34.2208, Review: Multilingualism and Gendered Immigrant Identity

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LINGUIST List: Vol-34-2208. Thu Jul 13 2023. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 34.2208, Review: Multilingualism and Gendered Immigrant Identity

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Date: 05-Jun-2023
From: Melissa Hauber-Özer [mhauber at missouri.edu]
Subject: Applied Linguistics, Language Documentation: Ali (2022) 


Book announced at https://linguistlist.org/issues/33.3565

AUTHOR: Farah Ali
TITLE: Multilingualism and Gendered Immigrant Identity
SUBTITLE: Perspectives from Catalonia
SERIES TITLE: Multilingual Matters
PUBLISHER: Multilingual Matters
YEAR: 2022

REVIEWER: Melissa Hauber-Özer

SUMMARY
Multilingualism and Gendered Immigrant Identity: Perspectives from
Catalonia by Farah Ali explores the intersectional, gendered, and
religious identities of first- and second-generation Muslim immigrant
women living in Catalonia, Spain. Based on mixed-methods dissertation
research comprising questionnaire and interview data collected from 34
women in 2017, Ali examines how informants negotiate their
intersectional identities through language use in the multilingual
context of Barcelona. The book closes with implications for
sociolinguistic research and both language and immigrant-targeted
policies.

In the Introduction, Ali begins with an explanation of her
positionality as an insider-outsider in the research setting, a
Spanish-speaking Muslim American woman researching other Muslim women.
Ali then provides context for the research question, “How does
language interact with Muslim, gendered identity in an immigrant
context in which individuals have sociolinguistic structures and norms
that they associate with their (religiously informed) heritage, as
well as structures and norms that may be significantly different in
the receptive society?” (p. 4). Specifically, she touches on the vital
role of language in the acculturation process and an intersectional
view of immigrant identity as multilayered and connected to language
use. Ali also briefly explains the role of host society ideologies and
practices, including racialization and, in the case of her informants,
a gendered form of Islamophobia. The Introduction closes with an
overview of the eight chapters to follow.

The second chapter, “Language Use and Language Policy in Catalonia,”
provides linguistic, historical, and policy background for the study.
This includes a historical view of Catalonia’s transition to democracy
and autonomy following the Franco dictatorship, particularly Catalan
language revitalization efforts and international and domestic
patterns of migration to Catalonia from other parts of Spain. In
addition, Ali explains policies geared toward migrant groups,
maintenance of immigrant languages, and shortcomings of Catalan
language policy and planning. As an important backdrop for the
findings, she asserts that Catalan is associated with whiteness and
higher socioeconomic groups, relegating Spanish “into the role of the
language for foreigners and outsiders” (p. 17), and leading to social
segregation of immigrants.

Chapter 3, “Acculturation and Negotiating Identity,” establishes the
conceptual framework for the study. After presenting identity as
dynamic and socially constructed (Bucholtz & Hall, 2005; Darvin &
Norton, 2014), gendered (Lakoff, 1973), and performative (Butler,
1993), Ali explains the intersectional (Crenshaw, 1989) lens she
employed to understand Muslim women’s gendered immigrant identities
(Menard-Warwick, 2009; Norton, 2000). She contends that the
relationship between gendered and religious identities and language
use and attitudes among Muslim women “is almost entirely unexplored”
(p. 34) and identifies a gap in the literature on language attitudes
among Spanish-Catalan bilinguals. Later in the chapter, Ali outlines
and critiques Schumann’s (1978, 1986) Acculturation Model which
“proposes various factors influencing SLA” (p. 39) based on affective
variables, including culture shock and motivation, and social
variables such as integration strategies and group cohesion. For a
more nuanced understanding of language learning, Ali adopts Norton’s
(2000) construct of investment, which frames identity as socially
constructed and dynamic, and language learning as shaped by
inequitable power relations. She also problematizes how the concept of
integration depicts immigrants as a disruptive presence and how host
society ideologies portray Muslim women.

The fourth chapter comprises a concise but detailed explanation of the
narrative methodology Ali employed to document the informants’
intersectional identities and how they are brokered through language
use and attitudes. She describes the complicated process of recruiting
Muslim women (age 18 and over) in Barcelona and nearby Mataró,
requiring snowball sampling through two existing contacts and a mosque
congregation. The 34 informants ranged in age from 20 to 57, were
first- or second-generation immigrants of North African, West African,
or South Asian origin, and reported varied levels of linguistic
competence in Spanish. Data collection consisted of two phases: a
72-question closed-response questionnaire covering background
information and reported language use and attitudes; and an in-depth
interview eliciting narratives about experiences living in Spain,
language use, linguistic competence, heritage language (HL)
maintenance, gender, and language attitudes. Although the majority of
data collection took place in Spanish, Ali tried to accommodate
informants’ linguistic repertoires by using English or Urdu. Ali notes
without further explanation that she used narrative analysis methods
(citing Park, 2011 and Polkinghorne, 1995) for the interview data and
descriptive rather than inferential statistics to report questionnaire
data due to the relatively small number of participants. She clarifies
that the findings draw primarily on themes identified in the interview
data, namely language use and attitudes, integration experiences, and
informants’ beliefs about how they are perceived by the target
language (TL) community.

The following two chapters report qualitative findings, followed by a
chapter summarizing quantitative survey results. Chapter 5, “Spaniard
on Purpose: Narratives of First-Generation Informants,” examines
first-generation informants’ relationships with the TL community,
particularly their sense of belonging, acculturation experiences, and
the status and instrumental advantages of Spanish, Catalan, and
English, with many perceiving Spanish as more useful than Catalan. Ali
then describes relationships with the HL community, looking at
language use, religious and cultural values and practices, and links
between gendered identity and cultural heritage. Chapter 6, “In Two
Words: Narratives of Second-Generation Informants,” zooms in on
second-generation informants’ relationships with the HL and TL
communities, highlighting their connections to immigrant communities
and HL use, dual identities, generational differences in beliefs and
attitudes. Regarding connections to the TL community and the role of
Catalan, which is primarily used in institutional settings such as
universities, participants reported experiences of accent
stigmatization for non-white Spanish speakers, harassment of those who
wear the hijab, being treated as outsiders, having limited job
options, and observing appropriation of immigrant cultures without
meaningful interaction. Chapter 7, “Catalan, Spanish, and Heritage
Languages: Reported Language Use and Attitudes,” closes the findings
section with a summary of insights regarding language use and
attitudes from the quantitative questionnaire data. In short, Ali
finds that second-generation informants have a stronger preference for
Spanish than the HL in written communication and entertainment and
more positive attitudes toward Catalan than their first-generation
peers but that both generations value HL maintenance. Furthermore, the
questionnaire data indicate that first-generation informants have more
positive attitudes toward Spanish than Catalan while second-generation
informants place equal value on both societal languages.

The final two chapters outline implications of these findings for
research and policy. Chapter 8, “Implications for Sociolinguistic
Research,” summarizes key findings and offers insights regarding the
“significance of better understanding immigrants’ experiences in
acquiring societal bi-/multilingualism as well as the importance of
acknowledging the intersectionality of identity in linguistic
research” (p. 125). Ali emphasizes the “more complex hierarchy” (p.
128) that immigrants must grapple with in a bi-/multilingual society,
especially when the societal languages represent differing status and
conflicting ideologies, as they seem to do in Catalonia. In relation
to intersectional identities, Ali asserts that gendered and religious
identities are performed (Butler, 1993) in “distinct discursive
practices that depended on the gender of their interlocutor” (p. 129),
particularly for first-generation informants. In relation to the TL
community, visibility as Muslim women due to hijab constrains
interactions and opportunities, effectively perpetuating an outsider
identity even for second-generation immigrants. Ali concludes that
sociolinguistics research ought to attend to these intersections in
various second language contexts to better understand how gendered
religious identities are performed and “tightly intertwined with other
aspects of their identities” (p. 130). Then, Chapter 9, “Implications
for Language and Immigrant-Targeted Policies,” connects these findings
to manifestations of ideologies and policies in immigrant language
practices in which Catalan is “associated with exclusivity and
prestige rather than inclusivity… [and] is often inaccessible to
marginalized populations” (p. 139). Ali argues that her findings
indicate a mismatch between language policies and reality in
Catalonia, pointing to incomplete revitalization of Catalan and
undefined roles for Spanish and immigrant languages. Finally, she
highlights a need for adjustments to language in education policies
and curriculum to reduce segregation of immigrant children from TL
peers and changes to migration policies to shift some of the
integration burden to the host community.

EVALUATION
While quite short at 166 pages, Multilingualism and Gendered Immigrant
Identity: Perspectives from Catalonia presents a nuanced view of an
understudied population. The study includes a relevant and
multi-faceted conceptual framework and fills a relatively well-defined
gap in the existing literature as indicated by the limited and dated
research cited on immigrant multilingualism in Catalonia. However, a
broader review of literature on the topic beyond the research setting
would have provided useful context and aided readers in extending
Ali’s insights to other settings.

The methods chapter details recruitment and data collection tools and
procedures appropriately – the full questionnaire and interview
protocol are provided in both Spanish and English in the appendices –
and addresses potential limitations, such as not being able to
accommodate all informant L1s. Although Ali acknowledges the
interpretive nature of interviews as meaning making rather than simply
information gathering, she does not describe her qualitative data
analysis procedures at all, evidently assuming the reader is familiar
with narrative analysis. A brief explanation of analysis procedures
would increase the validity of the findings and enlighten readers
interested in applying a similar design.

The first two findings chapters present an interesting discussion of
themes from the narratives, supported by excerpts presented in the
original languages and then translated into English where applicable.
The summary of questionnaire results helps to triangulate the
interview findings but feels somewhat lackluster after the rich
discussion of first- and second-generation informants’ experiences and
views. It may have been more effective to summarize questionnaire
results first and then move to the in-depth narrative findings.

The implications are well supported by the findings and strongly
linked to the conceptual framework and policy context. One area not
addressed in the implications, however, was gendered differences in
access to language learning opportunities, presumably encompassed in
Ali’s recommendation that policymakers should focus on identifying
equity gaps for child and adult learners. Given evidence on barriers
to language learning for immigrant women in other contexts (e.g.,
Bucken-Knapp et al., 2018; Klenk, 2017), this is a significant factor
to account for in integration experiences.

In sum, Ali displays care and respect for her informants, offers
thought-provoking findings, and identifies important directions for
future research. The book is well written, accessible, and relevant to
contemporary sociolinguistics research. It would be a worthwhile
addition to a syllabus or reading list focused on sociolinguistics,
second language acquisition, immigration, gender studies, or even
public policy.

REFERENCES
Bucholtz, M., & Hall, K. (2005). Identity and interaction: A
sociocultural linguistic approach.
Discourse studies, 7(4-5), 585-614.
Bucken‐Knapp, G., Zainab, F., & Andrea, S. (2019). Talking about
integration: The voices of
Syrian refugees taking part in introduction programmes for integration
into Swedish society. International Migration, 57(2), 221-234.
https://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12440
Butler, J. (1993). Bodies that matter: On the discursive limits of
“sex.” Routledge
Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex:
A black feminist critique
of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist
politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1(8), 138-167.
Darvin, R. & Norton, B. (2014). Social class, identity, and migrant
students. Journal of
Language, Identity, and Education, 13(2), 111-117.
Lakoff, R. (1973). Language and woman's place. Language in Society,
2(1), 45-79.
Klenk, H. (2017). An alternative understanding of education and
empowerment: Local-level
perspectives of refugee social integration in the United Kingdom.
European Education, 49(2/3), 166–183.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10564934.2017.1341290
Menard-Warwick, A. P. J. (2009). Gendered identities and immigrant
language learning.
Multilingual Matters.
Norton, B. (2000). Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity,
and educational change
(1st ed.) Longman/Pearson Education.
Park, M., & Davis, K. A. (2011). Identity and agency among heritage
language learners. In K. A.
Davis (Ed.), Critical qualitative research in second language studies:
Agency and advocacy (pp. 171-207). Information Age Publishing.
Polkinghorne, D. E. (1995). Narrative configuration in qualitative
analysis. International Journal
of Qualitative Studies in Education, 8(1), 5-23.
Schumann, J. H. (1978). The acculturation model for second-language
acquisition. In R. C.
Gingras (Ed.) Second language acquisition and foreign language
teaching (pp. 27-50). Center for Applied Linguistics.
Schumann, J. H. (1986). Research on the acculturation model for second
language acquisition.
Journal of Multilingual & Multicultural Development, 7(5), 379-392.

ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Melissa Hauber-Özer is an Assistant Professor of Qualitative Inquiry
in the University of Missouri’s College of Education and Human
Development. Melissa previously taught adult literacy and English as a
second language in the United States for over 15 years in both
non-formal and university settings. Her research focuses on language
and literacy education in migration contexts and employs critical
participatory methodology to examine issues of equity and access for
linguistically and culturally diverse learners. She teaches
qualitative research methods courses for graduate students and
language teacher education courses.



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