8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

1/14

9

Field

Methods

in the

Studv

of

Social

Dialects

Walt

Wolfam

and Ralph W. Fasold

In our

attempt

to collect

maningful

data, there are lwo

major

areas

of

concern:

(i)

the

choice

of a

sample

population

and

(2)

the

elicitation

o[

adequate speech

data.

THE

SA]VIPLE

When a sociolinguist

decides to describe

the

speech

behavior

oi

a

particular

population, he is

l'aced

with

the

problem

of

defining his univese

in

such

a

way

as lo

ensure

that

his observations

adequateiy reDresent

the

population.

The

first

decision he

must

make,

therefore,

is

to delirnir the

popuiation from

ivhich his sample

wiil

be

drawn. In

some

cases, it

is

quite possible

to choose

a

popuiation

that

is

already

defineci

in

terms

of

sone

arbitrrry

boundary'

such

as

a

geographical

one. For example,

we

may decide rhat

we are

golng

to study

the speech

of

a

given

locale,

suctr as

Detroit,

tvf

ichigan,

Rochester,

New

York,

or Vfeadville, Mississipoi.

For a

population

of

this

type,

the

bouncries

oi our

universe

have aireadlr been

es;ablished

ibr us, so

that

our

only

task

is

to

select

a represenlative

smple

from

hat

population.

In

other

cases,

we

may

'/ant

to

describe the speech

behavior

of

a

populatioo

defined

sociaily

raher lhan

geographicaily,

such as

a

lorver-class

inner-city

group.

If

this

is our

universe,

then

we

need

to

estabiish

the boundary

on the basis

of

crireria

such

as

social

class,

age,

and so

lorth.

Once

we have established

who

qualifres

according

o

our

social

criteria,

we can

decide

how

o obtain

a

representative

sample

of this

population.

In some

rypes

of

socioiogical

studies,

randoti

sampling

is used,

in

rvhich

erch cerson

in

che

iotri

popuiation

has

n

equal

c:rance

oi

being

selecred

from

the sampie-

Random sarnpling, horvever,

should

nor be equated

wtth

haphazard

or

casuai selection.

it

is

an

organized

procedure

for

choosrng

che

informants

in such a

wal-

as

o

eiiminate selection bias'

One

of

the

rrditionai

wavs

of

obtarning

an

authentic

rlrndorn

sari:ole is

rhrough

ihe use

Sce:'Fieid

\ftho

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

2/14

of a

trble

ol'random

numbers. This procedure

relics

on rhe

assignmenr

ol'a

number

to

cach individual

in the population.

The

investigator

cn

then

use

a

table

of random

numbers,

simply

lollowing

the

numbers

in

consecutive

order. (Tables

of random

numbers

can be

found

in

most

basic srristics

textbooks.)

Each

individual

with

an

assigned

number

corresponding

ro rhe

one

selected

in the list

of

random

numbers

is

then

chosen

for

the

samole.

unril

the

researcher

arives

at

the number

of

informants

he

desires

for

his

study.

.

Although

a

list of

random

numbers

is

often used

in

random

sampling,

this

is

not

the

only

piocedure

tha

can

be

utilized.'The

researcer

cen

simpty

designate

every

nth unit

in

his population

for

study;

for example,

every

fifh,

tenth. twenrieth, hundredth,

or

other n, depending

on

the

raiio

of

he

toral

population

that he.chooses

for hjs

sample.

strict

andom

samples,

though

avantageous

for

some

reasons,

have

limiraticni

fcr

thc

ilvcscigariori

ol sociai

di'iecis.

Tirc-;

oiLc;

:iiji:.,-_

numbers

of

sub.,iects

whose

speech

crrrni

be

consiciered

because

they

are

recent

immigranrs

from

another

section

ol

the

united

srates

or iror:r

anther

country.

Lbov

notes

rhe

various

types

of

problems

laced

by

thc

sociolinguist

rvhen

dependent

on

a

strict random

sample:

A

trial

random

sarnpie

of

my

own involved

counring

every

tenih

builctine

in

a

block. anc cailing

on

every

sevenrh

aparumenr.

This

rerhod

,.-o.

to

be lree

from

bias.

but

dici

nor

enable

me

tc

choose

my

informanrs

randomly

rvithiri

the

farnily,

nor

could

I

predicr

how

large

an

area

I would

9: qu,.

to

cover by

this merhod

before

availabie

resources

were

expendeci.

v{ost

importandy,

any

sampling

on

rhis.

basis wouiti

be unable

ro

djscnminae iJe .,veet

rrilive

soeakers

and

tbreign

lan_euage

speakers,

and

a

great

deal

of

erlbil

wouio

be

spent on truitiess

ca.iis

on rhe

larrer

iype

oi

resident.

(1966:

:01)

A

stnct

random sample

should

also

result

in

the represenration

of

population

propo.rrionately

with

respecr

ro

the

veFious

sociai

groups.

For

e.xample. if

there'are

large

numbers

ol

midcle-class

whites

in

I

parricular

rrea

bu

iew

workino-class

whjtes,

this

shouid

be

represenred

in

the

sanple.

In

some

cises.

this

rnav result

in

excessive

numbers

oIsubjects

represenri;re

one

grouo

while

anoiher grcuD

is

uncierrqoresenrec

for

the sake

of a

socloungul5Ilc

analvsls.

As

an

aiternaiive

ro

srici raadorn

sarnplrng,

i

is

otien

more

elicieni

to

obtain

a

represenraive

sarnole

lor

predeterrlineci

socral

caregories.

In

rhis

crocedrre. rhe

social

coroosition

oi':he

sanpie

rs

iirst

derermined.

then

.:i.lt^.'-.-.-

.-':,j'...1..

---t:t

.

::

..":,it,.

..... :::::

.,:.,

.,r-lJt:r,:(J

::lt:ed

c s

,'::..;

rti'ii.e

::ri:ipic.

Iiiori,a,i:

c:l

e c.-iosen

:nd.,-.nI,,.

urlii

n

oequete

r;unrt'cr

is

obleined

io

ieoreseni

esch

cell.

This

prcceriure

rvoicis

ihe

probiem

ol'ovcr-

and uncerrcpresentliion

for

oaricular

social

categones.

becruse

ihc

irrresriercor

sroDs seiectine

inlbrmanrs

for

eiven cgils

in which

wc

decide

o

invesrigate

he

variables

ol'social

clss,

sex,

age,

and

'

cthnicity.

we

choose to

h4ve

a

sample

represe nting

four

social

classes,

both

I

sexes,

three

age

groups,

and

borh

black

and

white

subjects.

If

we wanr each

of the logically

possible

social

categories

represented

in

our sample,

we

wiil

have

a

sample

distriburjon

as

in Figure

9.i.

in

our

samplc, we

wanr

to

make

sure

thar

all

cells

(e.g.

upper middle-class

white

l0

to l2-year-old

females

or

lower

working-class

biack 25

co 35-year-

old

males) are

adequately

r.p..s.nt.d,

so

we

chos.'only

a

given

numberof

informants

for

each.

The

total

number

of

ceils

in

the

sample

is the

number

ol

categories

of

each social

variable

multiplied

by each

orher..

There

are

four

sociai

classes

multiptied

by two

races,

two

sexes,

and

three

age

groups,

and

so

the total

number

of cells

is

48,4

x2xzx

j:4g.

when soeakins of

a

r.^ .. nf

'h:

t"-o ;. ;.

-^..^

.- ,

-:..;

-^

^-^

-,-

-iriirL

ur

:r) LjL,.,

r:

15

ifloi'f

L-.iiai?.-]

ia

:C:lk

Of

lhC

nUmbel

Of

infOfmantS

in

each cell thrn

oithe

rctal

nu;nber

of

inibrmants.

For

exarnpie,

if

we.usr

had

i

informants

in each

ol the

ce

ils in our

sample, we would

have

a

sample

of 240

subjects.

But

il

we

were

conducting

a

study

of sex

d.ifferences

in

the

speech

of

lcwer-class

whites,

we

would

have

only

one

variable.

In

this

case,

a

ioral

of

100

subjecrs

would

be

divrded

equaily

inro

caregories

ol

50males

and 50

females.

Thus rhe

coral

sampie

in

tfus

insrance

,ould

be

considerabiy

srnaller.

but thc

represenrarion

in

each

of rhe

rwo

ceils

much

sreater. If

rve

have a

large

nurnbe

of celis,

ir

mar

be

possible

io

collapse

some of hem for

some ryDes

ot'analysis,

but an anail'sis

oi he efrecc

of

all

the intersecting vanabies on

each

other

will

require adecu3te represeniation

oi

ail

of our

cells.'

lVhl i

El:ck

Male

Femaie

Male

Fenale

l0-12 l4-17 l5-li

l0-12

l4-i7

l5-li

l0-ll

t.r-i7

ii-15

l0-i2

l4-17

25-li

{iddle

Class

Lcwer

Viiclc

Class

Clss

Lo

*'e

1.t;,_.

rilng

tossr

olc socl:ri

clie:cnei

ln

a

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

3/14

9?

Feld [ethods

in the

Study oJ'Sociul Dialcctt

The

question

of

optim:rl

sample size

flor

the

study of

social

dialects is

still

undetermined.

On

the

one

hand, there

is

the

tradition of

linguistics

which

generally

relies on

very

small samples.

In some cases,

one

or

just

a few

indiduals

scrve

as

informants, and

sometimes

the

linguist acn

as

his own

informant. On

the

other

hand, thetradition

of

sociological surveys is

to

have

rather substantiai

numbers o[subjects, often

in

the'hundreds

or

thousands.

The

investigation of social

dialects must

rely on samples

that

are somewhere

.

in

between

these

two traditions.

It

is,

however,

difficult

to even

approximate

what

might

be

a

reasonable

number

of

informants

in

each cell. There are

both

theoretical

and

practical

considerations. To

a

certain extent,

the size

of

the

sample

is dependent

upon

how

homogeneous

behavior

can

be

expected

to

be.

The

more homogeneous

the

behavior,

the

smaller

the sample

may be. -

It

appears

that

linguistic

behavior

is

considerably

more homogeneous

than

some

other

types o.f behavior, so

that

we

might obtain

a

reliable

sample

by

using a

smaller

sample

than

some

types

of

sociological

surveys.

Linguists

have a

tradition

of assuming that the

speech of

a few

informants

may be

sufficient to

represent

a

language system,

but

exactly

how

many informants

is sufficien

in each

ceil is still difficult

to predict

for a

given

study.

in

part,

the

size depends

on

the

type of

sociolinguiscic

problem

wirh which

we

are

dealing.

If,

lor

example, we are

dealing with

subjective

reactions

to

speech

through

a

formal

questionnaire, there

is

no

reason

why

we cannot

use

sampies

that

are rather large in

size.

A

requirement

of

l0 to 20

subjects

in

each

cell

would appear to

be a

minimum in such

a

case

if

we

expect

to

arrive

at

s.tatisticaiiy

significant

results.

On

the other hand,

if

we

are

doing

a

quantiative

analysis

of

linguistic

variables

ol

the type undertaken

by Labov

et'al.

(1968),

Wolfram

(1969,

l9i3),

or

Fasold

(t972),

the

sample

must be

limited

in

size

for

quite practical

reasbns.

This

type of

anaiysis

requires

detailed extraction

of speech

data. The simple

procedure

of e.xtractioo

may

take

several

days

for

each informant, so

tha

a

comprehensive

analysis

of

hundreds

of

tapes

is precluded

if

we

are to

complete

our

analysis

within

a reasonable

amount

of

tirne. The larger

the sample,

of

course,

the

rnore

social

variables we

can examine

and the more

coofidence

we

can

ha.e in

our

conclusions,

but

there

are

sometimes

practical limitations

ot

time.

It

appeers, horvever.

tha

if

we

have fewer than five

informants

in

erch

ceil

tor

this type

of analysis.

we

r .n

the

risk

of

getting

quite

skerveC

results.

So lar

rve

h',e

relerred

only

to

samples

dcoenden

on iome

type oi'

raniom selection

proceCure. But there

are

studies

in sociai

dialects

fbr

which

we

ma-v

rvrsh

io abandon randornness

comoierell,'

in

t'avor of

some

struciured

pttern

of inlbrmant

seiection

based

on other

criteria.

For

rrmnlp I rhov:d

his

associates'mosi

insishcfui

lineuistic,laa

on black

adolescent speech

in

Hariem

came

not trom

his

ranJom'sample, bul

frqn'

his study

oi selected

pecr

sroups.

The

selection

of

pe:r-group inlormans

is

descnbed by

hrnr as tbilows:

ll/ult

ll/olJram und

Ralph

14/.

Fasoll

The

ne.'

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

4/14

94 Field

tVethods

in

the Stullt

oJ'Social

Diulects

community'l

There

are two

main

types of

Procedures

for

doing

this

-

those

dependent

on

thc

objective

measurement

of an

outsidc

investigator

and

those

dependent

upon

the subjective

evaluations

ol

the

communily

participants themselves.

objective

Meosurements.

The

objective

approach

to

the study

of

social

stratificatioo

is

based

on the deniled

observation

of

the

various straia

that

exist

in

a

community,

regardless

of

whether

or

not the strata

are

recognized

by

the

members.

The

researcher

'stands outside'

the

community

and

atremprs

to

determine

the criteria

that

will

divide

it into

the

strata

most

significantly

affecting

social behavior.

One

of

the

most

common

tyPes

of

objective

evaluetio

involves

the

use

o[what

Warner

(1960)

has

called

the

Index

of

Sratus

Characteristics

(iSC).

(In

the

UK,

rhe

Registrar-General's

Classifcation

of Occupatiow

seryes

a

similar

function.)

The

I$C

is

primarily

an index

of

certain socioeconomic

flactors. Most

typically,

the

cnteria

used

tor

evaluating

subjects

are

occupation,

education,

income,

house

type'

and

d.weiling

area.

For each

of

these criteria

arbitrary

divisions

are

set

uD so

that

a ranking

is

given

in

each

area.

For

example,

occupations

may

be

divided

inm seven

categories,

described

roughly

as follows:

Class

I

Occupation

Major

professionals

Executives

of

large

concerns-

Lesser

professionals

Executives

of

medium-sized

concerns

S.m i-nrnlcs ci nn e I s

Admirustralors

of

small

businesses

Technicians

Owners

of

petty businesses

Skilled

workmen

Semi-skilled

workmen

Unskilled

wokers

(Shuy.

Wollram,

and fule-v 1968:

t2)

)

6

7

A

iairiy

ry'pical

deiimitarion

of

ed.ucaiionai

rank

is

given

in

ihe

tciiowrng

lrit:

Clss

Level of Edztcation

)

J

I

2

j

1

j

6

7

Any

eraCuacc

degree

lprolessionrl)

Cnlle"e

or-rdll.rlion

r

four-r'ear)

.i.

Utre

nf

Or iIrOfe.OI

COilcgC

High school

qraduetlon

Some

high

school

(tenth erade

uP)

Junror

high school

(seventh

rhroueh

nin:h)

Less

than

seven

yeers

oi

school

(Shu1,.

Wolfram. and

Rilev

1968:

ll)

lYalt

llolfran

and Ralph

lV.

Fusold

Two

types

of

jncomc

indices

are

commoniy

used

in

ISC

evaluatrons

-

those

which

de limit

actual

salary levels

(e.g-

above

$30 000,

S20

000-5l0

000'

etc.

[at

1974

rates ])

and

those

which

delimit

the source

of

the

income

(e.g.

inherited

income,

profits and

fees,

e

tc.).

The source

of

the income

is

often

more

reliable

than the

actual

income levels

because

income

levels

can

become

outdated

quice rapidly

and actuai

income

is not

always

commensu-'

rate

with

status.

Two

types

of

residency

scales

are

also used,

one

relating

to

the

individuai

house

type and one

to

the more

general dwelling area.

with

reference

to

house

type,

characteristics

such

as

size,

condition,

number

o[ inhabitants

per

room,

and

plumbing

are considered.

Dwelling

area refers

to overail

neighborhood

conditions

(such

as

nondeteriorating

single

homes

wrth

,pu-.iout

yards

cr

deteriorating

block homes

with

no

yards).

Although.this

type

of evaluation

may

appear

to

be dependenl

on

the

personal

impressions

of

the

.ualu"tors,

quite

objective

measures

can

be

set

up on

the

basis

of

various

census

tract

data.

All

ISc

evaluarion measures

do

not

use

the

same

criteria,

so

lhat

one

study

may

use

lhe scaies

of

occupadon,

education,

and residency

whereas

another

may

use occupation'

house

type,

and

dwelling

area'

It

is

also

possible

to assign

different

values

to

the

various

scales

used

in

assessing

an

o.rerall

status

ranking.

Occupation,

for

example,

may

be

weighted

more

heavily rhan educarioo

and

residency

in

computing

an

overall

ISC

score.

In

the

Detfoir

Dialect

Study,

which used

the criteria

of

occupation, education,

and

residency

to

evaluate

social

status,

the lollowing

procedure

was

employed

lo

oblain

an

ISC

rank:

At

this

point,

each

informant

had

three

rating numbers:

(a)

a

rating

lrom

one

to

seven

on

education;

(b) a

ratin-

from

one

lo seven

on

occupalton;

and

(c)

a rating

from

one

to six

on

residence

.

These

numbers

were

then

muitiplied

by

fctors

of

5,9,

and

6,

respectively,

the

sum

of ihese

numbers

being

the

informant's

posicion on

the scale.

For

instrnce,

a lwver

who

liveJin

a

Class

I

neighborhood

wouid

receive

a

I lbr

ducation.

a

I

tor

occuDario,

and

a

i

for

residence.

Multiplied

br'5,9,

and

6

resoecriveil''.

these

give

a combined

score

o[20.

For

:- oerson

rated

7

on

both

educatton

ancl

occuparion

(a

laborer

wilh a

third

grade ducation'

for

example)'

wirh

a house

in

a class

VI

neighborhooi.

the score

is

i3-1.

ob'iiously,

the

lower

lhe

number

the

higher

the

oresige.

end

vice

versa'

iShul"'

\\'olfrsrl'

rnd

fulev

l96E.

lj)

Qcs

gverall

sccres

are

ccmputeci'

it

rs

pcssibl:

:" dL"idt

ihe

ce'ouiacion

inro

tJiscreie

social

levels.

In

rhe

Detoit

srudl;

cited

abrlve.

subjcis

who

had

sr3lus

scores

beween

l0

and

J8

were

ciassihed

as

ucper

middie

ciss,

those

wirh

scces

between

-19

and

77

lorver

middie

cilss,

thcse

with

scores

between

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

5/14

96

. Fietl

illethods

in thc Study

of Sociut

Diulccts

78 and

t0

upper

working

class, and

those

belween

t07

and

l'14

lower

working class.

Subjects

whose

scores

fall.at the

lower

or

upper ranges

of

an

individual

level

are

generally considered

rirarginal,

so

that

an

individual

with

a status

index

score

of

76

would

be considered

as

marginally

between

upirer

working

and lowei

middle

ciassl

The use

of

ISC for

the

measurement

of

social

status

is

based

on

two

propositions:

(l)

that certain

economic

lactors

are

closely

correlated

with

,o.l

ttotut,

and

(2)

tha

these social

and

economic

factrs

are

translated

into

social-class

behavior

acceptable

to

the members

of

any

given level

of

the

community

(Warner

l90:

39). ISC

presumes a set

of

values

and

behavioral

patterns.

Because it

is

an

indirect

method

for

assessing

social

class,

we must

expect

that

some

discrepancies

will,

of

course' occur

-

some

individuals

who

are

given

a

particular status

ranking

on

an iSC

may

reffect

behavioral

characteristics

more

typical

of

individuals

of

a different

socioeconomic

level.

The

facr

rhar isc

is

an indirecr

way

olgetting

at social

class

is

one

of the

weaknesses

of

the

procedure. It

is

actual behaviorai

patterns

rhat

are

the basis

of

social

class,

not

an

objective

ranking on

seleced

socioeconomic

indices.

The

general

applicebility of

objective

socioeconomic

measures

may

also

vary considerably

from

community

to

community.

This

is

particulariy

true

with

respect

to applicability

for

various

ethnic groups'

For

example'

how

important

should

occuparion be

considered

in

the

black

community,

given

the

history

of

discimination

which has

kept

blacks

from

.,ob

pforruniries

commensurare

rvirh

their

abrlities?

Even

if such

scales

are

apiticaUte

to

e

black

community,

their

weighting my

be

considerabiy

itier.nt

from

that

for the

white eommuniiy.

For

example,

education

(not

only the

amount,

bu

where it

was

obtained)

appears

to be more

heavily

weighted

than occupation

tor

some

black

communities.

Various

adjustments

*utt

b.

made

in

ISC

weighting

from

region

to

region

for

aoy

group,

but

quire

substanrial

adjustments

may

be

necessary

for

ics

application

to

various

erhnic

groups.

Alchough

the

ISC

methoC is

the

most

commonly

used

objective'

aeasuremenL

of

social suatihcation,

rhere

are other

objective

aporoaches

nor

exciusiveiy dependent

on

socioeconomic

ranking.

It

is

,iite

possibie

to

examine

cerrain

t-vpes of

institutional

membership

and

differential

social

roles

in

a

comrnunity,

tor example.

An investi_eator

mav

look

at

such

things

as

church membership.

leisure-rime

ctiviiies,

or

comrnunit)

organzatlons.

In rhese

csses

the

ioral configurarion

,f,f

rnsttiutional

mernbershrp

ts

considered.

because

vanous alfiiiations

rviil

often.rmply

each other.

on

the

basis

of

rhese

configurations.

differen

sociai

groupings

cen

be esrablished.

On

a

large

scale,

rhis type of

objective

measurement

is not.as

simple

aslS" -

and is

nor used

nearly

as

frequently, despire

the fact

that

it

ts

Probably

more

directly

reiated

ro social

clss

chan

the

simple

mcasurement

of

cconomic

facto

rs.

q'7

llrult

ll/oliam

und

Ralph

ll

.

Fasold

Subjective

Evaluatiot. One

of

the major

criricisms

of

an

e'tcluslvely

objective

approach

to

the measufement

of social

status

is

the

fact

that

the

diiierendaon

of

social

strata

is

determined

on

the basis

ol

an

outsider's

criteria.

Ultimatety,

however,

the real

discriminators

of

social

class

are

the

menbers

of

the community

themselves.

From

one

perspective'

social

.

.*", because

ihe

members

of the

community

beiieve

that

they

exist'

If

he

communiry

members

are

the

reel

determiners

o[ social

class,

then

it

sands

ro

reason

that

lheir

judgments

about

social

ctass

might

be

the

primary

basis

for

class

delimitation'

The

method

of

subjective

evaluation

referred

to

by

Warner

as Evaluated

Participation

(EP) is

based.

on

lhis

proposition.

t urru*.,

that

the

members

are

implicitly

or

expiiciily

aware

oi

ie

so.ial

ank ol

those

around

them

and

can

evaiuale

their

social

participation

into

social'class

ralings.

The

invesdgator

asks

the

community

members

how

rhey

rare

each

othei(and,

in

some

instances,

themseives)

in

terrns

of

sociai-ciass

categories

recognized

within

the

community'

Thjs

can

be

done

in a number

of

ways. For

example'

it

is

possible

to.rate

informants

on

the

basis

ol

stalus

reputxcion.

Using

this

techntque'

community

membrs

are

asked

to

evaluate

personai

acquaintances

on

lhe

basis

oicertain

imputed

character

lraits.

One

person

my

be

thought

to-be

'tiom

the

wrong

srde

of

the

tracks'

whereas

another

may

be

thought

of

as

'upper crust'.

A

communiry

member

may

be asked

to

designate

his

own

,o.iul

.ut.go.jes

and then

rank other

community'members'

indi'iduais

can

aiso be

asked

to rate

themselves

and

other

community

menbers

aDove

or

below

therr

in the

sociai

hierarchy.

This

not

only

gives

an

indication

of

how

they'

vie',v

other

pecple

in terrns

cf

sociai

class

bu"

aiso

sho''vs

how

rhey

view themselves.

Ciass

is

a concept

that

is

generally

recognize

d

rhrughut

American

society,

and

a

valid

picture

of

social

rank

would

upp.oi

to lake

into

account

ihe

perceptions

of

ciass

from

the

participanls

,,virhin

che

community

class sructure.

oi

Aithough

ihe

use

of EP

rechniques

seens

to

avoitl

some

oI

the

pitlails

the

objective

aoprcaches,

there

aie

both

theoretical

and

practical

questions

rhat

can

be raiseci

concerning

their

use.

We may,

for example,

recslve.qulte

different

pictures of social

ciass

iseif

from

the

various

ciasses

*

the lower

classes ma-v

percetve

sociai

class

quire differentiy

irom

the

upper

classes'

Which of

lhese redects

rn acc'urae

picture.

or

are

ihcre

as

rnJ'n)/

siruclures

as

there

lre

classes

looking

el

lhenrl

We

must

also

recognize

that

we

tnay

not

recerve

a

conslsient

ii...ur.

ci

the

divisions

of

sc'cicl

c1ss

One

cornnunitlrmernbermal,believeihere'areirvesocilc|ssesandanotner,

hree.

Are

rve,justified

in assumtng

that

rhe

rnajc'ril';

oornion.of

socrai-ciass

,Jivisions

is necessaril-r'

rhe

authentic one?

These

efe

the

kinds

of

questtons

tha

researchers

rvho use

an

EP

procedure

musc

deel

with

on

a

theoretical

lr> l

On

a

praciicai

ievel,

the

socre'linguist

"vho

rvants

ict

use

EP

as

the

basis

ior

differenrraring

soctal

cllrss must

recognlze

rnsl

iI

assumes

a

certain

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

6/14

knowledge

of

thc

communitv

betbrehrn

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

7/14

r00

Field

letho

in the

Study of

Sucial

Diulects

research. Many

of rhese

are

irrclevant

to the

inlbrmant.

We

should be

able

to

reach

a

compromise

without

a

boring account

of

all

the

details.

In our

recent

study

of

the

English

of

second:generation

puerto

Ricans

in

Harlem,

we

typicblly

represented

our

research

in

the following

manner:

we're

inrerested

in

what

teenagers

in

different parts

of the

country

are

interested

in.

For

example,

I'm

from

philadelphia

and

we

don't

fly

pigeons

from the

top

of

buildings

rhere

so

I'm

interested

in how

you

do

it. welre

also interested

in

how teenagers

think

about

some things,

because

they

look

at

things

differently.

For example,

teenagers

use

diff'erent wods

and

stuff when

they're

talking

so

that

we're

inrerested

in

how

teenagers

talk

and

think

about

some

things.

We're

going

to

tape

record

it

because we

can't remember

all

the

things

you

might say.,

flVolfram

et

al.

l9'71

14)

In this

explanation.

we

did

oot

attempt

to disguise

our

inrerest

in language

or

culture,

but

we were

nonspecific

in

taiking

about

the

type

of

language

diversity

in

which

were

interested.

In most

cases, vr'e found

rhat this

type

of

explanation was

satisfactory,

but any

quesrions

were

answered.by

honest

but nondetailed

commenrs.

our represntation

of

interests

to

informants

is often

more

problemati

once the interview

has

sraned. we

sometimes project

interest

in

the

subjecr

ma'tter

when

what

we

are realiv

nterested

in

is how

the

person

talks. Are we

being

dishonest

wirh

he

iformaot?

.In order

to

elicit

speech,

we

musr

project

Dersonal

empathy

concernins

the

informant's interests,

and

more

often than

nor

we

do find

ourselves quite

engrossed

iu

the

subject maner,

wherher

it is our central

purpose

or

nor.

A

necessary

qualificarion

ofa

good

researcher and

interviewer

is an

honest and

sincere

interest

in his

subjecr and

in

those

who

aid

him

in

his study

of

it.

Another

matter that

must

be considered

by fieldrvorkers

is

the recording

of

interviervs:

curren

types

of analysis

in

the

study of social

dialects

make ir

virtuaily

impossible

to

operare

wirhou

rape-recording

speech.

Are

we

obligated

to teii

rhe

informant

that

he

is

being

raDe-recorded? Even though

it

may

preseni

obsracies

in

obtaining

speech samples,

we

are invadine a

person's

right

oi

privacy

unless

we

do

so. Although

we

may argue thar

we

are

not

goin-s

lo use

the

speech

we

obrain

via

a

hidde n rape

recorder

or

video

.amPrr .rr r..' vnl,rir'r

drtur

ur

drr_v

L.\prurLd[lve

pUrDOSeS,

we

Sti]l

do

nOC have the

fight

tO eCord

3

person's

spe:ch iitor

some

reason

he rs against

it.

In

sorne cases.

ir may be

appropriate

co

'bug'

a room

atier

rhe

informanrs

have be:n tbrervaned

thar

thrs is

planned,

but

all

those who

are

being

rape-re.orded

should

be

so

intormed

before

he

fact.

Constraints

tha

ma,v arise liom

rhe pr.r.o..

Jf

tape

recorder must

be

neurriized

bv

me.ns

other chan

thc

deceprion

oI

iniormancs.

I

I4/alt ll/olfrum

and

Ralph,W.

Fasolt

Finally,

we

must

mentior

the matter

of confidence.

It is

surprising

how

much privileged

information

some

people

will

share

with an

empathetic

fieldworker;

however, this

is

given

in

condence and

should

not be

used in

any way

to exploit the

informant. Our task is

to

analyze speech

and

we

should keep in

mind that

this is

why

the informant

has

consented

to

the

interview.

What

happens

if

we obtain

certain

types

of

information

concerning

illegai actity

(e.g.

narcotics,

delinquency,

etc.)

during

the

course of

the

interview?

In

these cases,

it

seems

appropriare to

view

our roie

as that of

the

priest

in

a confessionai,

unless

there

are

some

very

extenuatitrg

circumstances

td-warrant

otherwise.

Social scientists have

an obligation

to

keep

privileged

information

in

the

confidence that the informant

assumed

when

he disclosed

it.

Obligations

to

informants

also

include

obtaining

proper

permission

to

conduct interviews.

If we

are

conducting

reseach

within

a

schooi

system,

we

must

follow che

specified

procedures

for

obtaining

this

permission.

And, in

the

case of minors, this

often

invoives

getting wrilten

consent

lrom

parents

or

guardians

before conductirig

our

incerviews.

At

his

point,

having

discussed

the

very

important

erea of

thics in

fieldwork,

we

return

to discussion

of

the

acrual

strategies used

in

eliciting

meaningful

data

in

investigations

of

social

diaiects.

Sponteneous Interriews

The spontane ous or free cooversation

interview

is

basic

to

curren

sociolinguislic

reseaich lor a reasonable

aoproximatron

oi

how language

is

actually

used- Obtaining

data from

relatively casual

contexts

is

crucial t'r

current

types

of

sociolinguistic aoalysis.

It

serves.

foi

exampie,

as the basis

for much of the

quantitative

labulation

which

some

types

of

sociolinguistic

rnalysis

call for.

Unfortunateiy, the

very

iacl

thec

person

is

being

inerviewed and taoe-recorded

is a formidable

obstacLe

tc

obiaining

casual

speech.

Labov refes

to this

problem

s

/,ie

observr's

partzio.r:'To obrain

the

daa most

important for

linguistic theory.,,ve have

to

observe horv

nenle pel rrhn ther, rc nr h-;-^

^h"-,,1'

i lQ-'' I I lr Rv rr.

...--

".^sy are.

nol

being

observed'

(197?:

I

ll).

B.u.,

usin-q

various

techniques,

it is

possibie

ro

ncurralize rhe

narurai obsiacies

inhereot

in anv

iniervie,.v

situa:ion.

The sol

of

sponieneous

incerrrewrng

is

quice

strarghtlonvard

and

simple:

the inter'",iewer

wxnrs

to

get

as

rnuch

ltee

converstion as

poss;ble.

i{e

r.vnrs

i5e rnt',rmni

ro

lbcus,)n:nc t'Jni oahls

conversation

so

rhat

he pa.,'s

minini

attenrion to

ihe

lvav

he

is

sceakrng.

The less attencion

paid

to

his

speech,

the more iniornei

and

natura]

we crn

expect his speech

to

be.

I most cases, this

means

ihai

rvhat

inibrmarts

talk

about

is

less

important than

the lac thar

the;,

i.Ik. Therel'ore,

lengthy'

narralives

are toierated.

and in fact encouraged, e.;en

inough

ihel malr

be

tangential

co lhc

specilrc cuesrions asked.

t0t

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

8/14

l{alt

lYalJium

anl

Ralph

lY' Fusoltl

rd:\

t0?

Field

fulerhods

in

the Studt oJ" Sociul

Diulect's

Intlividual

Interviex,s.

Although

tieldrvorkers

must

realize

rhe

limitations

tn

recording

a

frec

conversation

with

an

inlbrmant in

a one-to-one

situation.

the

effeciiveness

of

this technique

should

not. be

underestimated.

People

like

ro tlk

about

themselves,

and if

they are

not

threatened

by

the siruation

many

people

can

become

interesting

conversationalists

even

in

this

type

of

interview.

The

fieldworker

is

a captive

audience and if

te

informant

feels

him

respond

to

his

interests,

he

will usually

give more

than

adequate

amounts

of

conversation.

There

are,

of

course,

informants

who are

reticent

about talking

becausd

of

either the

artificial

situation

or

their

personal

inhibitions,

but

even

the most

skilled

interviewers

will

have

difficulty

obtaining

adequate

free

conversation

from these

individuals"

For

the

most

part,

they

constitute

a small

minority

of

interviews.

A

spontaneous

conversation

calls

for

considerable flexibility

in

what

the

informant

talks

about,

but

this should

not

be

interpreted

to

meen

lhat

no

general

outline

is followed

flor

eiiciting'conversation.

Certain

types

of

{uestions

(not

always

the ones

we might

predict

beforehand)

lend

to

naturally

eiici

conversation

more

readiiy

than others.

It

is

possible

to

informaily

direcr

an

interview

in

such

a

way

as

to

get

specific

types

of

sociotogiial

informarion

abour.

such

things as

the

inlormant's

peer

associations,

social

Status,

and

general

patterning

of

social

interacttons,

as

well

as

to

obtain

a

natural

representation

of

certain

types

of

iinguistic

structures. Suppose

we

wanted

to

ensure

that

there was

an

adequate

representation

oi

past-tense

constructions

in our

interview.

This

couid

be

accomplished

by

rsking

he

intormant

to

reiate

an

incidenr

from

the

past.

oil.the

other

hand,

if we

wanted

to

ge

a

repfesentation

of

presenl-tense

forms,

we

would

have

to make

sufe

that

we had

adequate

conversa[lon

about

present-time

activities.

I our

analysis of

the use of

invariant

e

in

Black

ingtish,

we

observed

that

its

occurrence

was oflen

concentrated

in

srories

about

the

way

in

which chiidren's

games were

piayed

(e.g-

ll/e

run

and

hide

and

the last

person

thLt

get to

base,

they

be

ir).

This

observatton

was

a

cue

io

the

type

of

convesations from

which

we

mighr

hope

to

eiicic

its

usage.

our

informal

direccion

of

spontaneous

conversation.

then.

can

elicrt

boch

sociological

and

linguistic

data.

There

is obviousiy

no

certain

guarantee for success

in

the

elicitation

oI

free

conversation.

The

observation

of

certain

general

common-SenSe

pnncipies,

horvever.

mav help

us

to

get

a

me.

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

9/14

104

Fietd

tVlethods

in

the

Study of

Sociul

Diulects

ln

this instancs, the

fieldworker

missed

an

opportunity ro discuss un activity

that

was

quite

amiliar

to

r.he

informant.

The informant

was

apparenrly

quite

willing to

discuss

a

favorite

game,

but

the

fieldworker

missed

the

chance'to

elicit a detailed

account

of it.

4.

Questions

should

help

alleviate

the

informant'.t

consciolsness

of

his

own

speech. Although

a

tape-recorded

interview,

by

iE

very

nature,

is

an

artificial

situaion,

our

goal

is

ro

get

speech

as

uatural

as

possible.

This

can

be structured

in

the interview

by

asking

questions

that

will

focus

the

informant's

attention

more

on

what

he

is saying than

on

how he is

saying it.

Direct

questions

about speech, though

valuable

for

sorae

purposes,

ofen

make

a person very

aware

of

how

he is

talking.

Therefore,

if

we

want

to

ask questions about

speech

as

part

o[

the

interview, they

should probabty

be asked after

we

ask

questions

tha will

make

him

forget

about

the

way

he

is talking

and

concentrate

on the

subject

matter.

Certain

types

of

topics

apparently

are

more apt to have

this

eff'ect than

others.

For example,

Labov

has noted tht

when

informants are

asked if

they

have ever been

in a

.situation

in

which

they

thought they

were

going

to

die,

many

informants

will

answer in

the

affirmative.

If

they

are thenlasked

to

describe

the situarion, rhey

will

often

become

so involved

in

convincing

the

interviewer

that

this

was

an

authentic

rather than

an

imagined

experience

that they

will

forget abour

how

they

are talking

in their

efrort

to convince

him. We

cannor

guaranree

the

types

of topics

rhat

wiil

have rhis

sort of

eftect,

but the

infrmant's

emotional

invoivemeut

in a

conversarion

is

a

fairly reliable

indicator tha he is

more

engrossed in his

subjecr marrer rhan

in

his

sryle

of

speaking.

The style of

speech by

the iriterviewer

can also

help direct

the

focus

away

from the

speech

itself.

Interviewers

should

use

a

casual

style in heir own

speech

repertoire. This

does

nor

mean

thar they

should talk exacrl;r

like

he

informant

or

talk

in

a manner

in

which

they

would

not

normally

ialk

-

this

can appear

pretentious

and

insuhing

ro

the

informant.

It

wou.ld

be

pretentious

for a white

middle-class

interviewer to ry

to use

Vernacular

Black

En_eiish

when

intervierving

a black

inforrnanr,

bur

if

he can

narurally

adopt a

nonstandard

variety

of

whire

speech,

ir may heip

in

serring

an

informal atmosphere

for

the interview.

j.

Questions

should

not arouse

susoicions abott

an.v

hidden intent[ons it

inrerviewing.

Even if

w'e

represent

our

purpcjse

lor rnrerviewing in a

straighctbrward

and honest manner,

we

must realiz--

ihat informants

can

easiiy

become suspicious

of

our motives.

It is

somerimes dificuiffor

informants

to

believe

that we

are

simply interested in

speech.

We

have,

on

occasion. besn suspected

of

being everyrhing rrom tapc-recorder

saiesmen

to FBI

agents.

Ir

is,

thercfore,

necessry

to be sensitive

to

these

potenttal

suspicioni

and

not

pursue topics

that

will unnecessarily

arouse

the

infrmants.

This

observation

was lorcefully

brought

home

to

one

of lhe

authors

when he

was interviewing

a

working-class

adult

maie

in

Detroil.

in a

parentheticai.

remark,

the

informant

mentioned

some.

of

the

racial

tensions

that existed

in

the

ciry

at

lhe time.

The

interviewer,

out

of

curiosity,

pursued

the

subject.

The

informant

immediately

became

suspicious.of,

some

underly,ing

motive

for

the interview and

became

very

reticent

about

discussing

anything

at

length

after

that

point'

Thus

the

elicitation

of

extended

conversation

was sacrificed

because

the

interviewer

had

aroused

the

informant's

suspicions

about

the true

purpose

of

the

interview.

To

say

that

we

should

not unnecessarily

arouse

an

informnt's

susplclons

does not

mean that

we

can

only

ask

trivial

questions' As

we

mentioned

previously,

many

interviews

are

used

to

obtain

valuable socioiogical

as

weil

as

linguistic

data.

Our

general

procedure

in

eliciting

this

type

of

intbrm-ation,

however,

is

to structure

it

weil

afcer

we

have

gotten into

the

course

o

ihe

inrerview.

The initial

questions

are

generally

quite innocuous,

invotving

such

topics

as chilcihood

games,

leisure-time

activity.

movies,

TV,

and

the like.

Foilowing

is a

rough ouliine

of

spontaneous

tntevlewlng

Inat

we

conducted

,n

o*.

,...ot

study o[

the

English

of

second-generarion

Pueto

fucan

males in

East

Harlem-

The

general outline

used

here

was nol

"^*.i"ielv

nninne for this

research

project,

bur

represents

a

modification

of

othei

t-v.pes

of

quesrionnaires that

rvere

used

lor

Labov's

study

of

lhe soclal

straificarion

oi

Engiish in

New

York

City

(1966), Shur,

Wolfrarn'

and

Riley's

study

of

Detroi

speech

(1968),

and

Fasold's

stud-v

of

Vernacular

Atact

Engtisir

in

Washingtn,

DC

(1972).

Specic

items

are

included

for

the

specific

ppulacion, but

a number

of

questions

were simply

adopted

from

oevious

spontaneous

incerview

outiincs.

lValt

lYolrum

and Ralph

lY.

Fuold

t05

A.

Games

and

Letsure

Whar

kinds

oi

games do

."-ou

play

lround

the

(stickball,

games

rvith

bottle caps'

marbles. handball'

erc.)'l

Horv

do

you

olay

these

sames

(rules

for

the

games'

Do

1,cu

tollow

any of

lhe NY

sporis

leels?

\\'ht

Co

y'ou

ihink

of the

\leti

this

1'ear'l

Hoi'r

abour

the

Knrcks

fcr

next

';e3r

(or

Joe

Namath

and

the Jets)'i

wha are

vour

tavorire

TV

programsl

Descrlbe

a r3cent

Drosr3m'

Whac is

yur

favoiite movie

of

aii timel

Whai

haopensl

1if

1*ou.can

eiicrt

movies

rvithout

touble,

lsk

abour

LI:st

Sitie

5r-"'end

an

ooinion

of

how

lile in

Harlem

is

portray-ed

in

this movre

)

neighborhood

filiing

pigeons,

deciding

who

s

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

10/14

r06

Feld

f ethods

in

rhe Study

oJ'Social

Dialcrs

Peer Group

How about

thc

guys you

hang

around

with'?

In

this

group

is

there

one

guy

that everybody

listens

to?

How

come?

What

makes

for

a leader

in

the

group

(tough,

hip

with

girls,

good

sounder,

etc.)?

Do

the

guys iri the

group

sound

on

each

other? How

does

this

work?

What

do

you

sound

on?

Can

it be

true, etc.?

(If

rapport

right,

ge

t some

sounds.)

What makes

a

good

souuder?

Say a

new

kid

moves

into

the tenement.

Any

way

he

can

get

into

your

group?

Who are

some

of

the

guys you're

tight

with? Name

some.

Of

the

guys

you

named,

are

there any Negroes?

Puerto

Ricans

in the

group?

How

about

Whites?

Any

of these

guys

speak

Spanish?

How

about

their

parents?

Aspirations

How

about

when

you're

through

with schooi? Any

idea of

what

you

might

do?

What

does

a

-

do?

If someone

came

up

to

you

and said,

'Here's

all

world,'

wha

would

you

do

with icl

What

is

a successful

man

(if

informant

responds,

unsuccesslul,

good. bad, smart

man)?

Fghttng

and

Accldenrs

'.w*har

kinds

of

things do

fighrs

usually

start

about

on

the

srrsstJ

ny

ruies

for

a

lair

fight?

(How

about

if someone

was

kicking

somebody

or

hitting

them with

a chain

or

lead

pipe, what

would

you

do?)

Ever see

anybody

get

bat

up

real

bad?

Whal happened?

Do

the

kids

around

here still

fight in

gangs?

How

do

these start?

(lf

answer

negatively,

pursue

why

gang

fighis

have stopped.)

Ever

been

in

a hospital.

or

automobile

accidentJ

Describe.

How

about

a siiuation

where you

thoughr,

'Nfan,

this

is ir'

I'm

gonna

die

for,sure

now'?

what

happened'l

iwoifram

et al' I91l:

438:9)

.A,s

wirh all

previous

ques[ionn3ires

,,ve

have

used. the success

oIparticuiar

ropics

in

eiiciring conversation

vanes

considerably

from

iniccneni

to

intbrmanr.

,\nd.

oi

ourse,

the ctuli tntervierv Sornetimcs

strals

consider-

.iclv

frc:.

tht

s::'-tc:ur:C

:opics ci

discusston.

ln

the nnai naivsrs,

success

in indiviciuel

intcriiervs

is largeil,'de';ecent

on

cire

personaiitics

involred.

The

qualities

oi

rapport

and

:mpath-v

may be

discussed

at

length.

but

ultimaeiy

lhe]-

cannoI

be

prosremmei.

Group [ntervievs.

Probabiy

the cioses;

\r'e

c3':1

come

to

setling

comptetq,f.u-'

naturai

speech .in

an

interview

siuatton

is

by

interviewing

groups

ol

peers.

ln

the

group

inrerview,

a

sel of

inlormants

is

tape-recorrl'9,'"

t:iitt:*

tion

wh

each

other.

The

topic

for

discussion

is

generatly

up.

.to ,tne

o;ri,"",,,"irr..

iton

the

fieldworker.

Ir

is expected

rhar

narural

leaders

ii-.

grorp

will direct

lhe

conversation'

so

that

the

fieldworker'

if

he

is

Dresent,

will

ot

have

to

actively

participate

in

the

conversation"

The

'

;;;;;.J

advantage

of

the

group interview

is that

it

is

the

context

most

conducive

to

obtainrng

caluai'spe"ch.

The

constrints

of

rhe

interview

either

from

the

taPe-recording,

tire

artificial

situation'

or

the

presence

of

an outsider

are

most

readily

ut"o*t

in

lhis

setting'

It

s

also

lhe

most

natural setting

for

the eliciiation

of

indigenous

themes.

Certain

types

of

i"JG."""t

vJrbal

activities

(e'g' ritualistic

insults

and

sing:ng

among

Ut".i

inn.r-.iry

males),

in

fact,

can

only

be

obtained

from

a

group

interview

situation.

"'ii.

g.o"p

interview

has

probably been

used

to

its

grearest

advantage

by

Labov

and

his

colleagues

(ises)

inihelr

srudy

of

adolescent

peer

speech

rn

Harlem.

First,

the

fielworkers

conducted

some

exploratory.face-to-face

interviews,

includin-e

some

oi

the

peer

ieaders'

Then

.acquarnt"nt:-,1"t

macle

with

peer

groups

in

various social

outings'

Finally'

group

.sessrons

wereconductedinwhlchmultitrackrecordingsweremade.Vfucho|the

interviewing

was

conducled

by

a

parricipant

observer

who

used

his

[""*r.g.ii

the

indigenous

communiry

ro

elicrr

vrbal

acrivity

sppro'

;"t"",

p..,

lr,,.o.iioos

among

members'

This

procedure

resulted

tn

some

ol

the

most

detatted

"tuc.t""l

and functional data

now

available

on

the

sDeech

of

this

grouP'

"'b;t;;;;tg*rt

"ia

group session

has

arranged

fo

the

detaiis

of

the

interview.

here

is otten

Litie

thar he

has

io

do

in

terrLs

of

parlicipation

tn

rhe

verbai

inreractron,

unless

there

is some

specific

topic

he

wars

discussed

by

the

group.

In

most

cases'

a

natuial

peer

group

will

tollow

its

1w1

,i*.ittuf

procedur.

for

verbal interaction"

Leaders

should

assume

Inelr

natural

roles

in

direcring

the sessron'

In

settrng

up

u

group

inlen"iew,

researches

should

be

ar'vare

of

the

rechnical

piorri.ms

that

can

anse'

Eech

speaket..must

be

reco:g::^::

i

different

track

in

a

sroup

inren'ierv.

A

singie

recording

for

a

grouc iole.rvlew

wiijo|tenresuliindata|hatisunusabletorhecietailedanlvsistharis

necessary

lor

some

types

of so'crolinguisiic

analvsis-

Phonological

1::t]:''

'n

;;;;;;.,.r.

almcst^impossile

to

transcnbe relia'Lv x'hen an entrre

gr0up

is

being

recorded

on one

track'

Furrhermore'

it

can

be

exlremelv

oifficult

to

ii*,iry

-sperkers

on

the

tape

if

jusr

one

tack

is

used'

Even

the

grouo

members

'h-rnsei\.es

m"'ha":

i'nc:rr"'rn

iienrifviag':arious

tpttHl,,]',

must

also

recognize

ihui

somt

soeakers

rviil

clominaie

gfoup

sessions

wnli'

orhers

rviil have

ver_,-

hriie

to

,ui,.iu.

io

the

parr-erns

of

socil

inreracuon

itrui

.*ir,

in

rhe

group.

For some

speakers'

adequate

iinguislic

data

may

no"

be

derived

from

the

eroup

session'

so

that

ihis

will

hve-to

be

compensatec

for

in

iacer

iniividuri

scssions'

tt/alt

ll/olJium

and

Rulph

l{.

Fasold

C.

the

money

in

the

have him

defrne

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

11/14

r08

Feld

t9thos

in

rhe

Study

of

Sociul

Dislects

Although

a well-dcfined

peer

group

givcs

rhe

mosr

authenric

type

ot.

speech,

it

is not

always

necessary

to

have

complete groups.

Group inte-rviews

can

also

be conducted

with

smaller

fricndship

groups

or

even

dyads.

In

some

cases,

thc

selection

of

just

two peer

informants

may

result

in

quite

casuaJ

speech.

The

essential

matter

in all

group

interviews

is

to

involve

the

participating

members

primarily

in

conversation

with

one

another

raher

than

having

individual

responses

to

interviewer

questions.

.

[we omit

valuable,

but

lengthy,

secrions

oo

direct

questioning, repetition,

and

structurai

elicitation

as

further

sources

of

datz.

Edsl

Reading

In

oder to

get

a

range

in

the

continuum

of informal

to

formal

speech,

reading passages

are

sometimes

included

in sociolinguistic

fieldwort.

rnis

represents

a context

in

which

one

is

quite

aware

of

the way

he is talking.

Data from

reading

passages

do

not usually

yield

essential

information in

themselves,

but when

compared

with

other

contexruar

styres

of speech, can

provide

an imporrant

basis

for

stylistic

analysis.

There

are several

diferenr

rypes

of

reading

chat

might

be

included

as

pan

of

an

interview.

one

might

construct

a

reading passage

in which

a number

o[

linguistic

variables

are purposely

included

for

analysis

of

the

realizarions

of

these

variables.-Following

is

a

sample

passage

from

Labov's

work

in

1966,

in

which

he investigated

rhe parameteis

of

five

phonoiogical

variables

in severai-styles

of

speech

in

New

york

city.

The

particutaiphonological

vanables

he

was

r.nalyzing

ere

underlined.

Text

for

concentrating

fve

pho

no

tog ic

a

I

v

ar iab

les

[Underlining

added

ro

indicate

concentrarion

of

the variables.l

.

.

.

We

always

had

chocolate

milk

and coffee

cake

aound

four

o'clock.

Nf

y

ggg

used

to

sive

us

an arvful

lot

oI

trouble

:

he

jumped

ail over

.us

when

he saw

the coffee

cake.

We

called

him

Hunerv

sg-.

We

used

ro

piay

Kick-the-can.

One

mn

is

,IT':

you run

past

him

as

last

as

you

can.

and

you

ki-k

a tin

can

so he

can't

rue u.

Sammv

used to

grab

the

can

and

dash

down

rhe

srre;t

-

;';

chase

him

with

a

baseball

ba,

and

velll,Bad

boyl

Badl

Badl'Bur

he

rvas

roo

ls.

Onl_v

m-v

aunr.

could

cacch

him.

She

ilJ

irim

tlo

tricks,

coo:

she

even

made

him

ask

for

a

giass

of milk,

and

jump

inio

a

paper

bag.

I remember

rvhere

he w.as

run

over,

no

fa

lrom

our

corner.

He

darted

ouc

aboui

lour

fee

before i .ar,

und

he

*eoi

hir hud.

t;

drdn'

have

the

heartio

piay

ball or

caids

all

morning. We

didn,t

know

we

cered

so

much

for him

unril

he

rvas

huri.

(oh)

(r)

Wult

lYolfram

und

Rulph

lV.

Fasold

r09

There's

something strange about

tht

-

how

I

cin remember

everything

he did:

lhis

thing,

thar

thing,

and the

orher

hing.

He

(th)

used i6 carry

three-ne*Tpapers

in

his

mouth ar

thamT

dme.

I

(dh)

suppos

it's thlsame

thing

with

most of

uJ-your

first

dog is like

your

first

girl.

She's

more

trouble than

she's

worth,

but

you

can't

seem to

forget

her.

(Labov

1966:'597)

As

illustrated

in

this

passage,

it is essential

to

have an adequate representa-

tion

of

the

variables

to

allow

foi

their

quantitative

measurement.

As

an

added

incentive such passages

should

deal

with

topics

of

common

interest.

In

addition

to entire

story

passages

like

Labov's,

some

investigators

have

used

isolated

sentences

as

a

basis

for

focusing

on single

items. Levine

and

Crockett

describe

their

use

of

diaenostic

words

in sentences.

First,

each

word

was embedded

in

a

sentence.

Each

sentence

contained

from

one

to

tbur

of the

words

chosen,

with

no rhymes

permitted in

any

sentence.

Further,

each sentence

contained a

blank,

to

be

filled in

by

the

respondents,

This device

was

used

to

distrac

respondents

iiom

their

.

pronunciarion;

the

blanks

were

aiso

the

vehicles

for rhecoliection

of

data

'

on

grammar

(e

.9.,

prelerite-participle

choice,

adjective-adverb choice)

and

on

idioms and choices

of

words (e.g..

sick

to-,

at-. or

in my stomachi Dai

or

bucket.

etc.). The

sentences, themselves

pretcsted,

were

listed

in

an order

which distribuced word-types

throughout

the test inbiument.

(1967:80)

Finailv.

ir

is

possible

to

give

simple

word

lisrs thr focus on

some

of

tfre

ciucial

phonoiogical

realizations of items

when

one

is mosi

aware ot.sp*ch.

Anoher

type-of

word

lis is

the

min.imal

pair

list,

in

which trvo items

are

read

and

che inlormant

then

decides

whether

these

items sound

the same

or

not. In many cases, the

words

are

distinct in

one

dialect

but

poientrally

homophonous in

anoher diaiecc

(i.e.

inerdiaiectai

homophony).

As

illusiation,

w'e

can

consider

the

following list used in

our studi

oi Puerto

fucan

Enslish in

Hariem:

\ll,rtc | tfroronl ,vfdf

rows

run

hut

sold

Doai

sin

raln

west

bel

roSe

rum

hot

soul

vo

te

srng

reign

Wes

ba

eide

shoe

iIIdJJ

deaf

eilow

tirne

sod

cn '

mask

deiih

jellcr

Torn

pln pen

watch was

h

boil

bali

r\ 'ifi* l

i. l9-l:l-li)

8/9/2019 Wolfram y Fasold1

12/14

il0

'ill

,ltthotls

in

the Stuly

ol'

Sociul

Diulacrs

In

the above

minimul

word-pirir

list,

thirc

arc somc

itcms

th:rt

are

homophonous

in

all dialecrs

of English

and

therelbre nondiagnostic.

ltems

like

rows

and

rose

a^d

rain

arld

reign represent

this

category.

These items

are

inctuded in

order

to ensure

tha

the informant

understands

the

task

and

is

responding

accordingly.

There

are

a:lso

some

items

we

wouid expect

to"be

homophonous

in certain

varielies

of

Spanish-influenced

English,

including

bet

arrd bat and

shoe

and

clew- These

items

give

us an

indication

of

rhe

extent

of Spanish

influence

on

English

in formal

style.

There are also

items

we

would

expect

to

be

homophonous

on

the

basis

of

the surrounding

Black

English

dialect, such

as

deaf

and death

and

pin

and pen-

Two

main

aspects

of minimal

word

lists

must be

recorded:

(l) whether the

informant

actually

pronounces

the

items the same

or differently

and

(2) whether

he

says

that

they

sound

alike

or

not. The

first

qualification

gives

us objective

data

while the second

gives

us

an intuitive

judgment

about

the

speaker's

sound

system.

Although

intuitive

reactions

inay appear

to be

quite

important

for

an

analysis

of a

phonologicai

system,

researchers

cannot

always

take

the

informant's

reac[ioos

at flace

value. In

Some

cases

there

may be

stared

differences

even

though

careful

analysis

(inctuding acoustic

analysis)

shows

the

words

to

be

produced

simiiarly,

while in

other

ccses

the

converse

may be

rl.ue.

The

E[citation

of

Subjective

Reacfions

Up

to

this

point,

we

have

discussed

primarily the elicitarion of

objective

spegh

data

ior sociolinguistic

anatysis.

Little

mention

has been

made

of

the

subjective

reactions

of

informants

toward either

their own

or

other

peopie's

speech."Yet

it

is the

percepiion of

dialect differences

and

the.

sociai

evaluation of

these

differences by

participating members

of

the sociery

which is the

real basis

for

the

existence of social

dialects.

A

complete

description

of

social

dialects

should

therefore include

examination

of

the

subjective

reection

to

distinct speech

varieties-

'

There are

several differen

ways

in

which

we

can eiicit

subjectrve

evaiuarions

of speech

differences.

The

most

tradilional

method

is

through

the

use of an

inrerview

questionnaire.

In some

cases. it

ma-v" be

usetli

o

ask

open-ended

questions,

in

which

inlormants

are simply

asked

to

give their

opinions

on

cerain

speech

varielies. Foc example,

in

our

study

of

the

English

spoken

by second-generatlon

Puerto

Ricens in Hariem,

we waned

ro

ascerliin

their oercention

of the

wav

they talked

as

compared

with the

Spct.-li

oi".ie

SurCuniing

bie':f:

c(lm.nrtnti'i.

Intbrmant-:

v

ere

sinrplv

aske'J.

'Do

you

ihink

that Puerto

Rjcan

and black

teenagers

raik alike?

In

what

way-

tio

ihey

ralk

rhe iame or

Jift'erenrlVl'The

intbrm3nr.

w3s

:o lnswer

hts

question,

being

aliOwed

{o

Slate

whatever

feasons he

lelt

rvere

relevant.

Similariy,

Lbov's

study

of

English in

New York City

included

ques pn

designed

to

elicit

how New

Yorkers

ieit about

Nerv

York speech-

Thesc

questions

allowed

the

informant

to

exprcss

his rerction toward

New

York

speech

and e.xplain

why

he felt

the

way he

did.

Alrhough

open-ended

questions

concerning

subjective

reactions

allow

us

to

gather

data

we might

not

anticipate

in

a nondiscursive

questionnaire, it

can

become

difficult

to

taxonomize

and

quantify

results on this

basis. For

this reason,

many

questionnaires

are designed

to

elicit

responses

in

terms

of

predetermined

categories.

In

some

cases,

informants may

be asked

to

inake

a

forced

chotce

between

a

positive and

a

negative

evaluative

response.

A

questionnaire

may

simply

require

a

subject

to

respond Yes or

No

to

a

statement

such

as,

,I

think nonstandard

dialects

are

as

logical

as

standard dialects

of

English.'

Or

we

may

ask

an informant

to

pick

our

what he considers

the

most

sociaily

stigmatized

and

most

prestigious dial