22.5101, Support: Sociolinguistics: PhD Student, Queen Mary, University of London

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LINGUIST List: Vol-22-5101. Sat Dec 17 2011. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 22.5101, Support: Sociolinguistics: PhD Student, Queen Mary, University of London

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1)
Date: 15-Dec-2011
From: Devyani Sharma [d.sharma at qmul.ac.uk]
Subject: Sociolinguistics: PhD Student, Queen Mary, University of London


-------------------------Message 1 ---------------------------------- 
Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2011 19:02:22
From: Devyani Sharma [d.sharma at qmul.ac.uk]
Subject: Sociolinguistics: PhD Student, Queen Mary, University of London

E-mail this message to a friend:
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 Institution/Organization: Queen Mary, University of London 
Department: Psychology/Linguistics 
Web Address: http://www.sllf.qmul.ac.uk/linguistics/ 

Level: PhD 

Duties: Project Work
 
Specialty Areas: Sociolinguistics 
 

Description:

The aim of this project is to map changing psychological processes and language 
features of multiple generations of British Bangladeshis in East London, along with 
White British Londoners, to determine the causal factors that drive 
intergenerational psychological and linguistic change. The psychological 
component of the project builds on recent work in cultural psychology 
demonstrating significant variation in the psychological processes of Western (e.g. 
British) and non-Western (e.g. Asian) people (Heine & Norenzayan 2006), with 
Westerners showing more analytic cognition and independent social orientation 
than non-Westerners' holistic cognition and interdependence. Yet it is unknown 
how these psychological differences are maintained over time. By studying how 
and why non-Western immigrants to a Western country shift from non-Western to 
Western psychological processes, we can begin to address this question. The 
student will administer various cognitive tests to multiple generations of British 
Bangladeshis and their White British counterparts, building on pilot work conducted 
by Dr Mesoudi (see Mesoudi et al. in prep). The sociolinguistic component of the 
project builds on Dr Sharma's recent work with Punjabi-speaking British Indians in 
West London (Sharma, 2011; Sharma & Sankaran, in press), which has revealed 
gradual inter-generational dialect change that is driven by broader changes in 
demographics and race relations. The student will conduct a similar investigation 
of language use among Bengali-speaking British Bangladeshis in East London to 
ascertain whether language and dialect shift in this community is gradual or abrupt. 
The student will integrate these psychological and sociolinguistic findings and 
theories, to explore the interactions between cognition and language.

The student will receive training in the methods of both cultural psychology and 
sociolinguistics from Dr Mesoudi and Dr Sharma respectively, and will take 
courses run by London Social Science (the Queen Mary/Goldsmiths ESRC 
Doctoral Training Centre), including key quantitative (e.g. statistical analysis) and 
qualitative (e.g. interview techniques) training. Both the Biological and 
Experimental Psychology Group and the Department of Linguistics provide 
postgraduate students with a vibrant and stimulating academic environment 
including regular reading groups and seminars.

Applications are invited from candidates with, or expecting to obtain, at least an 
upper-second class honours degree (or equivalent non-UK degree) in an area 
relevant to the project (e.g. psychology, linguistics). Candidates with suitable 
Masters-level training are particularly welcome to apply, as are international (non-
EU) students. Please direct informal enquiries to either Dr Alex Mesoudi 
(a.mesoudi at qmul.ac.uk) or Dr Devyani Sharma (d.sharma at qmul.ac.uk). 

Application Deadline: 31-Jan-2012 

Web Address for Applications: http://www.qmul.ac.uk/courses/courses.php?course_id=551&dept_id=25&pgc 

Contact Information: 
	Devyani Sharma 
	d.sharma at qmul.ac.uk 
	Phone:+44-207-882-8338  




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