Problems and Possibilities in Sociophonetics: A Research Training Day

Date: 16 March 2011
Venue: University of Sheffield, UK
Contact: [log in to unmask]
Website: https://sites.google.com/site/sociophonetics2011/
Registration deadline: 17 February 2011

As sociophonetic research progresses into the twenty-first century, it 
has begun to emerge as a distinct research perspective with its own set 
of research questions and directions. This inevitably brings with it its 
own unique set of challenges and issues, both practical and theoretical 
in nature. One the one hand, the field is undergoing rapid developments 
in the use of innovative statistical modelling and new acoustic 
techniques. On the other hand, researchers are increasingly looking to 
social and critical theory in their attempt to ground descriptive 
linguistic analysis in a sophisticated model of human interaction and 
culture.

This workshop, hosted by the Centre for Linguistic Research at the 
University of Sheffield, provides a space for postgraduates and early 
career researchers to explore and discuss these new and exciting areas 
of sociophonetics and the relevance of recent developments to their own 
research. It will feature:

-- Plenary talks by Professor Gerry Docherty and Dr Jane Stuart-Smith

-- Interactive session: 'Issues in Doing Sociophonetic Research'. This 
session will be a chance to gain advice on specific details, 
methodological issues and theoretical problems arising in your work from 
a sociophonetic audience.

-- Roundtable discussion: 'The Future of Sociophonetics'. In this 
session we hope to draw together ideas emerging from the workshop and 
explore future themes and developments in the field, both from a 
technical and a theoretical point of view.

If you would like to participate please download and complete the 
registration form located at 
https://sites.google.com/site/sociophonetics2011/ and email it to 
[log in to unmask] by 17 February 2011. You will be asked for 
some registration details, as well as a brief summary of your research. 
You will also have the opportunity to offer a contribution to the 
interactive session titled 'Issues in Doing Sociophonetic Research'. 
Example topics for discussion could include questions such as:

-- What is the best microphone for my purposes?
-- How do we best capture the dynamic nature of formant transitions?
-- How do I uncover the indexical properties of a particular variable?
-- How can we statistically model both individual and group variation?

Organising committee:
Sam Kirkham (University of Sheffield)
Claire Nance (University of Glasgow)

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