A Summary of the Papers Concerning Gender and Language Difference

华中师范大学外国语学院 向荔枝 张艺璇

A Summary of the Papers Concerning Gender and Language Difference

华中师范大学外国语学院 向荔枝 张艺璇

The use of language varies with regard to the gender difference,and many researches have been done on this topic.In this paper,by reading and analyzing more than ten papers on this topic the author gives a summary on the papers concerning the categories,methodology and results.It has been found that the differences for different gender mainly lie in use of language and conversational style and that it is meaningful to know these differences.However,there is still some room for improvement in the future studies.

gender use of language conversational style difference

Ⅰ.Ⅰntroduction

There is a considerable evidence that languages used by men and women are different to some extent.In fact,gender distinctions in linguistic behavior are a branch of sociolinguistics and it is an impact of extra linguistic factors on language use.Within the large body of researches reporting or stating stereotypical and actual differences in the communicational behaviors of men and women,we can find much evidence to prove our common sense about gender-linked language differences.Therefore,a further study on this topic is of great significance.We can not only gain much more knowledge about the precious achievements in the process of analyzing the sample papers,we can also use the knowledge to guide our conversational behaviors.

This essay,by analyzing more than ten papers on this topic,aims at finding out what has been studied,how it was studied and what can be improved in the future study.

Ⅱ.A summary on the papers

Different categories about the topic

The above mentioned papers,although centered on the same general topic,are revolved around different aspects within different kind of people.They fall into four categories.

The first category focuses on gender differences in conversational style.Conversational style is mainly concerned with the behaviors we can sense in conversations.Style may be considered a strategy used in order to reach a certain communicational goal.Words distribution,topic organization,topic shift,and interruptions,short responses and so on are typical examples of style,and they have actually been studied in this paper.In the research to test the empirical validity of four commonly held beliefs which are women speak more,speak faster,leave more sentences unfinished,and operate at a simpler conceptual level than men.also belongs to this category.

The second one centers on gender differences in the use of language itself.The use of language is,to some extent,different from conversational style.When talking about the use of language in a conversation,we usually refer to the use of words,intonations,questions and so on.In those papers,we can find topics on the use of offensive language on TV.use of expletive language in university (Bayard,Donn,2001),use of hedging and tag questions(Xu Weiyang，2011),and so forth.

The third one concentrates on both aspects mentioned above.In effect,most papers are composed of these two aspects.When talking about the fact that women are more emotional than men in conversation(Qian Wei，2010),the author also points out their use of gender-linked words.Since one’s use of certain words,questions etc.Is a reflection of one’s conversational style,we usually mixed the two terms up.Thus,to discuss the two aspects simultaneously is common.

The fourth is mainly concerned to testify the factors that affect the language use in gender.One research examines the effects of sex,chronic gender identity accessibility,and gender identity salience on genderlinked language use.Another researcher mentions many conventional theories and then testifies them by analyzing movies (Yang Na，2008).Also a research attributes this kind of difference to the fact that societies use symbolic means to segregate the sexes conceptually and physically.

Ⅲ.Methodology used in research

Firstly,most researchers got their data from exper-iments.These experiments can be further divided into recording,and tests.In some researches,digital record pen with an Omni directional microphone,Sony Walkman Professional and tape recordings are used to record spontaneous and natural spoken conversation with the permission of the participants.Some other papers’results are from tests.There are many questions related to male and female language features for all the participants to make a distinction

The second method is interviews.After recording,some informal interviews investigating about participants’real intention were still conducted.The interviews helped in fully understanding the discourse and getting rid of some cultural obstacles.

The third one is samples from film and TV.Programs broadcast during prime time(8 to 11 p.m.EST)on the ABC,CBS,FOX,NBC,PAX,UPN,and WB networks in November and December,2001,were videotaped for content analysis.And also another author has taken the film “White Chicks” as a language source.

Pre-existing theories and findings found their way in proving the authors arguments.Many papers,when trying to sort out the factors that affect the differences are on the ground of many famous theories,including the male dominance theory,the sex roles socialization theory,the appropriate registers theory,and cultural differences between men and women and so on.

Ⅳ.Results found in these papers

Results varied in accordance with the different aspects these researches have focused on.

For conversational style studies,one has found that the typical features of conversational style such as words distribution,topic organization,topic shift,and interruptions,short responses of women have great distinctions from men.In general,women when talking to each other use cooperative overlap to a significantly greater extent than men.Women use high-involvement style and are participatory listenership.Another’s results do not support the popular stereotype that women speak more,speak faster,leave more sentences unfinished,and operate at a simpler conceptual level than men.

For the use of language,one study has succeeded in partly replicating Limbrick’s 1991 results in that it is clear that expletive use—including the strongest of expletives—is no longer an exclusively masculine domain,at least for these NZE speakers.Both females and males employ a wide range of expletives for emphasis and solidarity purposes.Another study shows that swearing occurred most often in man-to-man interactions,followed by women-to-men.Men and women tended to use mild curse words more when talking to the opposite sex.Unmarried women more often directed expletives at both men and women;unmarried men cursed more at other men.

As for the factors that may cause this phenomenon,results are more or less the same.Some stated that the findings prove that women’s typical conversational style is due to men’s dominant position that makes them refuse to take responsibility for the smooth conduct of interpersonal relations.Some studies find that the psychological and physical difference,environmental factors,and conventions are accounted for it.What’s more,the gender perceptions can lead people to changing their words such as hedging in conversation,but would not affect the use of tag questions and their topics.Some researchers believe that all these differences we have studied are socially created and therefore may be socially altered.

Ⅴ.Conclusion

By the analysis of these ten papers,we can see great significance of studying this topic.These existing studies have testified some of our hypothesis efficiently and persuasively.The methods used can be taken as example in the future study.By these results,we can get a better understanding of male and female’s speech characteristics,and make use of our own merits and make up for our shortcomings in communication.

However,there is still room for improvement in the future researches.Firstly,new perspectives can be found in the study on this topic.For instance,just as find participants at different ages,they can also be found from different cultural background so as to narrow the scope and have a further and deeper study in it.Secondly,some of the method involved is not that scientific.Take the recording for instance,that the participants themselves chose time to record may affect their normal behaviors.All in all,we need to be creative and critical towards the existing findings so as to achieve more in this area.

[1]Barry,S.Sapolsky and Barbara,K.Kaye.The Use of Offensive Language by Men and Women in Prime Time Television Entertainment[J].Atlantic Journal of Communication,2005(4).

[2]Bayard,Donn;and Krishnayya,Sateesh.Gender,Expletive Use,and Context:Male and Female Expletive Use in Structured and Unstructured Conversation among New Zealand University Students[J].Women and Language,2001.

[3]钱伟.男女两性语言差异比较[C].中国西部科技,2010(09).

[4]许维扬.Women’s Language or Powerless Language：A Study of Couples’Talk[J].海外英语,2011(5).