From using our own NS intuitions, I think we all know how valuable they can be, and this can certainly go for untrained NSs as well.
However, I would inject a note of caution here. I'm thinking of an area I've worked in for some years now (apologies to those of you who already know):
Language Analysis for Determination of Origin (LADO), a new branch of applied/forensic linguistics, used by governments in processing asylum seekers who
are applying for refugee status. Applicants are interviewed by government agencies seeking to ascertain whether they speak the language of a group they
say they belong to, as part of testing their claim to come from a certain nation, region or group.
It's very common for this to be done by for=profit companies who employ NSs without academic linguistic training to conduct analysis (repeat, conduct analysis!)
of asylum seeker speech and tell govt. bureaux where they believe they are from. Some companies only work for govts, who obviously may be often happiest to be
given reasons to deny claims. Such NSs are said to work under the supervision of linguists, but in my experience (I've done expert reports on c.50-60 cases in the UK)
the linguists almost never know the language they are supervising untrained analysts for. If this suggests the procedure makes it easy for a very low standard of linguistic
analysis to prevail, that is absolutely correct, and it leads to miscarriages of justice. Its also true that many of these NS analysts often work on varieties which
they are in fact not NSs of at all, but which are only somehow related (eg imagine NS of Newcastle English in UK giving verdict on US African American English,
with possibly critical consequences for life or death of asylum seeker).
Alternative methods include using only highly qualified linguistic experts, who may or may not also make use of NS informants if they are not themselves NSs. This seems
To me clearly better but obviously more expensive and harder to provide in great quantity and on demand, hence the success of for-profit firms. The issues and range of
practices are more complex than I have time to explain here, but certainly do give cause for concern, and opportunity for us as a profession to clarify what we think
the best use of native-speaker competence in such applied areas should be, and what sorts of use are inadequate.
There is some literature on this - see the website of the Language and Asylum Research Group (LARG), http://www.essex.ac.uk/larg/ and http://www.essex.ac.uk/larg/resources/bibliography.aspx.
We are also holding a workshop on this very topic on 26 Nov at U of Essex, part of a series of workshops examining critical issues in LADO, details http://www.essex.ac.uk/larg/about/esrc.aspx
(about to be updated with full programme nxt week). Some list members and people mentioned here are participating (eg Dennis Preston).
Thoughts, references, and interest in participation would be very welcome.
-peter-
for
Diane Eades & Peter L Patrick, Convenors
Language & Asylum Research Group (LARG)
http://www.essex.ac.uk/larg/
Prof. Peter L. Patrick
Dept. of Language & Linguistics
University of Essex
Wivenhoe Park
Colchester CO4 3SQ, U.K.
E: [log in to unmask]
Ph: +44 (0) 1206 87.2088
Fx: +44 (0) 1206 87.2198
w: http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~patrickp
-----Original Message-----
From: Variationist List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Cameron, Richard
Sent: 06 October 2011 19:05
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: native speaker knowledge
Yes, Dennis Preston has done great work on Folk Linguistics. See his site:
http://english.okstate.edu/faculty/fac_pages/preston.htm
- Richard Cameron
On Thu, October 6, 2011 12:51 pm, Moore, John wrote:
> I have a question about something that I've been wondering about for some
> time.
>
> Native speakers of (a variety of) a language often have very clear ideas
> about the nature of other varieties. It seems that this is a potentially
> important source of information on variation and a source that might
> out-pace what can be demonstrated empirically. My question is whether
> there have been attempts to harness this native speaker knowledge in order
> to form a better idea of variation, anecdotal and stereotyping though it
> may be.
>
> A case in point: I recently saw a paper on intonation in Spanish that
> characterized Mexican Spanish, as spoken in Mexico City, as having a
> falling intonation. This was based on a phonetic study. When I
> mentioned this a group of Mexican-American research assistants, they
> rolled their eyes - every Mexican, it seems, has a clear idea of the
> "Chilango" accent, based on a rising intonation - it is the first thing
> anyone does if they want to imitate that variety (and I have heard this
> rising intonation in the speech of Chilangos).
>
> Of course, whenever there is a disconnect between empirical studies and
> popular stereotypes, we might suspect the stereotypes. In this case,
> however, it may be that the phonetic study stumbled a less common part of
> the elephant, and happened to miss an important characteristic.
>
> Any thoughts or literature that might address this?
>
> thanks, John
>
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