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In order to avoid the cycle of communication and self, we explore the symbolic-linguistic properties of communication. Interaction is seen as symbolic interaction, but symbols, as the result of intentional construction, are realized within the self, not interacting but acting. Of course, language is used in communication, but phenomenological linguistics believe that essence is self-forming, and commonality is the guarantee of communication, so we may not need to communicate. Derrida, on the other hand, argues that communication and language do not guarantee their origin, but rather the indefinite playfulness of freedom in the context of complementarity and "differance". Wittgenstein, on the other hand, argues that language games also have rules, and that they are arbitrarily generated norms in the use of human language. Languages are communications. Communications have various uses in the human lifestyles: symbolic interaction, essential commonality or as language are all uses of communication. Unlimited usage, no loop and self-closure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malay is the national and official language of the country, while English is the language of wider communication. In addition, Mandarin and Tamil are also taught in the school as the medium of instruction. The diversity of languages in Malaysia has raised questions about people's attitudes towards the Malay language, especially non-Malays. This paper aims to investigate the use of the national language in Greater KL Kuala Lumpur was chosen as the study area because it is a cultural, economic, social, and political center that reflects the diversity of Malaysia. A total of 493 respondents were selected as the sample. The questionnaire consisted of demographics, language use of Malay in different domains. The use of language was measured based on four domains: family and friendship, media, occupation, and education. The results showed that the Malays have positive attitudes towards the Malay language in all domains, while the non-Malays (Chinese and Indian) showed a negative attitude in the domain of media and family. The study also found that highly educated respondents showed a positive attitude towards the Malay language than the non-educated. The different attitudes between Malays and non-Malays towards the Malay language are influenced by the education system. The majority of the Malays are educated in national schools that use Malay as the medium of instruction, while the Chinese and Indians are mixed due to their education in vernacular schools and national schools. Therefore, their attitude towards the Malay is relatively modest or negative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study reports the language vitality of Kensiu, an endangered Austroasitic language spoken by less than 300 individuals in Kampung Orang Asli Lubuk Legong in the northern state of Kedah, Malaysia. Following UNESCO’s language vitality assessment, this study aims to explore three critical issues related to language vitality: (1) intergenerational language transmissions; (2) language use; and (3) language attitude. Data were collected at the Kensiu settlement through semi-structured interviews involving two male native speakers representing younger and older generations of Kensiu. The data were analysed qualitatively using ATLAS-Ti version 8 and were interpreted via assessment tools such as UNESCO’s language vitality assessment and the Extended Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale (EGIDS). The results reveal some evidence of intergenerational language transmission within the Kensiu community. The language appears to be used in limited domains, such as ‘family’ and ‘friendship’, with the High variety (Malay) being given more emphasis over the Low variety (Kensiu), though there is a balanced relationship between diglossia and bilingualism. The gap in Sustainable Literacy is also apparent in the literary resources related to the Kensiu language. With regard to language attitude, there are some contrasting perspectives between older and younger generations, though both participants generally agree about the identity of Kensiu speakers and the way they accommodate other dominant languages in their daily life. The findings shed some light on the concepts of intergenerational transmission, language use, and language attitude on the Kensiu language and provide an avenue for further investigations involving endangered indigenous languages in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Brasileira de Lingüística Aplicada is the property of Revista Brasileira de Linguistica Aplicada and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Kakovostna Starost is the property of Anton Trstenjak Institute and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Social media has become an essential platform for teenagers these days. Social media grew in popularity as a means of communication, entertainment, information, and even education, beginning with simple social activities. Today, social media is also a factor in the development of adolescent behaviour. As a result, the purpose of this research is to explore into the language use by teenagers in social media. Over the course of three months, a netnographic approach was employed to study the language use of nine teenagers. All of the participants' postings, whether text, images, or videos, were evaluated. Instagram stories posted, shared, and reposted on the participant's account are also recorded in Nvivo for thematic analysis and coding. The outcomes of the survey highlighted five important themes of the teens' language use and behaviour: entertainment, popularity, morality and ethics, relationships, and new contacts. This study is concluded with some implications and a detailed discussion of adolescent social media language use and behaviour. The outcome of this study is hoped to help to identify problems faced by problematic students, where early prevention or solution can be proposed. Several other recommendations were also proposed at the end of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Covid-19 pandemic was a testbed for crisis communication, leading to recommendations on how to meet communicative goals and several individual case studies. This paper contributes to the latter by engaging in a detailed three-level analysis of an early, pivotal address to the nation by Ghana's president Nana Akufo-Addo. In terms of infection rates and deaths, Ghana has been much less severely impacted by the pandemic than other countries, making it worthwhile to look at the role of official communications. This study investigates how the president addressed the public at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, in what ways the linguistic features of his address reflected the specific political context, and what potential impact his language use had on the behaviour of the public. Findings show that linguistic and, to a lesser extent, visual elements represent the president as powerful, authoritative, but somewhat detached from the audience. However, this is balanced by direct appeals to the same audience, whose cooperation he seeks to win rather than enforce. This balance reflects the political and sociocultural context of the text, as further evidenced by comments on the address on Akufo-Addo's Facebook page. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay offers six reasons why the field of gifted education should retire the terms giftedness and gifted. Additionally, in the historical context of longstanding, severe, and pervasive racial and income inequities in the field of gifted education, the term Master's Discourse is introduced and defined in this call to change terminology. Among the reasons to move on from the gifted terminology are its racist history; its association with underrepresentation; waning support for gifted programming; years of debate in the field over the use of these terms; issues with giftedness being narrowly defined by ability tests; and the need for language to evolve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given language's significant relationship to underlying psychological functioning, studying changes in language use regarding post-trauma nightmare (PTNM) content throughout a rescription-based treatment can offer insight into the nature of change in language associated with such treatments. LIWC2015 is an efficient tool that analyzes bodies of text for words that are theoretically representative of verbal and written expressions of underlying emotional and cognitive processes. LIWC2015 has not been extensively studied with PTNMs. The current study analyzed changes in language across cognitive and emotional domains using LIWC in a trauma-exposed treatment-seeking sample. Our analyses revealed significant changes in the frequency of words related to emotions and cognitive processing from the nightmare to rescription. In general, the rescripted imagery, relative to the nightmare, contained significantly fewer words pertaining to cognitive processing and negative emotions. This is the first known study to examine the change in language use, via word count, between nightmares and their rescripted versions. As language use is strongly associated with psychological health, these findings have clinical implications for providers and clients alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Bosniaca is the property of National & University Library of Bosnia & Herzegovina and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article applies a historical linguistic approach to compare specific word choice before, during and after the First World War in a sample of UK newspapers and two Nottingham papers. It finds that language use in Nottingham newspapers was similar to UK papers but at the same time showed marked differences, possibly as a result of local characteristics, circumstances, events and developments, which suggests that people's experience of war in this city did not always follow an overall UK pattern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children show tremendous abilities in their language acquisition and language use. The current research reports the patterns in the language use of Arya, a four-year-old, female, neurologically healthy, multilingual child in India. A subjective report based on the observations of conversations in person and over phone calls obtained over a span of more than two and half years suggests that, in cross-cultural settings, multilingual children display communicative competence in their language use without any special instructions, provided they are exposed to the optimum amount of linguistic exposure. This research argues that children use their communicative competence as a socialization pattern to identify themselves with kith and kin. The research also hints at the future scope in pedagogy in general and in creating language teaching models, in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Issues in Ethnology Anthropology is the property of Issues in Ethnology Anthropology and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study examines the use of languages (English and Irish) by bilingual undergraduate mathematics learners. Although many studies exist examining the role of language in learning mathematics, fewer studies have examined the specific use of languages by bilingual learners when engaged in mathematical thinking. This study adopts a commognitive lens to examine whether language use by two bilingual undergraduate mathematics learners impacts upon meta-level mathematical processes of the learners, in particular in relation to functions. The findings suggest that the learners' rarely engaged in code switching between languages when performing mathematical tasks and also that completing the mathematical tasks individually or in pairs impacted on the choice of language employed in the discourse. There was greater evidence of the learners employing meta-level discourse through the medium of Irish than English. Overall, the learners' language preferences for communicating mathematics learning are situated and can impact on the discursive processes of bilingual learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper investigates the bilingualism of municipal offices of Hungarian dominant settlements in Southern Slovakia, focusing on communication in these offices in relation to the relevant legal regulations, specifically on the language of signage outside and inside the offices, the language choice of oral and written communication in administration, and the language of official means of communication. Throughout the paper, the author points out issues that make the practical application of legal regulations difficult, and comments on the basic conditions of the asserting minority language rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we discuss what it has meant for us to be inspired by Reggio Emilia's pedagogical approach within our licensed child care and laboratory school context in Ontario, Canada. We focus on three aspects of the Reggio Emilia approach-relationships, equality, and citizenship-which we believe are interpretable across many different contexts. We speak about the importance of these aspects and offer narratives of how we have been inspired to reconceptualize our own relationships, use of language, and concept of citizenship to construct new aspirations in the early learning field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analysed the swear words that were used by the main character Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street movie. Data, consisting of 322 occurrences of swear words, were collected from the movie. The data source was the transcripts of The Wolf of Wall Street movie and discourse analysis was applied in this study to identify the language use in the movie. The data were analysed based on Pinker's (2007) typology. Results showed that Jordan Belfort used five types of swear words, namely descriptive (twelve times; 3.7 per cent), idiomatic (19 times; 5.9 per cent), cathartic (26 times; 8.1 per cent), abusive (29 times; 9 per cent) and emphatic swearing (236 times; 73.3 per cent). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of International Social Research is the property of Journal of International Social Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The majority of previous studies on North Korean Refugees (NKRs) focused on the linguistic heterogeneity of pronunciation and vocabulary use. Only a handful of studies examined differences between South Koreans' (SKs) and NKRs' language use and they concluded that NKRs prefer direct refusal speech acts rather than indirect ones. However, we hypothesized that NKRs' preference on direct refusal speech acts would vary depending on the types of inducing speech acts; speech acts that induces refusal expressions. 47 SKs and 43 NKRs answered three questions after watching video clips of short conversation in refusal situations. The results were statistically analyzed with independent sample t-tests and multi response analyses, revealing that NKRs preference on direct refusal speech acts varied depending on the types of inducing speech act. In addition, multi response analyses indicated that the NKRs and SKs evaluated the same rejecter's personality differently and that this difference may result in miscommunication. Lastly, NKRs' evaluations on the refusal speech acts did not change over time, as NKRs who stayed less than a year in South Korea and those who stayed more than five years did not show significant difference in their evaluation. This result suggests that explicit education on this may be required. Additionally, it is worth to note that current research confirms that SKs and NKRs react differently toward expressions used only in North Korea, and, therefore, not only the refusal strategy, but also the refusal expression itself are both important for successful communication. Additionally, the results showed that refusing with nonavoidable and non-personal reasons were perceived more positively than personal reasons. These findings suggest that for successful communication to happen between two groups with different linguistic backgrounds, pragmatic awareness in language use is helpful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

21st century has observed a tremendous revolution brought by Media in every sphere of life. The realm of language is no exception. Linguistic Creativity in Media Linguistics is one of the important repercussions of such revolution. Media Linguistics is one of the most important and dynamic field in applied linguistics, exploring the way language is used in Media. It has broadened the theoretical room for approaching Creativity in general and Linguistic Creativity in particular. The paper aims at describing and analyzing some of the linguistic techniques that copywriters use to catch the attention of audience. It is concerned with the creative aspects of such language. Main emphasis is put on the intertextuality in advertising. The application of intertextuality in advertising language is an effective technique that most advertisers prefer. It has created a theoretical space for creativity in language of advertising. Apart from intertextuality some common Rhetorical Devices are also taken into consideration to exhibit Linguistic Creativity. Data in this paper are drawn from both print as well as electronic media advertisements covering both Urdu and English languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the extent to which considerations of syllabus design and materials development are employed in a grade 9 English textbook of Ethiopia - English for Ethiopia: Secondary English Course: Grade 9 Students Book, with particular emphasis on principles of task design and materials development. The study comprises descriptive research and data were collected using coding form. Half (50%) of the contents of the Grade 9 English Textbook (6 of 12) were used for content analysis. Data were analysed quantitatively. The study revealed that many of the listening, reading and speaking lessons are appropriate in terms of providing comprehensible input, engaging students cognitively and affectively, promoting emotional/affective involvement and facilitating better language use. Similarly, visual imaging is also well taken care of, with the exception of a few of the vocabulary and grammar lessons. Some drawbacks were also identified with regard to the vocabulary and the grammar lessons in terms of providing comprehensible input and enhancing language use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Code switching, or as sometimes is spelled code-mixing (Muysken 2000), is a widely observed phenomenon especially seen in multilingual and multicultural communities. In ELT classrooms, code switching comes into use either in the teachers' or the students' discourse. Although it is not favored by many educators, one should have at least an understanding of the functions of switching between the native language and the foreign language and its underlying reasons. In this paper, it will be tried to clearly provide some basic definitions, elements, functions and classifications of code switching in different fields and disciplines and finally to come up with a general understanding as well as practical applications and uses of this pragmatic tool. This understanding will provide language teachers with a heightened awareness of its use in classroom discourse and will obviously lead to better of instruction by either eliminating it or dominating its use during the foreign language instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

L2 learners' target language use has been examined for various purposes, including assessment of the learners' proficiency and examination of the process of language learning. That is, target language use in the real life tasks on the level as automatized as that of native speakers represents the goal of L2 learning. More importantly, however, target language use has been proposed as a process that provides the learning opportunities, particularly since 1980s by communicative approach to SLA. Until the learners can communicate effortlessly without being conscious of the form of the language, how learners' attention and awareness are or should be directed to the language form and meaning has been an important issue among the recent SLA theories, summarized as the interface/non-interface debate. This paper discusses how different major SLA theories view learners' attention and awareness of language form during language use and how it has been measured for both process and result research. Finally, a recent neurobiolobical SLA model is introduced in terms of its methodological and theoretical contribution to SLA research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belarusians occupy a unique position among other ethnic groups in the In-Between Europe region. The widening of cleavages in internal and social affairs and the ever more pressing nature of the ensuing issues surfacing right along the border of the European Union have recently attracted international public attention to Belarus several times. In the study below you will find an introduction into the evolution of the current ethnic spatial patterns with historical background provided to show how the distinct Belarusian cultural and linguistic identity, as well as language use are represented spatially. The prevailing factors contributing to the formation of ethnic identity in the In-Between Europe region, the weaknesses or lack thereof, also the dominant foreign power structures with different ethnic bases have rarely provided favourable conditions for the development of a strong Belarusian identity. The historical overview of the ethnic spatial structure reveals that the ethnic distribution of population currently living in today's Belarus tends to move towards (Russian) homogenization. However, the country can still not be considered a homogeneous nation state. In the geopolitical buffer zone surrounded by nations with strong national identity, solid state structures and ambitions to gain dominant positions of power the ensuing circumstances prevent not only the formation of an independent state but also the strengthening of dimensions representing linguistic and cultural distinctions. Instead of/alongside this missing distinct national identity the ideology of the Russian human ideal (Homo Sovieticus) enjoys growing appeal. No wonder that both in politics and society the tendency in past two decades - following the fall of Communism and the collapse of the former Soviet Union - was to move with newly gained independence towards the former eastern power centre instead of creating a distinct, local ethnic identity. As a result, the multicultural features with strong historical roots, also manifested in ethno-spatial structure have faded. The changes are apparent most in the current language use of population and the traditional geographic and social dimensions (countryside-capital city, east-west, the poor-the rich). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper focuses on the development of ethnic groups in two Central- European regions, Carinthia and South Tyrol, in the 20th century. In Carinthia the number of Slovene-speaking inhabitants decreased continuously and there were huge disputes about bilingual town signs. During fascism there were attempts to "italianize" the region of South Tyrol by settling Italians and oppressing the German language. After World War II the mainly German speaking region became an autonomous province within the Italian state. In all these conflicts on language and ethnicity the census played an important role by stating the roles of majority and minority. But the diachronic comparability of the decennial census is difficult due to changing categories of identifying ethnicity or the use of language. Furthermore often members of the minority refused to declare these categories in censuses because they were critical to the use of the data by authorities. So the census is not only a mirror of social and political development but itself serves as a means of identity politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historically, the word phraseology has been connected with lexicography (Knappe 2004), especially with bilingual dictionaries (Moon 2000) and their norm-setting role associated with foreign-language teaching and learning. Nineteenth-century specialised bilingual lexicography seems to depart from the then usual norm-based approaches and to favour the inclusion of use-related phraseological combinations. This paper analyses the treatment of word combinations which can be referred to asante-litteramcollocations in two rather different dictionaries, namely Tarver’sRoyal Phraseological English–French, French–English Dictionary(1845–53) andNutt’s English–Italian Conversation Dictionary(1894), to see to what extent nineteenth-century specialised bilingual lexicography has marked a move away from prescriptivism and affected later studies on the lexicographical treatment of collocation and changes in the use of the word phraseology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Web-based communities face increasing pressures from governments and the public to enforce community guidelines that discourage and prevent negative member behaviours. This study explores the behaviour of flaming and the tensions the language of flaming causes in a community. Flames are hostile, profane and intimidating comments that can disrupt participation in a community. Using YouTube as a case study, a grounded theory exploratory study was undertaken to examine the characteristics of flame comments that clash with YouTube's community guidelines, particularly those aimed at preventing hateful speech against groups in society. A theory, represented by the term 'acceptability of language use', emerged from the analysis to describe the tension YouTube faces in enforcing a civil community and preventing hate speech. Although the study raises more questions than it answers, it illuminates the debate regarding what boundaries web community owners and members will tolerate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examines how language use (e.g., personalized vs. depersonalized language) and modality (e.g., tweets vs. Facebook status updates) influence source credibility interdependently. A total of 257 participants read personalized or depersonalized health messages embedded in mock-up tweets or Facebook status updates. The results show that users perceive depersonalized tweets as more credible than depersonalized status updates posted on Facebook. On the other hand, personalized status updates on Facebook generate higher credibility judgments than personalized tweets. The findings are discussed in light of the MAIN model as well as the preconceived user expectations and communication norms of social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Chinese Linguistics is the property of Chinese University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Peer Talk of children have been studied from different viewpoints keeping in mind the children's language use and socialization process (Cook-Gumperz and Kyratzis 2001, Kyratzis 2004). It is evident from peer talk studies that children actively resist the adult culture through peer talk in order to maintain their identity. The paper discusses a case of children's peer talk where adult language is resisted by the children by adopting a particular strategy. The strategy of children is to create a set of codes by manipulating certain linguistic features where the code is exclusively used among them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Kronika is the property of Kronika, Casopis za Slovensko Krajevno Zgodovino and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

It is clear that there are differences between the four nations (Australia, Canada, Britain and USA) when it comes to the use of language variety in their institutions. There are various factors such as ethnic groups, type of educational programs offered, the social and cultural systems in the countries, education system, and the immigration and movement of people which result in such differences in the use of language style in these nations. The common language between these nations is English, which is also a leading international language. This does not, however, translate into having a similar language style or accent in the countries' institutions. The contributing factors can be viewed in different perspectives. There may be some advantages and disadvantages of such varieties in language styles used in institutions, when nations have many different ethnic groups. The use of different language styles and conventions may prove to be a hindrance to some people when they seek jobs after they are through with their education. Although they use the same language, their acceptance in workplaces may depend on the language style they use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Recherches Sociographiques is the property of Recherches Sociographiques and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper discusses how language is used as a symbol in Alice Walker's The Color Purple. Alice Walker is an effective storyteller and she uses language style, diction, and tone, etc. to impressively characterize her characters in The Color Purple. In addition, language brings in the aura of regional characteristics, emotional expressions and beliefs practiced in American South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to globalization and international expansion of enterprises, cultural diversity in the workplace becomes more and more frequent. The present study focuses on two key issues regarding multinational work teams: language use and differences in value orientations of the employees of different cultural backgrounds and their potential effects on perception of team conflicts and team atmosphere. Results showed a relation between the perception of difficulties due to language use and the perception of conflicts in the team. Also, the difference between own and estimated value orientations of colleagues was positively related to the perception of conflicts and negatively to the evaluation of the team atmosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a mixed-method study on teachers' beliefs about the use of the Turkish language by Turkish children studying in Belgian schools. Topics include how the negative beliefs of teachers about the Turkish language are established, the effects of speaking the mother tongue on the Turkish students' academic performance and insights on language-related experiences of Turkish children in Belgian primary schools. It also relates the language to the children's sense of belonging.

Copyright of Langage & Societe is the property of Fondation Maison des Sciences de l'Homme and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Given the growing significance of conversational agents (CAs), researchers have conducted a plethora of relevant studies on various technology- and usability-oriented issues. However, few investigations focus on language use in CA-based health communication to examine its influence on the user perception of CAs and their role in delivering health care services.Objective: This review aims to present the language use of CAs in health care to identify the achievements made and breakthroughs to be realized to inform researchers and more specifically CA designers.Methods: This review was conducted by following the protocols of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) 2020 statement. We first designed the search strategy according to the research aim and then performed the keyword searches in PubMed and ProQuest databases for retrieving relevant publications (n=179). Subsequently, 3 researchers screened and reviewed the publications independently to select studies meeting the predefined selection criteria. Finally, we synthesized and analyzed the eligible articles (N=11) through thematic synthesis.Results: Among the 11 included publications, 6 deal exclusively with the language use of the CAs studied, and the remaining 5 are only partly related to this topic. The language use of the CAs in these studies can be roughly classified into six themes: (1) personal pronouns, (2) responses to health and lifestyle prompts, (3) strategic wording and rich linguistic resources, (4) a 3-staged conversation framework, (5) human-like well-manipulated conversations, and (6) symbols and images coupled with phrases. These derived themes effectively engaged users in health communication. Meanwhile, we identified substantial room for improvement based on the inconsistent responses of some CAs and their inability to present large volumes of information on safety-critical health and lifestyle prompts.Conclusions: This is the first systematic review of language use in CA-based health communication. The results and limitations identified in the 11 included papers can give fresh insights into the design and development, popularization, and research of CA applications. This review can provide practical implications for incorporating positive language use into the design of health CAs and improving their effective language output in health communication. In this way, upgraded CAs will be more capable of handling various health problems particularly in the context of nationwide and even worldwide public health crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Given the growing significance of conversational agents (CAs), researchers have conducted a plethora of relevant studies on various technology- and usability-oriented issues. However, few investigations focus on language use in CA-based health communication to examine its influence on the user perception of CAs and their role in delivering health care services. Objective: This review aims to present the language use of CAs in health care to identify the achievements made and breakthroughs to be realized to inform researchers and more specifically CA designers. Methods: This review was conducted by following the protocols of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) 2020 statement. We first designed the search strategy according to the research aim and then performed the keyword searches in PubMed and ProQuest databases for retrieving relevant publications (n=179). Subsequently, 3 researchers screened and reviewed the publications independently to select studies meeting the predefined selection criteria. Finally, we synthesized and analyzed the eligible articles (N=11) through thematic synthesis. Results: Among the 11 included publications, 6 deal exclusively with the language use of the CAs studied, and the remaining 5 are only partly related to this topic. The language use of the CAs in these studies can be roughly classified into six themes: (1) personal pronouns, (2) responses to health and lifestyle prompts, (3) strategic wording and rich linguistic resources, (4) a 3-staged conversation framework, (5) human-like well-manipulated conversations, and (6) symbols and images coupled with phrases. These derived themes effectively engaged users in health communication. Meanwhile, we identified substantial room for improvement based on the inconsistent responses of some CAs and their inability to present large volumes of information on safety-critical health and lifestyle prompts. Conclusions: This is the first systematic review of language use in CA-based health communication. The results and limitations identified in the 11 included papers can give fresh insights into the design and development, popularization, and research of CA applications. This review can provide practical implications for incorporating positive language use into the design of health CAs and improving their effective language output in health communication. In this way, upgraded CAs will be more capable of handling various health problems particularly in the context of nationwide and even worldwide public health crises. J Med Internet Res 2022;24(7):e37403 doi:10.2196/37403 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores types of marked language choices and their uses in Taiwan, using examples from both everyday and e-generation online communication where language mixing, crossing, and stylizing are rampant despite the fact that most of the same individuals consider conventionally codified Mandarin, English, and Japanese more prestigious. The paper argues that this kind of hybrid language practice owes much to Taiwan's twice-reformatted national language policies in the 20th century, and to a rapid regime transition from one party dominance to a multi-party society. That is, the historical enforcement of both Japanese and Mandarin helped nation-state development but didn't leave other linguistic varieties with an equal chance for social advancement, modernization, and codification. Indigenous and ingenious, the language choices and uses in question tap into the lack of codification and standardization of non-Mandarin varieties, into the stereotypical features of Taiwanese-accented Mandarin, and into the incongruities of so many phonetic schemes and use of Chinese characters as phonetic symbols to sound out English, Mandarin, and Japanese. The pragmatics goes beyond immediate functional purposes and are used metaphorically to tap into taboos, for example, or to create humor by adopting a marked choice, in real and virtual discourse. By connecting these emerging language features to broader socio-historical changes in Taiwan, we are able to see the coming of age of a new pattern of reappropriating Chinese characters and therefore Chineseness in online communication. It is a development that may help us reflect on the meanings of speaking/writing Chinese in the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's challenging times, 'conflict' has become a prominent issue in politics and in business. More often than not, parties involved in a conflict are from very different cultures. To achieve an agreeable resolution, the ability to manage language and cultural challenges in mediation and negotiation is vital. As the Principal Investigator, I initiated and managed a research project, under the sponsorship of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) in the UK, on Translating Cultures in International Mediation. The project has served as a solid foundation for this special issue that encompasses the project partner's invaluable contributions. Specifically, three areas were investigated during the collaborative efforts between academics, professional mediators and interpreters: 1) the use of language in managing interactions during mediation and negotiation; 2) cultural factors affecting people's verbal and non-verbal behaviour in disputes and mediation/negotiation; 3) the use of interpretation in intercultural mediation/negotiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides an example of psycho-societal analysis of work related learning. Initially a conceptual framework of learning and life experience is established drawing on Alfred Lorenzer and Oskar Negt, and the interactional development of psychoanalysis. A case of learning experience from research into a retraining program for unskilled workers, exposing a very conflictual subjective experience of a traineeship, is presented and commented. The worker's experience is interpreted focusing on the gender aspects of the conflicts, seeing the learning process in the context of a work identity process, which is related to a career shift enforced by labor market transition requiring male workers to retrain for a social work profession which used to be female, and more widely to a reconfiguration of the societal relation between work and gender. The final section discusses the methodological framework for analyzing learning processes by means of interpreting language use. The notion of language game connects the level of unconscious social engagements and level of formal learning and knowledge, and the opportunity for a deeper understanding of professional learning and identity is indicated by reference to one more example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the motivations that may lead certain bilingual adults to reject and/or limit their use of Valencian. Why is it that a significant number of speakers are able to speak both Valencian and Spanish but only choose to speak Spanish? Under what circumstances is the use of Valencian rejected or limited? My study attempts to provide answers to such questions by presenting evidence acquired from qualitative techniques such as observation, personal interviews and written questionnaires. In line with previous research, my results suggest that the use of Valencian may often be rejected and/or limited because of the political conflict with the neighboring region of Catalonia as well as because of the low instrumental value associated with Valencian.*. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language use changes over time. In Indigenous contexts, language alters to suit the shifting nature of cultural expression as this might fit with Indigenous peoples' preference or as a consequence of changes to outdated and colonial modes of expression. For students studying in the discipline of Indigenous Studies, learning to use appropriate terminology in written and oral expression can be a source of anxiety. In this paper, we consider how providing insight into the political nature of language can help students to be mindful and to understand that systems of naming have a political impact on those being named and those doing the naming. This paper reflects the views and experiences of teaching staff at the Indigenous Studies Unit (ISU) in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Wollongong. It comes from our teaching experience, and from discussions with staff and students over the past few years that have conveyed to us a continuing anxiety about language use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides an example of psycho-societal analysis of work related learning. Initially a conceptual framework of learning and life experience is established drawing on Alfred LORENZER and Oskar NEGT, and the interactional development of psychoanalysis. A case of learning experience from research into a retraining program for unskilled workers, exposing a very conflictual subjective experience of a traineeship, is presented and commented. The worker's experience is interpreted focusing on the gender aspects of the conflicts, seeing the learning process in the context of a work identity process, which is related to a career shift enforced by labor market transition requiring male workers to retrain for a social work profession which used to be female, and more widely to a reconfiguration of the societal relation between work and gender. The final section discusses the methodological framework for analyzing learning processes by means of interpreting language use. The notion of language game connects the level of unconscious social engagements and level of formal learning and knowledge, and the opportunity for a deeper understanding of professional learning and identity is indicated by reference to one more example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stories and storytelling have been used for millennia to entertain, challenge and educate. As a shared form of language interaction, storytelling has engaged communities in developing and perpetuating common understandings of both language and culture, as critical foundations to harmonious societies. Stories and storytelling provide a rich source of materials for languages classrooms, opening possibilities for gaining insights into cultures and language use, engaging learners with the literature and texts of the target language and culture and allowing learners to become both more engaged with the use of the target language and with expressing their own stories, using storytelling modes that are meaningful to them. This paper briefly explores the significance of storytelling to language learning and proposes a few ways to approach storytelling use in the languages classroom, using examples of stories of a young Indonesian poet, Fitri Nganthi Wani.The paper is intended to open wider discussion about the use of stories and storytelling in languages classrooms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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