Language and occupation Flashcards
Occupational lexis
lexical items that are [art of that occupations semantic field, low frequency
Jargon
special words / expressions used by a profession or group that are difficult for others to understand e.g duress = legal jargon
David Crystal
argues that initialism and acronyms in the workplace are linguistically economic as they get work done efficiently and quickley, enabling workers to complete goals and communicate efficiently, especially useful in high stress times
John Swales
- 2011
- discourse community- group of people who share a set of discourses understood as basic values and assumptions, and ways of communicating about those goals
- having members who: share a set of common public goals, communicate internally, use specialist lexis and discourse, possess a required level of knowlange and skill to be considered elibible to participate in the community
Pros of Jargon/occupational lexis
especially for hospital jargon it can be quick and efficient
it can build a sense of community amongst members of an occupational group
could be more specific to what you mean
perhaps to lighten harsher or more abrupt terms
easy to exclude anyone from understanding it to keep it private
establishes a sense of professionalism
Cons of Jargon/occupational lexis
it does not come naturally to everyone
not appropriate because it can be intimidating and excluding
may be used contensively to confuse you or show a level of dominance to gain power / manipulate people
can be unnecessarily complex, scientific or technical and is unlikely to be understood by the intended audience
Euphemisms may be used to disguise the reality of what is being described
unnecessary elaborate constructions e.g nouns become noun phrases
Hargitt: legal language
- says there is a risk that it wont be understood
- as the world is increasingly globalised, there is an argument that we need to think about developing a global legal language so there is no confusion
- however currently the timing now is not the time to do it
Hargitt: legal language
- says there is a risk that it wont be understood
- as the world is increasingly globalised, there is an argument that we need to think about developing a global legal language so there is no confusion
- however currently the timing now is not the time to do it
French and Raven
theorised the six bases of power:
I - informational power E - expert power L - legitimate power C - coercive power R - reward power R - referent power
FR: informational power
the power gained by providing info which results in someone acting on this info e.g. advertisers make products seem more desirable, to make people feel it is something they need
FR: expert power
the power gained when you are more knowledgable and someone else requires this knowledge e.g. doctors
FR: legitimate power
power that belongs to a role, given to people like royalty, police etc
FR: coercive power
- when your power has the capacity to inflict consequence as a result e.e. teachers, government
FR: reward power
power that gives people what they want e.g. you work to earn money
FRL referent power
power people hold when other wish to be like them e.g. actors, footballers - based on perceived attractiveness and right to respect
