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Series:   Elements in Construction Grammar

Can Construction Grammar Be Proven Wrong?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 January 2024

Bert Cappelle
Bert Cappelle
Affiliation:
Université de Lille and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris

Summary

Construction Grammar has gained prominence in linguistics, owing its popularity to its inclusive approach that considers language units of varying sizes and generality as potential constructions – mentally stored form-function units. This Element serves as a cautionary note against complacency and dogmatism. It emphasizes the enduring importance of falsifiability as a criterion for scientific hypotheses and theories. Can every postulated construction, in principle, be empirically demonstrated not to exist? As a case study, the author examines the schematic English transitive verb-particle construction, which defies experimental verification. He argues that we can still reject its non-existence using sound linguistic reasoning. But beyond individual constructions, what could be a crucial test for Construction Grammar itself, one that would falsify it as a theory? In making a proposal for such a test, designed to prove that speakers also exhibit pure-form knowledge, this Element contributes to ongoing discussions about Construction Grammar's theoretical foundations.
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Keywords

falsifiabilityConstruction Grammarcognitive linguisticssyntaxverb-particle constructions
Type
Element
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Series: Elements in Construction Grammar
Online ISBN: 9781009343213
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 01 February 2024

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Can Construction Grammar Be Proven Wrong?
  • Bert Cappelle, Université de Lille and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris
  • Online ISBN: 9781009343213
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Can Construction Grammar Be Proven Wrong?
  • Bert Cappelle, Université de Lille and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris
  • Online ISBN: 9781009343213
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Can Construction Grammar Be Proven Wrong?
  • Bert Cappelle, Université de Lille and Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris
  • Online ISBN: 9781009343213
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