ABSTRACT
There is a long tradition in cognitive social science linking language and thought. A more recent tradition in social science research links language functioning and use to schooling. Differences in patterns of language use may reflect or embody differences in how communicative or cognitive strategies are brought to bear on specific types of tasks in specific situations. The purpose of the present chapter is to describe socioeconomic status differences in one aspect of communication: the use of words of internal state. These are words that when used literally refer primarily to internal states, processes, or experiences. This includes words about cognition (think, remember, know), emotions (happy, afraid, love), perception (see, smell, pain), and intentions and desires (intend, want, wish) (See Hall & Nagy, 1986). Internal state words have both cognitive and educational significance; they play an important role in certain types of classroom discussion, and their use is linked to cognitive strategies and skills involved in metacognition (cf. Baker & Brown, 1980; Flavell, 1978).
