In this paper, I consider historical periods, linguistic categories, and social theories in relation to Hindi in order to trace out the character and trajectory of the language. From sixteenth-century courtly contexts, to the adoption of the Devanagari script in the twentieth century by nationalists, Hindi has a polyvalent and yet specific history. I discuss these contexts in which social contact led to linguistic change and in which Hindi acquired many of the lexical, syntactical, and phonological characteristics by which it is recognized today. I conclude with a section that considers the motif of language and power, and I suggest that the production of knowledge and power in language use, offers both the means of distinction and expression or, in another sense, of hierarchy and communitas. A thread that runs throughout the paper is attention to the contexts in which language use enables elaboration and in which elaboration is eschewed in order to attain social unity. Pursuing a descriptive historical-linguistic project, I neither affirm nor deny the politics of such language use, but rather I indicate the ways in which actors and agents use Hindi to help articulate their agency. / text

This dissertation used naturalistically-observed snippets of actual conversations of couples coping with breast cancer to understand how often, with whom, and how couples talk about cancer and other topics, and how these conversations relate to both partners' adjustment to the experience. Fifty-six breast cancer patients undergoing treatment and their spouses wore the Electronically Activated Recorder (EAR) for one weekend and completed adjustment questionnaires at baseline and a two-month follow-up. The first study revealed that couples discussed cancer in fewer than 10% of their conversations, and that these conversations occurred more frequently with each other than with friends and family. Cancer conversations tended to be informational and supportive, and spouses', rather than patients', discussion of cancer tended to be more related to adjustment. The second study analyzed the social language used within couples' cancer-related and other topics of conversation. Specifically, it examined the associations between we-talk (first-person plural pronouns), I-talk (first-person singular pronouns), and you-talk (second-person pronouns) and couples' adjustment. Results revealed that, contrary to prediction, both partners' we-talk was associated with concurrent, rather than future, adjustment. Further, both partners' focus on the spouse, indicated by I-talk and you-talk, was related to better adjustment for spouses. The findings in this dissertation indicate that psychosocial factors influence spouses' adjustment at least as much as patients' adjustment to breast cancer, and that couples without an exclusive focus on the patient may fare better overall.

Thesis advisor: Rebecca Lowenhaupht / Abstract Purpose and Research Questions: To understand central office leadership, it is necessary to examine how language grounds leaders’ actions, and influences their effectiveness among themselves and with stakeholders, including other central office leaders, building principals, teachers, community and students. This study explores the relationship between central office administrators’ language and their support of historically marginalized students. Looking closely at how language shows commonality or disconnect in understanding and action, this study is guided by the following research questions: (1) What language do leaders use to talk about their work with marginalized populations? (2) How does this language influence practice? Methods: This qualitative case study analyzes with the use of discourse analysis the language of central office administrators and their work in support of historically marginalized populations, using semi-structured interviews, and document review to answer the aforementioned research questions. This is one section of a larger research project studying how central office administrators organize their work in support of marginalized populations. Findings: Turnaround districts such as the district in this case study face complex and urgent issues, which seem to influence the language central office administrator’s use. In this study, central office administrators expressed language of frustration to talk about lack of time. Second, central office administrators used language that either recognized or demonstrated implicit bias in what marginalized populations heard or saw. Third, central office administrators relied on expressions of mandated language when they communicated about their work in support of marginalized populations, and lastly, central office administrators used language of care to talk about why they worked in a turnaround district. Significance: Given the importance of communication in district leadership, practitioners should work to establish and integrate consistent language into practice. Researchers will find it a valuable contribution to examine the outcomes of central office administrators’ language use in supporting traditionally marginalized student populations, as research is limited. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

Over the years, the issue of migrants seeking asylum in the United Kingdom has been the subject of increasing media and political attention. The need to provide asylum seekers with culturally sensitive services is widely acknowledged within social work. However, the social work profession continues to draw heavily on outdated views and definitions of racism mainly based on skin colour and biological categorisation. This is in spite of the fact that the late 20th century has witnessed the emergence of “new racism” (Barker, 1981) and xenoracism (Sivanandan, 2001). This thesis uses the concept of xenoracism as a framework for understanding the ever-shifting parameters of exclusionary discourses, and seeks to provide a more in-depth understanding of current social policy for asylum seekers. It achieves this through an analysis of media, governmental and parliamentary discourses on the issues of immigration and asylum. This approach is based on an understanding of how asylum seekers as a social group are constructed and how this process – underpinned by xenoracism – plays a pivotal role in influencing the ways in which social policies relating to asylum seekers are formulated. The study argues that the construction of social policies relating to asylum seekers is inherently racist and as such is in direct conflict with social work’s value system. The study utilises discursive social psychology (Taylor, 2001, Potter and Wetherell, 1987)), as a methodology for understanding the various ways in which asylum seekers are constructed. This strand of discourse analysis is employed to examine the ways in which society talks and writes about asylum seekers, the social cognition that is the basis of the existing discourses, the socio-political and cultural functions of such discourses and their specific roles in the reproduction of social inequalities. The thesis explores the ways in which asylum seekers are constructed in social work professionals’ discourses. The study identifies a number of interpretative repertoires and linguistic resources that are deployed by social work professionals in their attempts to construct asylum seekers as objects of knowledge. The study illustrates that in addition to their professional discourses and repertoires social work professionals also draw on media and parliamentary discourses as discursive resources in their constructions of asylum seekers. These social work professionals’ discourses are shown to be argumentatively organised and oriented to these macro discourses. In this respect, this thesis establishes an understanding of how asylum seekers are constructed by social work professionals as it pays particular attention to the ideological basis of such constructs. The thesis also explores the everyday practices of social work professionals with asylum seeking service users and the specific ways in which these professionals explain and legitimate their practice with asylum seekers. Through paying attention to practitioners’ accounting practices, this study provides an insight into some of the ways in which social work professionals produce accounts of competent social work practice and how this is an integral part of a defensive social work discourse. This thesis highlights the fact that language is one of the central vehicles through which social work takes place. As such, the analysis of social work discourse in its own right as a topic of analysis is a legitimate area of social work research which can lead to an in-depth and enhanced understanding of social work practice. By using discourse analysis as a methodology, this thesis provides a new perspective for understanding not only social work practice with asylum seekers but also some of the concerns regarding the profession’s complicity in racist and oppressive practice.

People of Chinese heritage often face complex challenges because of the conflicting values from China and America, especially on sexuality. Through two thousand years of socialization, Chinese culture grew to endorse conservative sexual values and gender roles. In traditional Chinese culture, women are expected to remain chaste and play submissive roles in marriage. Sexuality is treated as a taboo topic that should not be discussed directly. Asian American youth who endorse less traditional Chinese values experience lower sexual satisfaction, lower confidence in their own abilities, and higher adherence to traditional gender roles. Language has also been found to potentially influence how people engage in sexuality by triggering a mindset of Chinese or English culture background. The current study assessed ethnic identity and acculturation experiences as correlates of sexual and intimate interactions with partners among people with Chinese heritage, and how English and Chinese language are used in relationships. For men, more endorsement of traditional Chinese and mainstream American culture was associated with greater feelings of conflict in their cultural identity. Greater feelings of identity conflict linked to lower ability to effectively and assertively communicate with a partner on sexual topics. Men with higher feelings of identity conflict also reported higher double sexual standard. Women, on the other hand, did not report increased feelings of conflict as they endorsed Chinese and American cultures more strongly. Women's preference for English language was related to their ability to effectively and assertively communicate with partner on sexual topics, whereas men's preference for English language was related to greater communication with partner and lower double sexual standard. Moreover, language fluency was the strongest indicator of language preferences regardless of the contexts or the topics. When making decisions or expressing positive feelings to partner, participants considered a language more effective when they are more fluent in it. However, when expressing negative emotion or discussing sexual topic with partner, people tended to prefer English because English has clearer labels for emotions and sexual terms. In sum, cultural identity, acculturation experiences, and language proficiency all related to Chinese bilinguals' sexual and romantic attitudes and behaviors, although unique patterns emerged for men and women.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1983. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 201-202). Also available in print.

<p>The aim of this study was to investigate how the target language is used in the foreign language classroom and how different teachers combine the target language and the first language in their teaching. The study was conducted in three different Swedish schools at different levels: one at the intermediate level; one at the secondary level; and two at the upper secondary level. The teachers were observed during class and interviewed. In addition to this, the students answered a questionnaire about their own and their teacher's use of the target language.</p><p>The results showed that the teachers used the target language as the most common language in their teaching, although the first language was also used. The intermediate teacher used the first language when she did not have enough language herself, when she explained grammar or went through important information. The secondary teacher used the first language when she explained grammar as well as the upper secondary teacher, who also used the first language when she had important information. The results showed that the teacher's choice of language in the classroom had an impact on the students since more teacher target language use encouraged more student target language use in the classroom, and that it is important to start the lesson in the target language to encourage more target language use by the students. Both the teachers and the students thought that the target language was important during language teaching.</p>

The aim of this study was to investigate how the target language is used in the foreign language classroom and how different teachers combine the target language and the first language in their teaching. The study was conducted in three different Swedish schools at different levels: one at the intermediate level; one at the secondary level; and two at the upper secondary level. The teachers were observed during class and interviewed. In addition to this, the students answered a questionnaire about their own and their teacher's use of the target language. The results showed that the teachers used the target language as the most common language in their teaching, although the first language was also used. The intermediate teacher used the first language when she did not have enough language herself, when she explained grammar or went through important information. The secondary teacher used the first language when she explained grammar as well as the upper secondary teacher, who also used the first language when she had important information. The results showed that the teacher's choice of language in the classroom had an impact on the students since more teacher target language use encouraged more student target language use in the classroom, and that it is important to start the lesson in the target language to encourage more target language use by the students. Both the teachers and the students thought that the target language was important during language teaching.

The presence of Allophone students in French-language secondary schools in Ottawa is gradually increasing. While the politique d’aménagement linguistique (PAL) insists on the use of French within the school, one may begin to wonder which language Allophone students are speaking. French? English? Their native language(s)? This qualitative case study of four multilingual Allophone students explores their language repertoire use in relation to their desired linguistic representation, their linguistic proficiency in French, English, and their native language(s), and their perceptions of language prestige. The results indicate that students spoke a significant amount of English, some French (particularly with their teacher or Francophone classmates), and minimal amounts of their native language. Recommendations are suggested to increase the effectiveness of PAL within a Francophone minority context and to ensure that the policy’s objects are attained.

Inledning: Då språket är en grundläggande faktor i det psykoterapeutiska samtalet är det av intresse att få mer kunskap om dess betydelse. Syftet med studien var att undersöka upplevelsen av det verbala språkets betydelse i det psykoterapeutiska samtalet, detta framkom genom psykoterapeuternas syn på språkutveckling och eget språkanvändande, patienters språkutveckling och språkanvändande och svårigheter i psykoterapi. Metod: Studien använde en kvalitativ metod och intervjuade fem leg. psykoterapeuter med psykodynamisk inriktning. Resultatet visar att psykoterapeu-terna genomgående ser på det verbala språkanvändandet som något som har en rörelse i psykoterapeuternas användande av eget språk, utifrån teorier om patientens språkanvändande. Språkutvecklingen hos patienten anses härröra från både relationen vårdare-barn och i vilken social kontext som barnet vuxit upp. Patienter som innan psykoterapin haft svårigheter i språkanvändandet vilket försvårat deras livssituation, förbättrar sitt språkanvändande efter en fullföljd psykoterapi. Detta i sin tur resulterar i förändrade relationella och sociala färdigheter. Diskussion: Psyko-terapeuternas fokus var riktat mot patientens språkutveckling och språkanvändning och hur detta sedan påverkar hur psykoterapeuten använder sitt språk. Överlag funderade psykoterapeuternas väldigt lite över att sin egna språkutveckling och språkanvändning, kan påverka hur patienten använder språket. Resultatet påvisar således en ovana hos psykoterapeuterna att förstå och reflektera över sin egen del i språkanvändningen. / Introduction: Since language is a basic factor in the psychotherapeutic conversation, it is of interest to learn more about its significance. The purpose of this study was to examine the experience of the verbal significance of language in the psychotherapeu-tic conversation; it emerged through the psychotherapeutic approach to language development and language use, patients' language development and language usage and difficulties in psychotherapy. Method: The study used a qualitative method and interviewed five Leg. Psychotherapists with a psychodynamic orientation. The result shows that psychotherapists consistently look at the verbal language use as something that has a motion in the psychotherapeutic use of language, based on theories about the patient's language usage. Language development in the patient considered to arise from both the caregiver-child relationship and in what social context in which the child has grown up. Patients before psychotherapy had diffi-culties in the use of language, which complicated their lives, improve their language use after completion of psychotherapy. This in turn results in altered relational and social skills. Discussion: Psychotherapists focus was directed towards the patient's language development and language, and how this then affects how the psycho-therapist uses their language. Psychotherapists didn’t think the language development and language use, can affect how the patient uses language. The result demonstrates therefore a habit of psychotherapists to understand and reflect on their own part in language use.