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Stylistic Variation and Social Perception in Second Dialect Acquisition

Lin, Yuhan
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5238-8217
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532059573668516

Abstract Details

2018, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Linguistics.
This dissertation examines how mobile speakers’ language use and social perception of language interact with their place-based identities. Specifically, I examine audience-based and topic-based style shift in speech production, as well as the social perception of second dialect (D2) use. This work focuses on Mandarin speakers from Xiamen, a city in Southern China, who moved to Beijing for college education. It investigates three linguistic features that differentiated Northern and Xiamen Mandarin: the /s/-/¿/ contrast, neutral tone, and /w/->[¿]. The effect of audience regional background (Northern vs. Xiamen) was examined by the means of a friend-with-friend conversation task, followed by wordlist reading. Effects of audience regional background (Northern vs. Xiamen) and speaker’s Beijing orientation were found for /¿/ and neutral tone: the mobile speakers used more Northern Mandarin variants when talking to their Northern friend, and those who were more oriented towards Beijing also had more Northern Mandarin-like production. Additionally, an interaction of audience and Beijing orientation was found for /¿/, such that speakers who were less oriented to Beijing were more likely to use Xiamen Mandarin with a Xiamen friend than those that had more positive Beijing orientation. The effect of place-based topic was examined through speakers’ production of two read- ing passages, which were Xiamen-themed and Beijing-themed, respectively. No significant effect of topic was observed for /s/-/¿/ and neutral tone, and there was a significant effect for /w/->[¿] in the unexpected direction. The social perception study adopted a between-speaker matched-guise technique to investigate how mobile Xiamen speakers perceived the acquisition of Northern Mandarin. The effects for the three linguistic features were examined separately. The results showed that when D2 Northern Mandarin features were incorporated into the speech of Xiamen Mandarin speakers, they were perceived as more likely to build a connection to the Northern community and more talkative and energetic compared to when they used the D1 variants. For /w/->[¿], the use of Northern Mandarin guise was perceived as less likable. An inter- action was found between the listeners’ intention to return to Xiamen and guise: those who were less likely to return to Xiamen were more likely to rate the D2 Northern Mandarin guise as more Beijing-oriented. This dissertation is one of the first few large-scale studies that have shown audience- based style shift for second dialect users. This finding calls for closer examination of how researchers’ own linguistic background affects D2 learners’ production. In addition, this work has also found effects of attitude (i.e Beijing orientation) on D2 use (for /¿/ and neutral tone) and style-shift (for /¿/). Comparing how the attitude effect differs across the linguistic variables, I concluded that factors like explicit knowledge, prestige and the overall extent of D2 use can play a role for this effect. The comparison between the results of the production and social perception revealed that, for /¿/ and neutral tone, there was a congruence in the relationship between place- based identities and D2 use: the more Beijing-oriented speakers used more D2 features, and those who used more D2 features were perceived as more likely to form connections with the Northern Mandarin-speaking community. For /w/->[¿], there was an asymmetry such that it did not exhibit expected style shift, but could index several social meanings in perception. This finding suggests in addition to examining place-based identity in production, it is crucial to also include a perceptual perspective.
Kathryn Campbell-Kibler (Advisor)
Cynthia Clopper (Committee Member)
Marjorie K.M. Chan (Committee Member)
Donald Winford (Committee Member)
251 p.
Linguistics
linguistics, sociolinguistics, Mandarin, audience design, social perception, second dialect acquisition

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Citations

  • Lin, Y. (2018). Stylistic Variation and Social Perception in Second Dialect Acquisition [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532059573668516

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Lin, Yuhan. Stylistic Variation and Social Perception in Second Dialect Acquisition. 2018. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532059573668516.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Lin, Yuhan. "Stylistic Variation and Social Perception in Second Dialect Acquisition." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1532059573668516

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1532059573668516
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