Sociolinguistic factors affecting patterns of emotional language use among multilingual speakers in the Western Cape

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The aim of this study is to identify factors that affect the language choices and patterns of language use of multilingual speakers in the Western Cape, focusing particularly on emotional language.It is an exploratory study, taking a purely quantitative methodological approach. Data was collected by means of a web-based Multilingualism and Emotions Questionnaire available online for six months. The questionnaire was based on Dewaele and Pavlenko‟s Bilingualism and Emotions Questionnaire (see Pavlenko, 2005) and included multiple choice and Likert scale questions regarding participants‟ language use preferences, as well as their perceptions of each of their languages. Data analysis was split into two stages: firstly the response data was illustrated by means of frequency tables, and secondly the statistical method of Correspondence Analysis was used to show the patterns of variation among the factors investigated.Two hypotheses were proposed, based on previous research: firstly, that the sociolinguistic factors would play a bigger role than the socio-demographic factors in determining language choices and patterns of use, and secondly that there may be differences in patterns of use for speakers of African languages versus speakers of Western languages. The analysis confirmed both hypotheses, while also showing some deviation from the results of previous research, which is attributed to the context in which this study was conducted.The main findings of this study were that English was generally the preferred language even when not the L1, and also that Xhosa tended to follow an entirely different pattern of use in comparison with most other languages in the sample. These findings are attributed to the unique language contact situation in the Western Cape, showing that the widely accepted L1-primacy ideology does not quite hold true across all contexts. An English-bias in the implementation of the language and education policy is also identified as a possible contributing factor to the patterns of language use and language attitudes revealed in this study, hence it is suggested that methodological and practical changes to the language and education policy could lead to a realization of the true multilingual and multicultural potential of South Africa.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University