realistic grammar

A term sometimes used in LINGUISTIC theory to refer to any approach to grammatical analysis which aims to be psychologically real, in that it contributes to the explanation of such areas of linguistic behavior as comprehension and memory. A contrast is intended between this approach and earlier, FORMAL characterizations of GRAMMAR on the basis of INTUITION alone. In its earliest exposition, the intention was to realize a TRANSFORMATIONAL grammar within a psychological MODEL of language use, so that the model genuinely represents users’ knowledge of their language. Such a grammar would also be ‘realizable’, i.e. define explicit REALIZATIONS which would MAP grammatical rules and CATEGORIES on to processing operations and informational units, as defined by the psychological model. In this way, it was hoped that realistic grammars, through the use of psycholinguistic as well as linguistic criteria, would provide further insight into the nature of COMPETENCE, as well as help to evaluate the merits of competing formal grammars. Psychological reality remains an important issue in linguistic research.