Approaches To Language and Gender

Approaches To Language and Gender

1. The Deficit Approach

   • Robin Lackoff's Study "Language and a Woman's Place" often viewed women's language as having characteristics of deficiency e.g. specialised language around domestic chores, specific/ precise colour terms, weak expletives, "empty" adjectives, tag questions etc.

2. The Dominance Approach

   • Men's talk is seen as dominant and controlling in mixed sex conversations.
   • Zimmerman and West (1975) are the most quoted on this with their research into interruptions - men interrupt more in conversations than women. They also completed research into parents and their children where they found parents interrupted more.

3. The Difference Approach

   • Men and Women belong to a different sub-culture with different attitudes and preferences for types of talk as a result of cultural pressures.
   • Much of the research for this particular angle focuses on same-sex talk.
   • Jennifer Coates (1998) looks at co-operation, negotiation and support.
   • Jane Pilkington (1992) women are more collaborative in all female talk than men are in all male talk. Women aimed for more positive politeness, whilst men tended to be more complimentary.
   • Koenrad Kuiper (1991) found that men found less of a need to save face and used insults as a way of showing solidarity

4. Miller and Swift - Representation in the Media (1980)

   • Emphasis on physical characteristics and age.
   • Modifiers are used gratuitously to reinforce stereotypes
   • Language is used to describe women's actions implied women behave irrationally and emotionally
   • Sexual innuendo is used extensively.