ABSTRACT
Communication and language development are central to our definitions of human intelligence (e.g., Gardner, 1983; Thurstone, 1938). Linguistic skills distinguish individuals who are gifted intellectually from those who are average intellectually and those with mental retardation more consistently than do other cognitive or social abilities. General intelligence tests such as the Wechsler Scales and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale are weighted heavily toward linguistic abilities. Language serves as the input mode for acquiring and producing most other forms of abstract symbol use such as reading, writing, and math and serves as the output mode for a substantial portion of our social behavior. Our communication and language abilities are basic to how we define ourselves, and to how we perceive and evaluate others.
