In:Contemporary Chinese Discourse and Social Practice in China
Edited by Linda Tsung and Wei Wang
[Studies in Chinese Language and Discourse 4] 2015
► pp. 163–184
Linguistic choices in the Chinese workplace
A language ecology perspective
Published online: 9 October 2015
https://doi.org/10.1075/scld.4.10zha
https://doi.org/10.1075/scld.4.10zha
This chapter reports on an investigation of the choice of linguistic codes
including languages and dialects in the professional workplace in contemporary
China. The study was informed by current research on language ecology,
market value, and indexicality and based on a questionnaire survey and semistructured
interviews with petrochemical professionals in Xi’an and Beijing.
Several salient features regarding the use of linguistic codes by the professionals
were identified: (1) putonghua and written Chinese are commonly used in the
workplace; (2) English is not as commonly used as might have been imagined
in the craze for the international language; (3) despite the recognition of the
local dialects, beijinghua and shaanxihua, as being an important cultural asset,
they are not used extensively in the workplace. On the basis of these results, the
chapter argues for a linguistic ecological perspective on the choice of linguistic
codes in the Chinese workplace and the need to consider the local and global
dynamics of political, social, and economic forces in accounting for code choice
in different settings.
References (33)
Bao, Wenying Y. (2011). A summary of the studies on the international promotion of Chinese language. Yunnan shifan daxue xuebao/Journal of Yunnan Normal University, 9(1), 59–65.
Beijing Municipal Education Commission. (2013). Beijingshi jiaoyu weiyuanhui guanyu “2014–2016 zhongkao zhongzhao gaige kuangjia fangan (zhengqiu yijian gao)”, “2014–2016 gaokao gaozhao gaige kuangjia fangan (zhengqiu yijian gao)” gongkai zhengqiu yijian de gonggao (Notice for public opinion on the 2014–2016 High School Entrance Examinations and Admissions (for discussion) and the 2014–2016 College Entrance Examinations and Admissions (for discussion) by the Beijing Municipal Education Commission). Retrieved 3 December, 2013 from [URL]
Bucholtz, Mary, and Hall, Kira. (2005). Identity and interaction: A sociocultural linguistic approach. Discourse Studies, 7(4–5), 585–614.
Chen, Jing. (2011). Fangyan dianshi jiemu yu difang wenhua chuancheng lunxi – yi zhangzhoutai “bendihua xinwen” weili (Analysis of dialect TV programmes and regional cultural inheritance: The case of Dialect News on Zhangzhou TV). Southeast Communication, 12, 147–149.
China. (2000). Zhonghua renmin gongheguo guojia tongyong yuyan wenzi fa (Law of the People’s Republic of China on the standard spoken and written Chinese language). Retrieved 8 December, 2013 from [URL]
. (2012). Guojia zhongchangqi yuyan wenzi shiye gaige he fazhan guihua gangyao (2012–2020) (Outline of the PRC’s 2012–2020 language and script reform and development plan). Retrieved 29 November, 2013 from [URL].
Evans, Stephen. (2010). Business as usual: The use of English in the professional world in Hong Kong. English for Specific Purposes, 29, 153–167.
Fishman, Joshua A. (1972). The relationship between micro- and macro-sociolinguistics in the study of who speaks what language to whom and when. In J.B. Pride, & J. Holmes (Eds.), Sociolinguistics (pp. 15–32). Harmondsworth: Penguin.
Forey, Gail. (2004). Workplace texts: Do they mean the same for teachers and business people? English for Specific Purposes, 23, 447–469.
Ge, Junli. (2011). A survey and analysis on language use and language attitude of new urban immigrants in the process of urbanization. Journal of Zhejiang University of Technology (Social Science), 10 (4), 405–411.
Haugen, Einar. (1972). The ecology of language: Essays by Einar Haugen. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
He, Yanping. (2013). Xin shiqi shaanxi dianshitai fangyan jiemu de duoyuanhua fazhan (The diversified development of Shaanxi TV dialect programmes in the contemporary period). Jinchuanmei, 7, 63–64.
Huang, Wei’an, and Deng, Xiaoqing. (2011). Jiaqiang guoji hua rencai peiyang yi manzu shiyou gongye guoji hua xuyao (Enhancing the training of talents for the internationalization of the oil industry). Work & Study Abroad, 11, 84–85.
Kang, Zhifeng, and Qiu, Donglin. (2010). Zhongguo duoyu tuxian de shehui gongneng jiqi zouxiang (The social functions of multilingualism and the development in China). Shehui kexue zhanxian/Social Science Front, 2, 168–177.
Kachru, Braj B. (2006). World Englishes and culture wars. In B.B. Kachru, Y. Kachru, & C.L. Nelson (Eds.), The handbook of world Englishes (pp. 446–471). Oxford: Blackwell.
Lien, Donald. (2012). The effects of Confucius Institutes on China’s exports and FDI. Journal of Renmin University of China, 1, 88–98.
Long, Huizhu. (1998). Gangren dui guangdonghua ji putonghua taidu de dingliang yu dingzhi yanjiu (A quantitative and qualitative study of Hong Kong residents’ attitudes towards Cantonese and putonghua
). Zhongguoyuwen, 262(1), 66–73.
Nickerson, Catherine. (2005). English as a lingua franca in international business contexts. English for Specific Purposes, 24, 367–380.
Ren, Haiting, and Yang, Na. (2012). Xi’an diqu putonghua yu shaanxihua de shehui gongneng diaocha yu jiedu (Investigation and interpretation of the functions of putonghua and shaanxihua in the Xi’an region). Journal of Northwest University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition), 42(3), 180–182.
Rogerson-Revell, Pamela. (2008). Participation and performance in international business meetings. English for Specific Purposes, 27, 338–360.
Scollon, Ron, and Scollon, Suzanne W. (2001). Intercultural communication: A discourse approach (2nd ed.). Oxford: Blackwell.
Su, Jinzhi, Li, Weihong, Yao, Xishuang, and Wei, Hui. (2012). The survey of the current situation of putonghua popularization in Jiangsu. Applied Linguistics, 1, 28–35.
Sun, Deping. (2011). Language identity and language change: A survey of language use in the Jianghan Oilfield. Applied Linguistics, 1, 27–37.
Vandermeeren, Sonja. (1999). English as a lingua franca in written corporate communication: Findings from a European survey. In F. Bargiela-Chiappini, & C. Nickerson (Eds.), Writing business: Genres, media and discourse (pp. 273–292). New York: Pearson.
Wenger, Etienne. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Zhang, Bojiang. (2007). Beijing fangyan qianshuo (Introducing beijinghua). Wenshizhishi, 8. Retrieved 6 May 2014 from [URL].
Zhang, Qing. (2005). A Chinese yuppie in Beijing: Phonological variation and the construction of a new professional identity. Language in Society, 34, 431–466.