To be(long) or not to be(long):social identification in organizational contexts

In the past few years, ideas of Social Identity Theory and Self-Categorization Theory have been successfully applied to the organizational domain. In this article, the authors provide an overview of these recent developments and present a concept of social identification in organizational contexts, based on these theories. The assumptions of this framework are that (a) social identification in organizational contexts is a multifaceted concept consisting of different dimensions and foci (or targets), (b) higher levels of identification are related to higher productivity and more positive work-related attitudes, and (c) identification is a very flexible concept that is linked to the situational context. The authors present the results of a series of field and laboratory studies in which the proposed relationships are analyzed and, in the main, confirmed. Copyright © 2006 Heldref Publications.

A sensory-linguistic approach to normal and impaired reading development

In this chapter we outline a sensory-linguistic approach to the, study of reading skill development. We call this a sensory-linguistic approach because the focus of interest is on the relationship between basic sensory processing skills and the ability to extract efficiently the orthographic and phonological information available in text during reading. Our review discusses how basic sensory processing deficits are associated with developmental dyslexia, and how these impairments may degrade word-decoding skills. We then review studies that demonstrate a more direct relationship between sensitivity to particular types of auditory and visual stimuli and the normal development of literacy skills. Specifically, we suggest that the phonological and orthographic skills engaged while reading are constrained by the ability to detect and discriminate dynamic stimuli in the auditory and visual systems respectively.

Communication in investigative and legal contexts:integrated approaches from forensic psychology, linguistics and law enforcement

Communication in Forensic Contexts provides in-depth coverage of the complex area of communication in forensic situations. Drawing on expertise from forensic psychology, linguistics and law enforcement worldwide, the text bridges the gap between these fields in a definitive guide to best practice. • Offers best practice for understanding and improving communication in forensic contexts, including interviewing of victims, witnesses and suspects, discourse in courtrooms, and discourse via interpreters • Bridges the knowledge gaps between forensic psychology, forensic linguistics and law enforcement, with chapters written by teams bringing together expertise from each field • Published in collaboration with the International Investigative Interviewing Research Group, dedicated to furthering evidence-based practice and practice-based research amongst researchers and practitioners • International, cross-disciplinary team includes contributors from North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, and from psychology, linguistics and forensic practice

Interviewing adult witnesses and victims

In this chapter, we discuss the interviewing of adult witnesses and victims with reference to how the extant psychological and linguistic literature has contributed to understanding and informing interview practice over the past 20 years and how it continues to support practical and procedural improvements. We have only scratched the surface of this important and complex topic, but throughout this chapter we have directed readers to many in-depth reviews and some of the most contemporary research literature currently available in this domain. We have introduced the PEACE model and described the Cognitive Interview procedure and its development. We have also discussed rapport building, question types and communication style, all with reference to witness memory and practical interviewing. Finally, we highlight areas that would benefit from research, for example conducting interviews with interpreters, and how new training initiatives are seeking to improve interview procedures and interviewer practice.

Nouveaux développements de l'imparfait

The uses of the French imperfect have undergone a vast extension throughout the history of the French language. It has become prototypical in contexts such as description where old French used simple past. The prototypical uses have resulted in a large number of stylistic uses: hypothesis, free indirect speech, and the so-called forain, hypocoristique, ludique and narratif. The wide range of uses raises the question of the semantic unity of that form in synchrony as well as in diachrony. Here are gathered for the first time discussions of emergent uses of the imperfect, that are tackled through a variety of approaches (Damourette and Pichon’s, Wilmet’s or Guillaume’s systems, logic semantics or relevance theory). This volume will be of interest for theoreticians interested in linguistic meaning and applied linguists concerned with its organization. Le tiroir de l'imparfait a subi une extension considérable de ses usages à travers l'histoire du français. Il est devenu prototypique dans des contextes comme la description où l'ancienne langue utilisait le passé simple. Ces emplois prototypiques ont donné lieu à un large ensemble d'usages stylistiques. : hypothèse, discours indirect libre, imparfait de politesse, forain, hypocoristique, ludique et narratif. La diversité des usages pose la question de l'unité sémantique de la forme, non seulement en synchronie mais aussi dans les cadres de son évolution diachronique et de son acquisition. Ce problème est appréhendé à travers les analyses de Damourette et Pichon et de Wilmet, par le guillaumisme, la sémantique logique et la pragmatique de la pertinence. Ces cadres permettent d'identifier les paramètres en jeu dans chaque emploi, et les modes de leur application à une problématique sémantique particulièrement délicate. Le présent ouvrage saura donc intéresser autant les théoriciens du sens linguistique que les praticiens concernés par son organisation.

Constructions of active womanhood and new femininities: from a feminist linguistic perspective, is Sex and the City a modernist or a post-modernist TV text?

Sex and the City has been the subject of close scrutiny within feminist scholarship in terms of whether it is considered to be a reactionary or progressive text. While this debate is valuable within a modernist feminist paradigm, it makes less sense from a post-modernist feminist perspective. Alternately using semiotic and feminist post-structuralist methods of textual analysis, this paper shows that Sex and the City can be viewed as reactionary according to a modernist reading, but is altogether more challenging and complex according to a post-modernist reading.

Third Ways and new centres - ideological unity or difference?

This chapter illustrates extratextual and intratextual aspects of ideology as related to translation with a case study, a policy document by Tony Blair and Gerhard Schröder, jointly published in English and German in June 1999. Textual features of the two language versions are compared and linked to the social contexts. Concepts and methods of critical discourse analysis and of descriptive and functionalist approaches to translation are applied for this purpose. In particular, reactions to the German text in Germany are explained with reference to the socio-political and ideological conditions of the text production, which was a case of parallel text production combined with translation. It is illustrated that decisions at the linguistic micro-level have had effects for a political party, reflected for example in the German Social Democratic Party debating its identity due to the textual treatment of ideological keywords. The subtle differences revealed in a comparative analysis of the two texts indicate the text producers' awareness of ideological phenomena in the respective cultures. Both texts thus serve as windows onto ideologies and political power relations in the contemporary world.

Chronic illness in non-heterosexual contexts: an online survey of experiences

In this article we contribute to the expansion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) health psychology beyond the confines of sexual health by examining the experiences of lesbian, gay and bisexual people living with non-HIV related chronic illness. Using a (predominantly) qualitative online survey, the perspectives of 190 LGB people with 52 different chronic illnesses from eight countries were collected. The five most commonly reported physical conditions were arthritis, hypertension, diabetes, asthma and chronic fatigue syndrome. Our analysis focuses on four themes within participants’ written comments: (1) ableism within LGBT communities; (2) isolation from LGBT communities and other LGB people living with chronic illness; (3)heteronormativity within sources of information and support and; (4) homophobia from healthcare professionals. We conclude by suggesting that LGBTQ psychology could usefully draw on critical health psychology principles and frameworks to explore non-heterosexual’s lived experiences of chronic illness, and also that there remains a need for specifically targeted support groups and services for LGB people with chronic illnesses.

Effects of inducer continuity on auditory stream segregation:comparison of physical and perceived continuity in different contexts

The factors influencing the stream segregation of discrete tones and the perceived continuity of discrete tones as continuing through an interrupting masker are well understood as separate phenomena. Two experiments tested whether perceived continuity can influence the build-up of stream segregation by manipulating the perception of continuity during an induction sequence and measuring streaming in a subsequent test sequence comprising three triplets of low and high frequency tones (LHL-…). For experiment 1, a 1.2-s standard induction sequence comprising six 100-ms L-tones strongly promoted segregation, whereas a single extended L-inducer (1.1 s plus 100-ms silence) did not. Segregation was similar to that following the single extended inducer when perceived continuity was evoked by inserting noise bursts between the individual tones. Reported segregation increased when the noise level was reduced such that perceived continuity no longer occurred. Experiment 2 presented a 1.3-s continuous inducer created by bridging the 100-ms silence between an extended L-inducer and the first test-sequence tone. This configuration strongly promoted segregation. Segregation was also increased by filling the silence after the extended inducer with noise, such that it was perceived like a bridging inducer. Like physical continuity, perceived continuity can promote or reduce test-sequence streaming, depending on stimulus context.

A statistical method for the identification and aggregation of regional linguistic variation

This paper introduces a method for the analysis of regional linguistic variation. The method identifies individual and common patterns of spatial clustering in a set of linguistic variables measured over a set of locations based on a combination of three statistical techniques: spatial autocorrelation, factor analysis, and cluster analysis. To demonstrate how to apply this method, it is used to analyze regional variation in the values of 40 continuously measured, high-frequency lexical alternation variables in a 26-million-word corpus of letters to the editor representing 206 cities from across the United States.

The linguistic situation in Kirkuk:a sociolinguistic study

This study is concerned with the linguistic situation in the town of Kirkuk in north eastern Iraq. In this town there are three main ethnic groups: Kurds, Arabs and Turkmana with some very smell minorities such as Chaldeene, Assyrians and Armenians. The languages spoken by these three ethnic groups belong to different language Family groups. In the First cart of the study the historical background of the population, a review of the literature, both of the present linguistic situation in Kirkuk end of relevant sociolinguistics in general, and the theoretical Framework, have been discussed in detail in order to provide background to this study which is mainly concerned with the Following areas: 1. The relationships existing between ethnic background and language usage and language loyalty in Kirkuk. 2. The attitudes of Kirkukiane towards language maintenance and language shift in Kirkuk. 3. Bilingual, multilingual individual communicative competence of Kurds, Arabs and Turkmans in the languages concerned, including the degree to which such a speaker is bilingual or multilingual and the nature of bilingualism or multilingualism in different domains and situations in Kirkuk. To throw light a these areas a situationally-oriented language survey was conducted; the relevant data was collected by randomly distributed questionnaire, by parsonal interview, by personal observation of language use and language attitudes in this town. The data subjected to commuter analysis and the results proved that the were no significant and substantial correlations between the language use, attitudes and competence based on the socio-economic status of respondents in this town, on the other hand, the correlations between the ethnic backgrounds and the language, use, attitudes and competence are indisoutable.

A linguistic and semantic approach to the theory and practice of literary translation

This work explores the relevance of semantic and linguistic description to translation, theory and practice. It is aimed towards a practical model of approach to texts to translate. As literary texts [poetry mainly] are the focus of attention, so are stylistic matters. Note, however, that 'style', and, to some extent, the conclusions of the work, are not limited to so-called literary texts. The study of semantic description reveals that most translation problems do not stem from the cognitive (langue-related), but rather from the contextual (parole-related) aspects of meaning. Thus, any linguistic model that fails to account for the latter is bound to fall short. T.G.G. does, whereas Systemics, concerned with both the 'Iangue' and 'parole' (stylistic and sociolinguistic mainly) aspects of meaning, provides a useful framework of approach to texts to translate. Two essential semantic principles for translation are: that meaning is the property of a language (Firth); and the 'relativity of meaning assignments' (Tymoczko). Both imply that meaning can only be assessed, correctly, in the relevant socio-cultural background. Translation is seen as a restricted creation, and the translator's encroach as a three-dimensional critical one. To encompass the most technical to the most literary text, and account for variations in emphasis in any text, translation theory must be based on typology of function Halliday's ideational, interpersonal and textual, or, Buhler's symbol, signal, symptom, Functions3. Function Coverall and specific] will dictate aims and method, and also provide the critic with criteria to assess translation Faithfulness. Translation can never be reduced to purely objective methods, however. Intuitive procedures intervene, in textual interpretation and analysis, in the choice of equivalents, and in the reception of a translation. Ultimately, translation, theory and practice, may perhaps constitute the touchstone as regards the validity of linguistic and semantic theories.

An applied linguistic analysis of the simplification of narrative texts

Simplification of texts has traditionally been carried out by replacing words and structures with appropriate semantic equivalents in the learner's interlanguage, omitting whichever items prove intractable, and thereby bringing the language of the original within the scope of the learner's transitional linguistic competence. This kind of simplification focuses mainly on the formal features of language. The simplifier can, on the other hand, concentrate on making explicit the propositional content and its presentation in the original in order to bring what is communicated in the original within the scope of the learner's transitional communicative competence. In this case, simplification focuses on the communicative function of the language. Up to now, however, approaches to the problem of simplification have been mainly concerned with the first kind, using the simplifier’s intuition as to what constitutes difficulty for the learner. There appear to be few objective principles underlying this process. The main aim of this study is to investigate the effect of simplification on the communicative aspects of narrative texts, which includes the manner in which narrative units at higher levels of organisation are structured and presented and also the temporal and logical relationships between lower level structures such as sentences/clauses, with the intention of establishing an objective approach to the problem of simplification based on a set of principled procedures which could be used as a guideline in the simplification of material for foreign students at an advanced level.