Factors Motivating Variation

The section Factors motivating variation of Chapter 2 of Introducing Sociolinguistics (Meyerhoff 2006) introduces quaternity social factor outs that motivated people how to use language. Meyerhoff provides a rough intro on these factors that would be discussed deeply in latter chapters. The first factor is speakers desire to show how to join in a group and affiliate from others. That means people use language to identify which group they decease to. Meyerhoff uses the Marthas vineyard study to rationalize that vineyarder used different orthoepy to distinguish themselves from summer visitor.The specific linguistic variant is an identification to pick out local group and visitor group. The second factor is speakers desire to be valuable in their group. Meyerhoff explains speaker use specific variant to gussy up their self image in the community, then to establish a tyrannical image in their community. On the other hand, speakers desire to eliminate the prejudicial by avoiding using a variant which their image would be downgraded. These triad factors motivate speakers determine how to use language to achieve a practised identity in the society.Compare to the other three factors, the final one is pore on the interaction between the speaker and group members. Meyerhoff states the speakers desire to seek how in-group members are orienting themselves to those three factors. Communication accommodation theory is introduced to explain this factor in generally. It presents that the speakers depend on audience behaviors to choose the variant. withal that the speakers will use language to test their hypotheses are workable or not. Therefore, variation is a result after these testing.