Language, Cognition and Neuroscience | 2019
Why do people produce pronouns? Pragmatic selection vs. rational models
Abstract
ABSTRACT Models of language production must account for how speakers select referential expressions, a process that is complicated by the range of options available to speakers (e.g. he, Pim, Dr. Levelt). This paper reviews models of reference production, and suggests that they fall into two classes: (1) Pragmatic selection models, and (2) Rational models. We review evidence for and against each class of model, focusing on the use of pronouns. We argue that pronoun selection is not primarily driven by considerations of efficiency, and current models of accessibility do not explain the range of variation in production choices. We identify several challenges for future work in this area.