A Sociolinguistic Inquiry by Taylor Marie Young
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If the Walls Could Talk: A Sociolinguistic Inquiry by Taylor Marie Young B.J., Thompson Rivers University, 2007 A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Linguistics Taylor Marie Young, 2011 University of Victoria All rights reserved. This thesis may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without the permission of the author. ii If the Walls Could Talk: A Sociolinguistic Inquiry by Taylor Marie Young B.J., Thompson Rivers University, 2007 A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Linguistics Supervisory Committee Dr. Alexandra D’Arcy, Supervisor Department of Linguistics Dr. Li-Shih Huang, Departmental Member Department of Linguistics iii Supervisory Committee Dr. Alexandra D’Arcy, Supervisor Department of Linguistics Dr. Li-Shih Huang, Departmental Member Department of Linguistics Abstract Social networking sites are the contemporary agora: where individuals share their lives, understand the world, exchange cultural artefacts and tend to relationships. Yet, these sites are paradoxically lauded for their ability to connect lives and disparaged for the effect they have on the quality of language and relationships. Covered extensively across disciplines, including inquiries into identity and gender politics, social networking sites remain under investigated in linguistics. Here, the interplay of identity, gender, and language in a group of adolescent girls on Facebook is explored in the sociolinguistic tradition. This research demonstrates how a discourse analytic framework can determine some aspect of identity from an individual’s online interactions, including gender as constrained by historical and cultural discourses. A collaborative methodology navigates the difficulties of collecting data online, the complexities of gender and identity, as well as provides a commentary on the need for reform in ethical protocol for online research. iv Table of Contents Supervisory Committee ...................................................................................................... ii Abstract.............................................................................................................................. iii Table of Contents............................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ vii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................1 1.1 PRELUDE .................................................................................................................4 1.2 BEFORE: WOMEN, LANGUAGE, GENDER........................................................7 1.2.1 Gendered Explanations: Deficit, Dominance, and Difference ...........................9 1.2.2 The Stereotype, Hegemonies, and Ideologies...................................................13 1.2.3 Constructing a Gender Performance.................................................................16 1.3 IDENTITY IN INTERACTION..............................................................................17 Chapter 2 THE VIRTUAL FACTOR ...........................................................................21 2.1 WEB-BASED RESEARCH ....................................................................................21 2.1.1 The (Tr)end of Gender?....................................................................................22 2.1.2 A Third Modality..............................................................................................26 2.2 MEDIATED ADOLESCENCE...............................................................................28 2.2.1 Adolescents Under the Linguistic Lens............................................................29 2.2.2 Sticks & Stones: Slang, Labels, and Insults .....................................................30 2.2.3 Girls Online ......................................................................................................32 Chapter 3 COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE ..................................................................34 3.1 COMMUNITIES (VIRTUALLY) RE-IMAGINED...............................................36 3.1.1 The Facebook Community ...............................................................................38 Chapter 4 METHODOLOGY........................................................................................41 4.1 DESIGNING A COLLABORATIVE METHODOLOGY.....................................41 4.2 CREEPIN’ A LA HIGH SCHOOL GIRL................................................................44 4.2.1 Instruments and Participant Observation..........................................................45 4.3 ANALYSIS STRUCTURE .....................................................................................46 4.4 THE GIRLS.............................................................................................................49 4.4.1 Finn...................................................................................................................49 4.4.2 Teddy ................................................................................................................50 4.4.3 Stella .................................................................................................................50 4.4.4. T.J. ...................................................................................................................51 4.4.5 Jacquie ..............................................................................................................51 4.5 CLASS.....................................................................................................................52 v Chapter 5 DISCUSSION.................................................................................................55 5.1 WRITING(’S) ON THE WALL..............................................................................55 5.1.1 Questionnaire....................................................................................................55 5.1.2 Linguistic Patterns on Facebook.......................................................................56 5.2 INTERACTIONAL ANALYSIS ............................................................................58 5.2.1 Quantitative Considerations..............................................................................58 5.2.2 Interactional Sociolinguistics............................................................................62 5.3 GENDERED IDENTITIES.....................................................................................73 5.3.1 Reinforced Heterosexuality ..............................................................................73 5.3.2 Dissident Femininity.........................................................................................80 5.4 SUMMARY.............................................................................................................87 Chapter 6 RETROSPECTIVE: METHODS AND ETHICS ......................................91 6.1 PUBLIC VERSUS PRIVATE.................................................................................91 6.1.1. The Illusion of Privacy ....................................................................................92 6.1.2 Online Data and the Researcher .......................................................................94 6.2 ETHICAL REDEFINITIONS .................................................................................97 6.2.1 Risk and Harm ..................................................................................................97 6.2.2 Consent .............................................................................................................99 6.3 METHODOLOGY: FUTURE WORK .................................................................103 Chapter 7 FACE(BOOK): THE FUTURE .................................................................106 7.1 ASSESSING METHODOLOGY..........................................................................106 7.2 CLOSING REMARKS..........................................................................................109 References........................................................................................................................114 Appendix 1 - Questionnaire Template.............................................................................124 Appendix 2 – Questionnaire Results ...............................................................................131 Appendix 3 – Tag Codes .................................................................................................142 Appendix 4 - A Framework for Ethical Conduct in Facebook Research........................143 vi List of Tables Table 1. Criteria for an online community of practice ......................................................37 Table 2. Case boundaries on Facebook .............................................................................39 Table 3. Quantitative breakdown of status updates...........................................................59 Table 4. Status updates as social 'pull' indicators ..............................................................61 Table