Behavioral Profile

Abstract: This study investigates the intricate polysemy of the Spanish perception verb sentir (‘feel’) which, analogous to the more-studied visual perception verbs ver (‘see’) and mirar (‘look’), also displays an ample gamut of semantic uses in various syntactic environments. The investigation is based on a corpus-based behavioral profile (BP) analysis. Besides its methodological merits as a quantitative, systematic and verifiable approach to the study of meaning and to polysemy in particular, the BP analysis offers qualitative usage-based evidence for cognitive linguistic theorizing. With regard to the polysemy of sentir, the following questions were addressed: (1) What is the prototype of each cluster of senses? (2) How are the different senses structured: how many senses should be distinguished – i.e. which senses cluster together and which senses should be kept separately? (3) Which senses are more related to each other and which are highly distinguishable? (4) What morphosynta...

In this short paper, the authors begin by giving a general definition of what behavior is. From a wide range of deeds, they select a few key terms such as reactions and responses, processes and operations to explain what they mean as these terms play an important role in our understanding of what behavior is. From the definition of behavior, the authors move on to introduce the six different types of behavioral profile that can be divided into two categories. The first is of sociogenic origin consisting of Level #1 BD-Behavioral Disadvantages (lowest level and least severe), Level #2 BD-Behavioral Differences, and Level #3 BD-Behavioral Dimensions. The second is of neuro-psychogenic origin consists of Level #4 BD-Behavioral Difficulties, Level #5 BD-Behavioral Disabilities, and Level #6 BD-Behavioral Disorders (highest level and most severe). The rationale behind this paper is to inform counselors, educational therapists, teachers as well as parents and interested readers regarding the importance of differentiating among and between the different types of challenging behavior by recognizing the six different levels of behavioral profile according to the increasing degree of severity of behavioral challenges. In this way, appropriate early treatments can be planned to help resolve behavioral challenging issues encountered in the first BD category when these behavioral problems are still at the lower levels of severity. For more serious challenging behavioral issues seen in the second BD category, the treatments for such severe to profound behavioral conditions will be more complicated and they involve medical professionals such as psychiatrists and pharmacists, especially when medication (e.g., Zoloft, Adderall and Concerta) is included as part of the treatment plan. Other allied healthcare professionals such as behavioral psychologists, behavioral therapists and educational therapists may be included to provide intensive behavioral management/modification.

This study examines the diachronic evolution of the polysemy of the Spanish verb "sentir" ('to feel') by means of a corpus-based dynamic Behavioral Profile (BP) analysis. Methodologically, it presents the first application of the BP approach to historical data and proposes some methodological innovations not only within the current body of research in historical semantics, but also with regard to previous applications of the BP approach. First, whereas the majority of existing studies in quantitative historical semantics are largely based on observed frequencies or percentages of collocational co-occurrence, our study leverages more complex historical data that are based on the similarities of vectors. Second, this study also provides an extension of the methodological apparatus of the BP approach by complementing the traditional Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster analysis (HAC) with a dynamic BP approach derived from Multidimensional Scaling maps (MDS). Theoretically, this methodology contributes to a comprehensive perspective on the process of Constructionalization and the nature of networks, which is illustrated on the basis of the development of the Discourse Marker (DM) "lo siento" ('I'm sorry').