A previous article discussed how different groups can be distinguished by different language styles, and how these can change when two people from different groups are in conversation. This has become more relevant in the world today, since there are increased relationships between different countries and it is so easy to travel, meaning that communication between different groups is more so than ever before an area of interest for psychologists, and there have been several interesting areas of research which have enlightened us in this area.
Vitality
With regards to language use internationally, certain languages appear to be used more commonly than others, and some are gradually fading out of use altogether. But what determines which languages survive on this larger scale? The belief of psychologists is that this is related to the Vitality variable. Vitality describes the social and economic status of the groups who use a particular language and this relates to the survival of that group’s language since those groups with lower vitality are the ones whose languages tend to fade from use. 100 years ago, there were likely many more styles of language use in the UK, but as the UK became more of a singular entity, many people started to use the Queen’s English, because this was representative of a higher social and economic group. This relates to the gradual decline in regional languages such as Cornish.
While it is possible to measure vitality of groups in quite a standard way, this is of little value, because more importantly it is how people view their own group’s vitality that is important. The actual position of the group is in many ways irrelevant. What matters is whether those within the group perceive it to be successful and worthwhile remaining within the group. On top of this, whether it is possible to move to another group is important, since if it is not, the language will likely still remain popular within that particular group alone.
Bilingualism
It may be hard to believe for some people, particularly in the UK, but across the worst, most countries are bilingual, using two or more languages in everyday life. In Belgium for example, all people have to have some fluency in both French and Dutch, since half the country uses each language as their mother tongue. While for many in the UK learning a language may become a hobby, for some people it can be necessary for even the most basic of tasks. Children who move to a new country at a young age ready to start a new life will have to learn a whole new language in order to even keep up with their school work. Failing to acquire mastery of a language to the same level as a local speaker has been found to cause extreme stress in immigrants and this makes the topic one very important for psychologists to research. It is probably for this reason that the best way to learn a language is to move to, or at least spend a substantial amount of time in, a country that speaks the language since, this will give a learner the motivation to learn the language as they cannot get by without it. Identifying with the native culture of the language also aides learning. Alternatively, when one identifies strongly with their own group and feels that their own ethnic group has a high vitality or status, they will feel less inclined to master another language, since they feel like getting by is the main purpose of language learning, as opposed to becoming part of another in-group. This can be seen with British tourists who are more likely to learn just key phrases when travelling to another country, as opposed to trying to gain true proficiency.
This has been just a brief look into some of the areas that are of interest to psychologists studying language on an international scale, but as we start to think more globally across all aspects of our life, no doubt there will be many other behavioural changes that psychologists will want to study further. What will be interesting to see over the next decade or so is the effect of the internet on improved global communication and how this moulds our use of language.
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