the signs is to integrate an individual's past, present and (anticipated) future experience. That is an essential prerequisite for making sense of any situation in which we are involved. Without it, there can be no question of communication.

The integrationist agenda for a modern literate society is a programme of demythologization. It includes the following interrelated objectives:

*demythologizing linguistics as currently taught in schools and universities
*demythologizing the relationship between speech and writing
*demythologizing the public discourse of the arts and sciences

The International Association for the Integrational Study of Language and Communication (IAISLC) was founded in 1998 and has members in more than twenty-five countries around the world.

References

*1998 R. Harris, [http://www.royharrisonline.com/introtoIL.html Introduction to Integrational Linguistics] , Oxford, Pergamon
*2000 R. Harris, Rethinking Writing, London, Athlone. Integrationist critique of the traditional Western concept of writing as a representation of speech.
*2001 H.G. Davis, Words. An Integrational Approach, London, Curzon. Integrationist examination of the 'word' as a linguistic unit.
*2002 R. Harris (ed.), The Language Myth in Western Culture, London, Curzon. Papers from the first IAISLC international conference.
*2003 H.G. Davis & T.J. Taylor (eds), Rethinking Linguistics, London, RoutledgeCurzon. Essays on various topics relating to basic issues in linguistic theory.
*2004 S. Pryor [http://www.sallypryor.com/postcards.html| Postcards From Writing] , CD-ROM, Ballarat. Application of integrationism to language learning at the human-computer interface.
*2004 D. Spurrett (ed.), Distributed Cognition and Integrational Linguistics. Special issue of Language Sciences. Vol.26. 6.
*2005 R. Harris, The Semantics of Science, London, Continuum. Examination of the language of science from an integrationist perspective.

External links

* [http://www.integrationists.com/ IAISLC website]
* [http://www.royharrisonline.com/integrationism.html Roy Harris on integrationism]