1Hybrid Theories at the Frontier of Developmental Psychology: The Emergentist Coalition Model of Word Learning as a Case in Point

The Emergentist Coalition Model of Word Learning as a Case in Point …there are no single effective pushes to the developing system, but rather a combination of influences that lead to observable change (Nelson 1996, p. 85). The flourishing new domain of cognitive science needs to go beyond the traditional nativist-empiricist dichotomy that permeates much of the field, in favor of an epistemology that embraces both innate predispositions and constructivism (Karmiloff-Smith, 1992, p. 193) The nature of early word learning is a paradigmatic and contentious case of the nature-nurture debate. How do infants break through the language barrier with their first words at around 12 months of age? And what accounts for the transformation in word learning at around 19 months of age when a slow, laborious process turns into one in which infants learn up to 9 new words a day (e.g., Carey, 1978; but see Goldfield & Reznick, 1990)? As in other areas of developmental psychology, a number of theories have sprung up to address these controversial questions. Some argue that word learning is a product of all-purpose learning mechanisms like associationism and generalizatio