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Language Attitudes and Ideologies in Shanghai, China

Gilliland, Joshua
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1391600649

Abstract Details

2006, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, East Asian Languages and Literatures.
The present study uses a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to examine language attitudes and ideologies of university students in Shanghai, China. The research project consists of two parts: a matched-guise experiment and one-on-one inter¬views. A total of 34 participants took part in the study, with 24 female participants and 10 male participants. For purposes of cross-comparison, all 34 participants took part in both the matched-guise experiment and the interviews. The matched-guise portion tested participants' attitudes toward two varieties: Standard Putonghua (PTH) and the local Shanghainese dialect (SHH). The interviews dealt with issues involving linguistic capital and Shanghai identity. The results of the matched-guise experiment show that language attitudes among the current university generation in Shanghai do not conform to the expected situation in which the H variety is ranked higher in social status while the L variety is ranked higher in group solidarity, as PTH is rated significantly higher than SHH on a dimension of so¬cial status, but SHH is not rated significantly higher than PTH on the dimension of group solidarity. Shanghai males are shown to ascribe a higher social status to PTH than Shanghai females. Curiously, the hypothesis that those with a strong Shanghai identity would rank SHH higher in group solidarity was shown to be false, as those with a strong Shanghai identity are found to ascribe higher social status to PTH than those without. A hypothesis is put forth that this is due to the increasing usage of PTH in domains typically dominated by SHH, especially among university students. Participants' views on the linguistic market in Shanghai are discussed by exam-ining their beliefs on the importance of three linguistic varieties (SHH, PTH, and Eng-lish) and their plans for what variety or varieties to speak with their children in the future. Participants are shown to value PTH and English highly for the linguistic capital they offer in the workplace, especially for finding employment. SHH is valued for its uses in interpersonal relations, including those in the workplace. Participants' value judgments regarding these varieties, such as a belief that people with high moral standards speak PTH, are also examined. Participants' usage of SHH and PTH is examined through self-reports of language behavior, and it is determined that PTH has made significant inroads into typical L variety domains. Results from this study show that university students in Shanghai do not consider PTH to be at odds with their local identity, and suggest that be¬lief in a one nation-state one language model of modernization has firmly taken hold in the current university generation in China.
Marjorie K. M. Chan (Advisor)
Donald Winford (Committee Member)
125 p.
Asian Literature; Asian Studies

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Citations

  • Gilliland, J. (2006). Language Attitudes and Ideologies in Shanghai, China [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1391600649

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gilliland, Joshua. Language Attitudes and Ideologies in Shanghai, China. 2006. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1391600649.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gilliland, Joshua. "Language Attitudes and Ideologies in Shanghai, China." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2006. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1391600649

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1391600649
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© 2006, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.