According to research on language and culture, your health and even your finances are related to the language you speak. Linguists have long known that language can directly influence your perception of the world. For example, in the Kuuk Thaayorre language, there are no words for left and right. There is no way to explain where something is without using the words north, south, east, and west. Because of this, these people have an innate understanding of which way is north at all times. In some languages, there aren’t different words for blue and green. Speakers of these languages have trouble distinguishing between the two colors.
Keith Chen is an economist who has researched the relationship between language and future planning. Some languages such as Mandarin and Finnish don’t have a future tense, while other languages, such as French and English, do have a future tense that is clearly different than the present tense. For example, an English speaker would say, “Today is cold and tomorrow will be cold,” while a Finnish speaker would say, “Today be cold, and tomorrow be cold.”
Chen believes that this lack of a clear future tense causes people to see less of a separation between the present and the future, and this causes them to make better decisions today that will affect them tomorrow. In contrast, he believes that speakers of languages that do have a clear grammatical separation are more likely to see the future as something far off. And they are less likely to go the extra mile today for rewards in the distant future.
According to his research, speakers of languages that don’t have a clear future tense are more likely to save money, exercise more, and not smoke cigarettes. This is even true within Switzerland, a country with three official languages. People who speak languages with a future tense squirrel away significantly less than their neighbors. They build nest eggs 39% smaller than futureless language speakers. They also are more likely to be in bad shape. They are 29% more likely to smoke and 13% more likely to be a couch potato.
It’s important to remember that this research is just showing correlations. No one can say for sure if grammar is influencing our decisions or not. It could be that some cultures are just more responsible about planning for the future, and this has affected the way their language has developed. What about people in your culture? Do they make wise decisions when planning for the future? Do you think there is a relationship between the language you speak and the choices you make?
Your health and even your money may be connected to the language you speak. Linguists have long known that language affect how you see the world. For example, in the Kuuk Thaayorre language, there are no words for left and right. There is no way to explain where something is without using the words north, south, east, and west. Because of this, these people understand which way is north at all times. In some languages, there aren’t different words for blue and green. Speakers of these languages have trouble seeing the difference between the two colors. Keith Chen has studied the connection between language and future planning. Some languages such as Mandarin and Finnish don’t have a future tense. Other languages, such as French and English, do have a future tense. For example, an English speaker would say, “Today is cold and tomorrow will be cold.” A Finnish speaker would say, “Today be cold, and tomorrow be cold.” Chen says people without a future tense see less difference between the present and the future. This causes them to make better decisions today that will affect them tomorrow. Speakers of languages that do have a clear difference see the world differently. They are more likely to see the future as something far off. They are less likely to go the extra mile today for rewards in the far future. Speakers of languages that don’t have a future tense are more likely to save money, exercise more, and not smoke cigarettes. This is even true within Switzerland, a country with three languages. People who speak languages with a future tense squirrel away less than their neighbors. They build nest eggs 39% smaller than futureless language speakers. They are more likely to be in bad shape. They are 29% more likely to smoke and 13% more likely to be a couch potato. No one can say for sure if grammar is affecting our decisions or not. It could be that some cultures are just more responsible about planning for the future. Maybe this has affected the way their language has developed. What about people in your culture? Do they make wise decisions when planning for the future? Do you think there is a relationship between the language you speak and the choices you make? References: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/09/can-your-language-influence-your-spending-eating-and-smoking-habits/279484/4/
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