Doctoral Dissertation Research: Hippo Family Club Language Learners in Japan and the USA

本论文的研究目的是通过研究国际语言学习团体河马家庭俱乐部在日本和美国的多语言实践和成员的意识形态，扩大社会语言学对语言和全球化的理解。河马家庭俱乐部是一个以“任何人都会说七种语言”为座右铭的国际组织。它的成员，主要是在种族、经济和语言上占多数的成员，将自己描述为多语言学习者的跨国“家庭”的一部分。本研究结合日本和美国的参与性观察和对成员话语实践的密切分析，以描述他们的单语和多语意识形态。本研究主要采用两种方法：参与式观察和话语分析。研究人员作为河马家庭俱乐部的成员参与，在实地笔记中记录观察结果，然后对其进行定性分析，以描述和解释俱乐部的做法。河马家庭俱乐部的会议也将被录像，个别成员将接受采访，介绍他们在俱乐部的经历。该项目旨在完善和扩展对主体间性策略的理解（Bucholtz and Hall 2004）。主体间性策略将个体视为自身身份地位的代理人，同时也将其视为超出其控制范围的社会结构的主体。个人通过表演和习惯的实践来主张自己的社会地位，但这些主张需要他人的验证。本研究考察了跨国集团成员可能从未见过面的这些做法。日本和美国都被刻板地视为单一语言的民族国家，尽管这两个地区都存在相当大的语言多样性。然而，与此同时，每个国家的中产阶级科目都重视使用多种语言。本研究探讨社友如何调和看似矛盾的单语与多语价值观。

The goal of this dissertation research project is to expand sociolinguistic understandings of language and globalization by studying the multilingual practices and ideologies of members of Hippo Family Club, an international language-study group, in Japan and the United States. Hippo Family Club is an international organization dedicated to the motto "Anyone can speak seven languages." Its affiliates, primarily ethnic, economic, and linguistic majority members, describe themselves as part of a transnational "family" of multilingual learners. This study combines participant observation in Japan and the US with close analysis of members' discourse practices in order to describe their ideologies of monolingualism and multilingualism.The study utilizes two primary methods: participant observation, and close analysis of discourse. The researcher participates as a member of Hippo Family Club, recording observations in field notes, which are then qualitatively analyzed to describe and explain club practices. Hippo Family Club meetings will also be video-recorded, and individual members will be interviewed regarding their experiences with the club. The project aims to refine and expand understanding of the tactics of intersubjectivity (Bucholtz and Hall 2004). The tactics of intersubjectivity view individuals both as agent of their own identity positions, and as subject to social structures beyond their control. Individuals claim a social position through performance and habitual practice, but these claims are subject to authentication by others. This study examines these practices in a transnational group whose members may never meet one another in person.Both Japan and the United States are stereotypically viewed as monolingual nation-states, despite the presence of considerable linguistic diversity in each area. At the same time, however, middle class subjects in each country value multilingualism. This study examines how club members reconcile seemingly contradictory values on monolingualism and multilingualism.