The Language Acquisition Device is a concept associated with which linguist?

• A. Noam Chomsky
• B. B.F. Skinner
• C. Jean Piaget
• D. Lev Vygotsky

Answer: (A)

The main idea being tested is an innate language-learning faculty proposed by Noam Chomsky. The Language Acquisition Device is a mental mechanism that quietly guides children to extract the grammar of their language from the input they hear, using universal grammatical principles as a starting point. This explains why kids can acquire complex syntax so quickly and with relatively little explicit instruction or reinforcement. It reflects a nativist view, contrasting with behaviorist ideas that language is learned purely through imitation and reinforcement. It also sits apart from Piaget’s focus on general cognitive development and Vygotsky’s emphasis on social interaction, since the LAD specifically posits an internal, language-specific module. Because this concept is tied to Chomsky’s theory of universal grammar and an inborn linguistic blueprint, the linguist associated with the Language Acquisition Device is Noam Chomsky.