Contrasts differences in language use across the Japanese workplace, including women's speech. Examines what is referred to as "manifestations of power" among Japanese working women. Explores "resistance to subordination" among female university students who have not yet entered professional or domestic life. Comparison of the…

A study investigated the variety of ways in which managers use language in sociolinguistically sensitive ways to get things done at work. Drawing on a database of over 300 interactions in a range of New Zealand workplaces, aspects of power (how things are accomplished), politeness (the importance of small talk), and solidarity (the difference…

To see what students think the title Ms. means, and also to see what implications and impressions they attach to Ms., a study questioned 68 college students (36 female, 32 male) on their best approximations of "dictionary definitions" for the titles Ms., Mr., Mrs., and Miss. Respondents also provided personal connotations for the titles…

There has been relatively little research into the ways in which language may be manipulated to increase social distance in interethnic and interracial encounters. The first part of this paper discusses three types of communicative distance, which reflect three different intensities of ethnocentrism: "low,""moderate," and…

This paper focusses on sex contrasts in language as revealed in recent sociolinguistic research. While there are relatively few differences in subjective language identifications and judgments, there are several clear differences in objective language data. In the Detroit Language Study, women show a greater "sensitivity" to multiple…

Research was conducted to examine selected formal features of conversational segments enacted by family members in three modes of television programming: documentary, prime time, and soap opera. A sample of videotape recordings for each program format was content-analyzed for: (1) segment length, (2) length of conversational turn, and (3) duration…

This paper examines the speech performance characteristic of the college lecturer. One of the most organized forms of speech performance, the lecture functions as a referential monologue and has a necessarily topical focus. Specifically dealt with are the ways in which lecturers introduce new topics, link together topical utterances, and close out…

The social, economic, political and cultural changes brought about by the Cuban Revolution have elicited linguistic changes. Although the Revolution is only fifteen years old, these changes have reached the morphological and semantic components of the language. This paper explains the Russian influence and discusses and classifies…

Based on research conducted in Oakland, California, between 1965 and 1967, this dissertation explores some aspects of language behavior in a black working-class community. Chapter 1 deals with selected features of the code which serve to differentiate the speech community from others and compares the findings of the present study with those of…

The sex of college freshmen theme writers was identified by analyzing subject matter clues. A sample of 60 descriptive themes was selected for study; half were written by females and half by males. A panel of five female and five male English teachers read the themes and indicated the sex they thought the writers to be as well as the reasons for…

Traces the history of the presence of black people's languages in Great Britain and also provides a contemporary perspective on current needs to define and articulate these language needs and to contribute toward the theory and development of language teaching, teacher training, and production of teaching material. (Author/CB)

It is unlikely that reading tests written in standard English can measure the verbal ability of nonstandard speakers. Phonological, syntactic, and lexical biases disproportionately place certain groups at a disadvantage and reinforce undesirable attitudes concerning language varieties. This can be remedied only when the society rids itself of…

Examines the nature of the convergent relationship between formal spoken and written discourse by focusing on three issues: (1) spoken vs. written modes; (2) formal vs. informal discourse; and (3) the relationship between oral ritual communication and written language and between ritual/written communication and everyday colloquial language. (SED)

Describes a study done to determine which intonational parameters are most important to the meaning being conveyed within different social settings. Defines the factors that appear to influence the use of pitch and/or intensity prominence on negative words. Found that, in many situations, interactional rules take precedence over linguistic rules.…

Examines the verbal and nonverbal behavior patterns associated with two speech styles, one formal and the other informal, among factory workers. Available from: Mouton Publishers, Box 482, the Hague, Netherlands. (AM)