Pictures and Words: Analogies and Specificity in Knowledge Organization

In this paper we want to examine what kind of relationship exists between two semiotic systems, word and picture, and the formats of conceptual representation linked to them: propositional thinking and mental imagery. The specific aim of this research is to explore the characteristics of the representation and organization of knowledge referring to the meaning of an input-word (¿elephant¿), which we have considered in both types of communication: verbalization and graphic representation. The current study analyzes the verbalizations and the graphic representations of 75 pre-school children when using the input-word ¿elephant¿. Data seem to match the hypothesis of differentiation, according to which language plays the role of a filter, so that the choice of a language (verbal or iconic) activates preferential connections to the format of representation more similar to it.