Register in Czech: Designing an MDA-based experimental study
Anna Marklová
Humboldt University, Berlin , Germanyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-3392-1028
Olga Buchmüller
Humboldt University, Berlin , Germanyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0060-6718
Christoph Demian
Humboldt University, Berlin , Germanyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-9127-8731
Roland Meyer
Humboldt University, Berlin , Germanyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2023-0527
Luka Szucsich
Humboldt University, Berlin , Germanyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0264-980X
Abstract
There are no conventionalized ways to investigate the results of multidimensional analysis (MDA) from the perceptual perspective in an experimental setting. An MDA of the Czech corpus Koditex by Cvrček et al. (2020) established eight dimensions of variation based on 122 linguistic features. The first two dimensions, which explain the largest proportion of shared variance, are labeled as 1. dynamic (+)/static (-) and 2. spontaneous (+)/prepared (-). In our study, we investigated if some situational contexts of language use evoke stronger associations with the poles of the two dimensions than others. Furthermore, we aimed to explore the impact of the mode of language use and the properties of the interlocutor on the ratings.
Czech native speakers (n=107) rated various situational contexts on 7-point Likert-like scales representing the MDA-based dimensions. The items were balanced in the formality of the interlocutor’s name (Mr. or Mrs. in connection to surname/first name), the interlocutor´s gender, and the mode of language use (spoken/written). The statistical analysis uncovered a significant effect of the formality of the interlocutor's name and the mode of language use on the ratings. Using first names and spoken mode resulted in ratings closer to the positive poles of the dimensions. The comparison of individual items showed that some situations, mainly those representing the negative poles of the dimensions, are rated more consistently than others. The results of our study offer insight into how native speakers evaluate situations of language use on the scales of preparedness, subjectivity, and interactivity.
Keywords:
register, Czech, language variation, situational contextReferences
Agha, A. 2006. Language and Social Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Crossref)
Biber, D. 1988. Variation across Speech and Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Crossref)
Biber, D. 2009. Dimensions of Register Variation. Cambridge, GBR: Cambridge University Press.
Biber, D. 2019. Text-Linguistic Approaches to Register Variation. Register Studies 1(1):42–75. doi: 10.1075/rs.18007.bib. (Crossref)
Biber, D., and S. Conrad. 2009. Register, Genre, and Style. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (Crossref)
Biber, D., J. Egbert, and D. Keller. 2020. Reconceptualizing Register in a Continuous Situational Space. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory 16(3):581–616. doi: 10.1515/cllt-2018-0086. (Crossref)
Biber, D., J. Egbert, D. Keller, and S. Wizner. 2021a. Chapter 2. Extending Text-Linguistic Studies of Register Variation to a Continuous Situational Space: Case Studies from the Web and Natural Conversation. In E. Seone, and D. Biber (eds.), Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 19–50. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. (Crossref)
Biber, D., Jesse E., Daniel K., and S. Wizner. 2021b. Towards a Taxonomy of Conversational Discourse Types: An Empirical Corpus-Based Analysis. Journal of Pragmatics 171:20–35. doi: 10.1016/j.pragma.2020.09.018. (Crossref)
Biber, D., and M. Hared. 1992. Dimensions of Register Variation in Somali. Language Variation and Change 4(1):41–75. doi: 10.1017/S095439450000065X. (Crossref)
Cvrček, V., Z. Komrsková, D. Lukeš, P. Poukarová, A. Řehořková, and A. J. Zasina. 2021. From Extra- to Intratextual Characteristics: Charting the Space of Variation in Czech through MDA. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory 17(2):351–82. doi: 10.1515/cllt-2018-0020. (Crossref)
Cvrček, V., Z. Laubeová, D. Lukeš, P. Poukarová, A. Řehořková, and A. J. Zasina. 2020. Registry v češtině. Praha: NLN.
Cvrček, V., and P. Vondřička. 2011. SyD – Korpusov Průzkum Variant. Praha: FF UK. URL: http://syd.korpus.cz.
De Beaugrande, R., and W. Dressler. 1981. Introduction to Text Linguistics. London: Longman. (Crossref)
Egbert, J., and M. Gracheva. 2022. Linguistic Variation within Registers: Granularity in Textual Units and Situational Parameters. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory 0(0). doi: 10.1515/cllt-2022-0034. (Crossref)
Goulart, L., B. Gray, S. Staples, A. Black, A. Shelton, D. Biber, J. Egbert, and S. Wizner. 2020. Linguistic Perspectives on Register. Annual Review of Linguistics 6(1):435–55. doi: 10.1146/annurev-linguistics-011718-012644. (Crossref)
Halliday, M. A. K., and R. Hasan. 1976. Cohesion in English. London: Longman.
Hymes, D. 1974. Foundations in Sociolinguistics: An Ethnographic Approach. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
Katinskaya, A., and S. Sharoff. 2015. Applying Multi-Dimensional Analysis to a Russian Webcorpus: Searching for Evidence of Genres. Hissar, Bulgaria.
Kim, Y.-J. 1994. A Corpus-Based Analysis of Register Variation in Korean. In D. Biber, and E. Finegan (eds.), Sociolinguistic Perspectives on Register, 157–81. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (Crossref)
Knappová, M. 2017. Rodné Jméno. In P. Karlík, M. Nekula, and J. Pleskalová (eds.), Nový Encyklopedický Slovník Češtiny. URL: https://www.czechency.org/slovnik/RODNÉ JMÉNO.
Lüdeling, A., A. Alexiadou, A. Adli, K. Donhauser, M. Dreyer, M. Egg, A. H. Feulner, N. Gagarina, W. Hock, S. Jannedy, F. Kammerzell, P. Knoeferle, T. Krause, M. Krifka, S. Kutscher, B. Lütke, T. McFadden, R. Meyer, C. Mooshammer, S. Müller, K. Maquate, M. Norde, U. Sauerland, S. Solt, L. Szucsich, E. Verhoeven, R. Waltereit, A. Wolfsgruber, and L. E. Zeige. 2022. Register: Language Users’ Knowledge of Situational-Functional Variation. doi: 10.18452/24901.
Morand, D. A. 1995. The Role of Behavioral Formality and Informality in the Enactment of Bureaucratic versus Organic Organizations. The Academy of Management Review 20(4):831–72. doi: 10.2307/258958. (Crossref)
Pescuma, V. N., D. Serova, J. Lukassek, A. Sauermann, R. Schäfer, A. Adli, F. Bildhauer, M. Egg, K. Hülk, A. Ito, S. Jannedy, V. Kordoni, M. Kuehnast, S. Kutscher, R. Lange, N. Lehmann, M. Liu, B. Lütke, K. Maquate, C. Mooshammer, V. Mortezapour, S. Müller, M. Norde, E. Pankratz, A. G. Patarroyo, A.-M. Pleşca, C. R. Ronderos, S. Rotter, U. Sauerland, G. Schnelle, B. Schulte, G. Schüppenhauer, B. M. Sell, S. Solt, M. Terada, D. Tsiapou, E. Verhoeven, M. Weirich, H. Wiese, K. Zaruba, L. E. Zeige, A. Lüdeling, and P. Knoeferle. 2023. Situating Language Register across the Ages, Languages, Modalities, and Cultural Aspects: Evidence from Complementary Methods. Frontiers in Psychology 13:964658. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.964658. (Crossref)
Pleskalová, J. 2017. Hypokoristikum. In P. Karlík, M. Nekula, and J. Pleskalová (eds.), Nový Encyklopedický Slovník Češtiny. URL: https://www.czechency.org/slovnik/HYPOKORISTIKUM.
R Core Team. 2022. A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. Vienna, Austria.
Rutter, D. R. 1984. Looking and Seeing: The Role of Visual Communication in Social Interaction. Chichester; New York: Wiley.
Samek, O., and J. Malačka. 2011. KdeJsme.cz | Četnost příjmení nebo jména v České republice. Retrieved December 30, 2022 (https://www.kdejsme.cz/).
Sgall, P., J. Hronek, A. Stich, and J. Horecký. 1992. Variation in Language: Code Switching in Czech as a Challenge for Sociolinguistics. John Benjamins Publishing Company. (Crossref)
Sharoff, S. 2018. Functional Text Dimensions for the Annotation of Web Corpora. Corpora 13(1):65–95. doi: 10.3366/cor.2018.0136. (Crossref)
Szmrecsanyi, B., and A. Engel. 2022. A Variationist Perspective on the Comparative Complexity of Four Registers at the Intersection of Mode and Formality. Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory 0(0). doi: 10.1515/cllt-2022-0031. (Crossref)
Wiese, H. 2020. Language Situations: A Method for Capturing Variation within Speakers´ Repertoires. in Methods of Dialectology, Vol. XVI. Frankfurt a. M.
Zasina, A. J., D. Lukeš, Z. Komrsková, P. Poukarová, and A. Řehořková. 2018. Koditex: Korpus Diverzifikovaných Textů. Praha: Ústav Českého národního korpusu FF UK.
Zehr, J., and F. Schwarz. 2022. PennController for Internet Based Experiments (IBEX). doi: 10.17605/OSF.IO/MD832.
Humboldt University, Berlin https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3392-1028
