Prof. LI Ping, Department of Language Science and Technology

數位技術時代研究語言學習和語言加工的新挑戰. 粵港澳大灣區心理學科創新發展論壇（暨粵港澳心理學聯盟成立大會）. Sun Yat-sen University, Department of Psychology, Guangzhou, China, 24 – 26 October 2025.

Abstract
In an era of rapid advancements in digital technology and generative artificial intelligence, we need a comprehensive, interdisciplinary perspective to understand the mechanisms of language learning and representation. Combining emerging technologies, AI-driven models, and current approaches from computational neuroscience, we explore how language learning and knowledge representation operate in the human brain. We emphasize the social interaction mechanisms and computational processes underlying language learning. Our in-depth exploration of these mechanisms and processes allows us to understand the differences between language learning in children and adults, as well as individual differences among typically developing adults in different learning environments. We then further compare the similarities and differences between AI models and human learners, and explore how the latter effectively integrate multimodal information in social interaction settings. Collecting and analyzing real-time multimodal data will significantly advance research on the neural mechanisms of language learning and facilitate the development of evidence-based, personalized learning tools. The study of language learning and its cognitive neural mechanisms in the digital age faces numerous challenges, requiring researchers to integrate diverse, interdisciplinary theories and methods.