This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Smythe, W. E. Articles by Chow, S. L. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Formal and Mental Structures of Semiotic Processes

University of Regina, william.smythe{at}uregina.ca

Siu L. Chow

University of Regina, chowsl{at}leroy.cc.uregina.ca

The formal and psychological requirements of semiosis or sign action is discussed. It is shown that, at the formal level, systems of signs are best accounted for in terms of Peirce's semiotic triad of sign, object and interpretant, as well as his view that systems of signs are generative and recursive. The importance of the distinction between sign and representamen, as well as that between the dynamic and immediate objects in the semiotic triad, is also noted. A case is then made that, in addition to the formal semiotic triad, it is necessary to make explicit the role of the maker of the sign, the intended receiver of the sign, and the context in which the sign is used at the psychological level. The interrelationships among the sextuple (viz. sign, object, sign maker, sign receiver, context and interpretant) are illustrated by treating speech acts as a kind of sign action or semiosis with a heuristic model.

Key Words: emplotment • pragmatics • semiotic • sign • speech act

Theory & Psychology, Vol. 8, No. 6, 783-803 (1998)
DOI: 10.1177/0959354398086004


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Cornejo Who Says What the Words Say?: The Problem of Linguistic Meaning in Psychology Theory Psychology, February 1, 2004; 14(1): 5 - 28. [Abstract] [PDF]

				M. W. Barclay and M. Kee Towards a Semiotic Psychotherapy: Semiotic Objects and Semiotic Selves Theory Psychology, October 1, 2001; 11(5): 671 - 686. [Abstract] [PDF]