Language, Cognition, and the Way We Think

Navigating a vast terrain of psychological and philosophical research in clear and lively prose, Language, Cognition, and the Way We Think reveals the many ways—both subtle and profound—that our spoken languages may influence our thoughts. Kompa’s book is especially significant for its innovative and well-informed discussion of inner speech, making it one of the richest treatments of that phenomenon now available.

Navigating a vast terrain of psychological and philosophical research in clear and lively prose, Language, Cognition, and the Way We Think reveals the many ways—both subtle and profound—that our spoken languages may influence our thoughts. Kompa’s book is especially significant for its innovative and well-informed discussion of inner speech, making it one of the richest treatments of that phenomenon now available.

Kompa masterfully combines philosophy and contemporary cognitive science to produce a highly readable, original, and comprehensive account of how language augments human cognition.

Language, Cognition, and the Way We Think is an exceptionally well-researched and admirably clear discussion of the relationship between language and cognition. Nikola Kompa expertly weaves historical and empirical exposition into arguments for her own provocative view that (at times) we think in a language by inwardly speaking.

In this well informed and carefully argued book, Nikola Kompa makes a powerful case for the view that human linguistic and cognitive capacities co-evolved and that language scaffolds and extends our cognitive skills. The book should be essential reading for anyone interested in the cognitive functions of language and inner speech.

Nikola A. Kompa is Professor in the Institute of Philosophy at Osnabrück University, Germany.