25.38, Review: Discipline of Linguistics; Sociolinguistics: Schilling (2013)

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LINGUIST List: Vol-25-38. Tue Jan 07 2014. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 25.38, Review: Discipline of Linguistics; Sociolinguistics: Schilling (2013)

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Rajiv Rao, U of Wisconsin Madison
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Mateja Schuck, U of Wisconsin Madison
Anja Wanner, U of Wisconsin Madison
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Date: Tue, 07 Jan 2014 17:08:49
From: Jim Michnowicz [michnowicz at ncsu.edu]
Subject: Sociolinguistic Fieldwork

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Book announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/24/24-2472.html

AUTHOR: Natalie  Schilling-Estes
TITLE: Sociolinguistic Fieldwork
SERIES TITLE: Key Topics in Sociolinguistics
PUBLISHER: Cambridge University Press
YEAR: 2013

REVIEWER: Jim Michnowicz, North Carolina State University

SUMMARY

“Sociolinguistic Fieldwork,” by Natalie Schilling, is the latest volume in the
Cambridge “Key Topics in Sociolinguistics” series. This series, which includes
more than ten titles by leading researchers in the field, covers a range of
theoretical and methodological questions pertaining to sociolinguistics, and
the books are designed as textbooks appropriate for courses on the topic.
According to the author, the main goal of the present volume “is to at last
reveal the “secrets” of sociolinguistic fieldwork” (p. 1), which in the past
have largely been passed down informally from mentor to student, or learned
through trial and error. In order to achieve this goal, Schilling addresses
seven main components of fieldwork across as many chapters. The chapters take
the reader through both the “art” of sociolinguistic research (e.g. the
initial stages of fieldwork design, entering the community, finding subjects,
recognizing the Observer’s Paradox, etc.), as well as the “technical” side of
the field (e.g. how to pick a good recorder/microphone, storing and organizing
data, etc.).

Chapter 1, ‘Introduction,’ provides historical background on field methods,
which have roots in traditional dialectology, as well as anthropological and
ethnographic (qualitative) methods. It closes with an overview of the rest of
the book, including major questions/topics that will be addressed.

Chapter 2, ‘Designing the Study,’ has the stated goal of reducing or
eliminating many of the “if onlys” (p. 17) that beginning researchers later
regret by focusing on how to properly design a study from the very beginning.
This chapter is divided into four main sections. “Selecting the population”
addresses different ways to define a “speech community,” including
non-geographic criteria, such as social networks (Milroy & Milroy 1985) and
communities of practice (Eckert & McConnell-Ginet 1992). “Sampling the
population” includes overviews of random sampling, and quota or judgment
sampling (the most commonly used technique in variationist work). Also
included are examples from research projects that demonstrate the importance
of remaining flexible, given that important social groupings may not be
evident until after the study has begun, and may not always correspond with
traditional sociolinguistic groupings applied a priori. “Stratifying the
sample” makes the important point that a person’s speech is not simply the sum
of the demographic groups to which they belong (p. 46), and addresses the
difficulty of dividing speakers into groups, which is often not as
straightforward as it seems (i.e. gender vs. biological sex, or age groups
based on life stages or major social events as opposed to random groupings
based on biological age). “Investigating language change in real time”
compares the study of change in real and apparent time. Special attention is
given to the difficulty inherent in designing a real time replication of a
previous study and obtaining comparable data (following Trudgill’s (1988)
restudy of Norwich). The chapter also includes less commonly explained
methods, such as a truncated panel study (Trudgill 1988), in which younger
speakers are added to a previous study, but not all groups are re-interviewed.
In my experience, this option is often overlooked in sociolinguistic manuals.

Chapter 3, ‘Data collection methods,’ presents an overview of different ways
to collect sociolinguistic data, including surveys, sociolinguistic
interviews, and participant-observation. Two major themes are found throughout
the discussion. First is the question of authenticity in data collection,
specifically with respect to sociolinguistic interviews. Schilling argues
against the (false) dichotomy of ‘authentic~inauthentic’ speech, specifically
in reference to stylistic variation, noting that “speakers always shape their
speech in some way to fit the situation or suit their purpose” (p. 104).
Second is the importance of using multiple methods to study variation,
following Labov (1972). This chapter is split up into three primary sections.
“Sociolinguistic surveys” includes a discussion of face-to-face vs. long
distance surveys, direct vs. indirect elicitation, rapid and anonymous
surveys, and perception surveys, and reviews the advantages and disadvantages
of each method. “The sociolinguistic interview” outlines the pros and cons of
the traditional sociolinguistic interview, including situating it as a speech
act, which “for many researchers...strikes an ideal balance between
elicitation and observational techniques...” (p. 93). Other areas covered
include: how to structure an interview, different styles of speech elicited by
different questions and topics, and, importantly, a section on criticisms of
the sociolinguistic interview, which is often lacking in books on variationist
methods. Also included are modifications to the traditional interview,
including group interviews and recording spontaneous conversations, with or
without the researcher present. Finally, “Ethnography/Participant observation”
focuses on how to enter the community as a participant-observer, as well as
the different levels of community participation that researchers might
undertake.

Chapter 4, ‘Designing research on style,’ addresses different approaches to
style in the variationist tradition in three sections, from Labov’s (1972)
original conception of style as attention to speech, to Bell’s (1984) Audience
Design model, to Eckert’s (2005) “Third Wave” focus, which maintains that the
“interactional meanings of variant hold primacy over group-associational
meanings...” (p. 157). For each of these approaches, Schilling provides both
theoretical background and methodological considerations, as exemplified in
case studies throughout the chapter. Also included is discussion of the more
recent interest in sociolinguistics on individual speaker variation, with
particular attention paid to the agency displayed by individuals in projecting
their social identities through linguistic means.

Chapter 5, ‘In the field: Finding contacts, finding a place,’ begins with the
caveat that “...the most difficult step in any sociolinguistic study is almost
certainly entering the community for the first time” (p. 177). As in other
chapters, Schilling emphasizes here that detailed planning and organization on
the part of the researcher can go a long way towards avoiding many potential
pitfalls. There are again three main sections in the chapter.  “Initial
contacts” includes advice on how to balance the role of researcher/expert, on
the one hand, and student/learner of community language and culture, on the
other.  Also presented are the pros and cons of entering the community through
official channels vs. a bottom-up approach, as well as the benefits and
obligations that come from being “a friend of a friend.” “Finding
participants” provides a number of methods for meeting speakers in the
community, with a warning not to get stuck in one particular social network
(the “silo effect” Eckert 2000: 77), a danger that can come along with the
“friend of a friend” approach. “The role of the fieldworker” expands on many
of the themes already presented, addressing the researcher’s role both in the
community (i.e. how to emphasize your role as a learner in the community) and
in the interview (i.e. types of questions to ask, how to make the interview a
natural exchange without dominating the conversation, etc.).

Chapter 6, ‘Recording and record-keeping,’ contains some of the most concrete
advice of the book by providing answers to technical questions related to data
collection and management. First, the chapter includes a section on “Recording
equipment and techniques,” which provides clear advice on what to look for
(and avoid) in digital recorders, microphones and data storage media.
Additional information is given on potential problems and solutions when
conducting long distance recordings (via phone or computer chat).
“Record-keeping and data management” stresses the importance of maintaining
meticulous records during fieldwork, and reviews criteria needed in a
comprehensive data base once fieldwork is completed. “Preserving
confidentiality” briefly details what information should never been included
in searchable databases (either by the public or by outside researchers), and
stresses the importance of encryption and other types of security in
maintaining participant anonymity.

Chapter 7, ‘Giving back to the community,’ expands on the idea presented
throughout the text that researchers have an ethical obligation to use the
knowledge gained through sociolinguistic research to have a positive effect on
the communities studied. The idea of giving back to the community, codified in
Labov’s (1982) Principle of Error Correction and Principle of Debt Incurred,
as well as Wolfram’s (1993) Principle of Linguistic Gratuity, is exemplified
with particular cases where sociolinguists have made a difference. Providing
examples of different levels of community involvement on the part of
researchers, the chapter closes with specific examples of how students are
able to make an important contribution to their communities of study,
emphasizing that even small-scale involvement can impact people and
communities in meaningful ways.

EVALUATION

Returning to the stated goal at the beginning of the book of revealing the
“secrets” of sociolinguistic fieldwork, this book is certainly a success, and
can be added to the long list of recent volumes that I wish I had when I was
getting started. Most of us who have been in the field for more than a few
years learned how to “do sociolinguistics” from some combination of our
dissertation director’s advice and trial-and-error, and personally, I have had
more “if only” moments than I care to remember. The concrete advice on all
stages of sociolinguistic fieldwork in this book will go a long way towards
getting beginning sociolinguists up to speed in their own field research.
Specific features of the book that I have found most useful include: 1) an
annotated bibliography with further reading suggestions at the end of every
chapter. Including these readings along with the main text would provide an
instructor with an almost ready-made syllabus for a course on field methods.;
2) the ‘real-world’ examples from the author’s own experience and that of her
students, which contextualize the major points of each chapter. Students in
particular will relate to many of the problems and solutions that previous
generations of learners have experienced. It is also comforting to see that
even expert sociolinguists often make technical mistakes or cultural faux pas,
as outlined in several of the examples.; 3) finally, some of the most helpful
information for researchers already involved in the field is undoubtedly
Chapter 6 on equipment and data management. Ask ten sociolinguists what
recorder or microphone they recommend, and you are likely to get ten different
answers. The general guidelines provided in this book will enable anyone to
choose equipment that will produce high quality recordings, and given that
data management is something that I still struggle with, I very much
appreciated the suggestions given.

I also appreciated the emphasis on ‘balance’ found throughout the book.
Schilling makes it very clear that there is no perfect method of data
elicitation, and that every technique involves giving up something in one area
in exchange for gaining something else (e.g. the discussion on audio quality
vs. interactional quality (pp. 244-245)). Although this balance may seem
obvious, in my experience, many beginning researchers often get wrapped up in
the quest for ever cleaner, ‘laboratory-like’ data, and may actually miss out
on the very relaxed, naturalistic speech that they are seeking in the first
place.

Along those lines, most books that deal with sociolinguistic methods contain a
section called “Minimizing the Observer’s Paradox,” or some such title, which
is a section that is conspicuously missing from this volume. As the author
makes clear, this omission is made on purpose. Schilling certainly addresses
ways to not draw undue attention to the interview context, but at the same
time, considers “whether it is possible or even desirable to seek to remove
researcher effects” (p. 66). In fact, the summary of Chapter 3 is titled
“Combining methods and embracing the Observer’s Paradox” (p. 126), and here,
Schilling makes the case that it may be better to “adopt an
anthropological/ethnographic perspective and attempt to identify and account
for contextual effects, including observer effects, rather than seeking to
abstract them away” (p. 128). This viewpoint, rooted in “Third Wave” methods
and theories of Audience Design (Bell 1984), can have important consequences
for the way we collect and analyze naturalistic data, and in my opinion, is
good advice for students and seasoned researchers alike.

Overall, the book is written in an accessible manner, and provides a nice
balance of theory and practice. Other than a few typos, there are no problems
with the text, and the book layout is easy to follow and navigate. If one were
forced to offer a criticism of the book, it could be noted that the emphasis
is overwhelmingly on variationist, Labovian, and quantitative
sociolinguistics. Field methods that would dominate in other types of
sociolinguistics (focused more on ethnography, interactions in discourse,
etc.) do not receive the same depth of treatment as the traditional Labovian
interview. At the same time, Schilling never pretends to cover all
permutations of sociolinguistic fieldwork, stating from the very beginning
that the focus of the book will be on variationist methods (p. 1). The book
would perhaps be more aptly titled “Variationist Sociolinguistic Fieldwork,”
but this is a minor issue, and a vast majority of interested readers will find
exactly what they are looking for in this volume: concrete, useful, detailed
advice on how to undertake successful sociolinguistic research. I can
recommend this book to both faculty and students without reservation.

REFERENCES
 
Bell, Alan. 1984. Language style as Audience Design. Language in Society 13:
145-204.

Eckert, Penelope. 2000. Linguistic variation as social practice. Malden, MA:
Blackwell.

Eckert, Penelope. 2005. Three waves of variation study: The emergence of
meaning in the study of variation. Manuscript.

Eckert, Penelope and Sally McConnell-Ginet. 1992. Think practically and look
locally: Language and gender as community-based practice. Annual Review of
Anthropology 21: 461-490.

Labov, William. 1972. Some principles of linguistic methodology. Language in
Society 1: 97-120.

Labov, William. 1982. Objectivity and commitment in linguistic science: The
case of the Black English trial in Ann Arbor. Language in Society 11: 165-202.

Milroy, James and Lesley Milroy. 1985. Linguistic change, social network and
speaker innovation. Journal of Linguistics 21: 339-384.

Trudgill, Peter. 1988. Norwich revisited: Recent linguistic change in an
English urban dialect. English World-Wide 9(3): 33-49.

Wolfram, Walt. 1993. Ethical considerations in language awareness programs.
American Association of Applied Linguistics Ethics Symposium. Atlanta, GA.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Jim Michnowicz is Associate Professor of Spanish at North Carolina State
University. His research focuses on Spanish in contact and linguistic
expressions of identity, and includes studies on Yucatan Spanish, Central and
South America, as well as an ongoing research project on Spanish in North
Carolina, based on the Corpus del español de Raleigh-Durham which he directs.








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