tautiprosessia

Tautiprosessia is a theoretical concept within linguistics that describes a hypothetical language acquisition phenomenon where an individual is believed to develop a native-like understanding and production of a new language through a process of "reverse engineering" existing linguistic structures and rules. It is not a widely recognized or empirically supported theory in the field of language acquisition, but rather a speculative idea.

The core notion of tautiprosessia suggests that learners actively deconstruct the target language, identifying underlying patterns and then reconstructing them within their own cognitive framework. This is distinct from more established theories of second language acquisition, such as Krashen's Monitor Model or Long's Interaction Hypothesis, which emphasize input, interaction, and comprehensible input.

Proponents, though a small minority, might argue that tautiprosessia accounts for instances where learners appear to grasp complex grammatical structures with minimal explicit instruction. Critics, however, point to the lack of direct evidence for such a distinct cognitive mechanism and highlight the success of existing pedagogical approaches that focus on systematic exposure and practice. The term itself is not standard academic jargon and is rarely found in peer-reviewed linguistic literature. Therefore, it's important to distinguish tautiprosessia as a fringe theoretical concept rather than a mainstream linguistic theory.