Language in motion: A framework for unifying spoken language, signed language, and gesture

Abstract

In this article I describe a framework for unifying spoken language, signed language, and gesture. Called the language as motion framework, it relies on three broad theories: cognitive grammar, dynamic systems, and cognitive neuroscience. The foundational claim of the language in motion framework is that language and gesture are manifestations of a general human expressive ability which is grounded in embodied cognition and the need for mobile creatures to make sense of their environment.