Committee chair as a jointly constructed identity at Chinese PhD dissertation defences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/eap.40107Keywords:
identity, committee chair, dissertation defences, Chinese contextAbstract
This study aims to investigate how the identity of committee chair is constructed in academic interaction based on data from seven Chinese PhD dissertation defences. The analysis of the data shows that, while the identity of committee chair is mainly constructed by the chairs themselves, it is also constituted by the organisers of the events, PhD candidates, and other committee members in the dissertation defence interaction. Thus, the construction of the committee chair identity is the result of the joint work done by various parties at different moments of the academic event, and the chair identity is an interactional achievement. The complexity of the identity construction reflects the participants’ fulfilment of their own rights and obligations in the academic community of practice and the achievement of specific communicative goals in a given context. It is hoped that this study can shed some light on the understanding of identity construction at PhD dissertation defences in the Chinese context and the investigation into identity construction from an interactional perspective.
References
Achugar, M. (2009). Constructing a bilingual professional identity in a graduate classroom. Journal of Language, Identity, and Education, 8(2–3), 65–87. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348450902848387
Arundale, R. B. (2010). Constituting face in conversation: Face, facework, and interactional achievement. Journal of Pragmatics, 42(8), 2078–2105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2009.12.021
Bucholtz, M. (1999). ‘Why be normal?’: Language and identity practices in a community of nerd girls. Language in Society, 28(2), 203–223. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0047404599002043
Bucholtz, M., & Hall, K. (2005). Identity and interaction: A sociocultural linguistic approach. Discourse Studies, 7(4–5), 585–614. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461445605054407
Camiciottoli, B. C. (2004). Interactive discourse structuring in L2 guest lectures: Some insights from a comparative corpus-based study. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 3(1), 39–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1475-1585(03)00044-4
Camiciottoli, B. C. (2008). Interaction in academic lectures vs. written text materials: The case of questions. Journal of Pragmatics, 40(7), 1216–1231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2007.08.007
Chiang, S. (2009). Personal power and positional power in a power-full ‘I’: A discourse analysis of doctoral dissertation supervision. Discourse & Communication, 3(3), 255–271. https://doi.org/10.1177/1750481309337199
Chen, X. R. (2013). Yuyong shenfen: Dongtai xuanze yu huayu jiangou [Pragmatic identity: Dynamic choice and discursive construction]. Waiyu yanjiu [Foreign Language Research], 4, 27–32.
Chen, X. R. (2014). Yuyongxue shijiao xia de shenfen yanjiu – Guanjian wenti yu zhuyao lujing [Current research on identity from the pragmatic perspective: Key issues and main approaches]. Xiandai waiyu [Modern Foreign Languages], 37(5), 702–710.
Chen, X. R. (2018). Yuyong shenfen lun: Ruhe yong shenfen huayu zuo shi [Pragmatic identity: How to do things with words of identity]. Beijing: Beijing Normal University Publishing Group.
Chen, X. R., & Li, M. X. (2016). Xueshu yujing xia de shenfen chongtu ji huayu celüe – Jiyu xueshu huiyi zhuchiren huayu de fenxi [Identity conflicts and discourse strategies in academic context: Based on the analysis of moderators’ discourse at academic conferences]. Waiyu yanjiu [Foreign Language Research], 33(2), 16–22.
Cook, H. M. (2006). Japanese politeness as an interactional achievement: Academic consultation sessions in Japanese universities. Multilingua, 25(3), 269–292. https://doi.org/10.1515/multi.2006.016
Culpeper, J., & Haugh, M. (2014). Pragmatics and the English language. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
De Fina, A., Schiffrin, D., & Bamberg, M. (Eds.). (2006). Discourse and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Don, Z. M., & Izadi, A. (2011). Relational connection and separation in Iranian dissertation defences. Journal of Pragmatics, 43(15), 3782–3792. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2011.09.010
Dong, P. R. (2012). Identity and styles in intercultural institutional interactions: A multimodal analysis of supervision sessions between British academics and Chinese students. Beijing: Higher Education Press.
Eckert, P. (1992). Communities of practice: Where language, gender, and power all live. In K. Hall, M. Bucholtz, & B. Monnwomon (Eds.), Locating power: Proceedings of the 1992 Berkeley women and language conference (pp. 89–99). Berkeley: Berkeley Women and Language Group.
Elder, C.-H., & Haugh, M. (2018). The interactional achievement of speaker meaning: Toward a formal account of conversational inference. Intercultural Pragmatics, 15(5), 593–625. https://doi.org/10.1515/ip-2018-0021
Formentelli, M. (2009). Address strategies in a British academic setting. Pragmatics, 19(2), 179–196.
Fortanet, I. (2004). The use of ‘we’ in university lectures: Reference and function. English for Specific Purposes, 23(1), 45–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0889-4906(03)00018-8
Graham, S. L. (2007). Disagreeing to agree: Conflict, (im)politeness and identity in a computer-mediated community. Journal of Pragmatics, 39(4), 752–759. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2006.11.017
Grimshaw, A. D. (1989). Collegial discourse: Professional conversation among peers. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Grimshaw, A. D., Feld, S., & Jenness, D. (1994). The multiple analysis project: Background, history, problems, data. In A. D. Grimshaw & P. J. Burke (Eds.), What’s going on here? Complementary studies of professional talk (pp. 3–57). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Haugh, M. (2007). The discursive challenge to politeness research: An interactional alternative. Journal of Politeness Research, 3(2), 295–317. https://doi.org/10.1515/pr.2007.013
He, Z. R., & Ren, W. (2016). Current address behaviour in China. East Asian Pragmatics, 1(2), 163–180.
Hecht, M. L. (1993). 2002 – A research odyssey: Toward the development of a communication theory of identity. Communication Monographs, 60(1), 76–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637759309376297
Henricson, S., & Nelson, M. (2017). Giving and receiving advice in higher education: Comparing Sweden-Swedish and Finland-Swedish supervision meetings. Journal of Pragmatics,109, 105–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2016.12.013
Hu, G.-W., & Liu, Y.-H. (2018). Three minute thesis presentations as an academic genre: A cross-disciplinary study of genre moves. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 35, 16–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2018.06.004
Konzett, C. (2012). Any questions? Identity construction in academic conference discussions. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781614510246
Li, C.-T., & Ran, Y.-P. (2016). Self-professional identity construction through other-identity deconstruction in Chinese televised debating discourse. Journal of Pragmatics,94, 47–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2016.01.001
Li, N., & Jing, X. P. (2019). Xueshu hudong zhong dabianren de yuyong shenfen goujian [Pragmatic identities constructed by postgraduates in academic interactions]. Zhejiang waiguoyu xueyuan xuebao [Journal of Zhejiang International Studies University], 1, 41–47.
Limberg, H. (2010). The interactional organization of academic talk: Office hour consultations. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.198
Lin, C.-Y. (2010). ‘… that’s actually sort of you know trying to get consultants in …’: Functions and multifunctionality of modifiers in academic lectures. Journal of Pragmatics, 42(5), 1173–1183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2009.10.001
Lin, C.-Y. (2012). Modifiers in BASE and MICASE: A matter of academic cultures or lecturing styles? English for Specific Purposes, 31(2), 117–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2011.08.003
Lin, C.-Y. (2015). Seminars and interactive lectures as a community of knowledge co-construction: The use of modifiers. English for Specific Purposes, 38, 99–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2015.02.002
Lin, C.-Y. (2017). ‘I see absolutely nothing wrong with that in fact I think…’: Functions of modifiers in shaping dynamic relationships in dissertation defenses. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 28, 14–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2017.05.001
Mežek, Š., & Swales, J. (2016). Ph.D. defences and vivas. In K. Hyland & F. Shaw (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of English for academic purposes (pp. 361–376). New York: Routledge.
O’Boyle, A. (2014). ‘You’ and ‘I’ in university seminars and spoken learner discourse. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 16, 40–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2014.08.003
Omoniyi, T., & White, G. (2006). Introduction. In T. Omoniyi & G. White (Eds.), The sociolinguistics of identity (pp. 1–10). New York: Continuum.
Recski, L. (2005). Interpersonal engagement in academic spoken discourse: A functional account of dissertation defenses. English for Specific Purposes, 24(1), 5–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2003.07.001
Reinhardt, J. (2010). Directives in office hour consultations: A corpus-informed investigation of learner and expert usage. English for Specific Purposes, 29(2), 94–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.09.003
Ren, Y. X. (2013a). Xueshu jianyi zhong zhuanjia geren shenfen jiangou de shunyingxing fenxi [Constructing personal identities of experts in Chinese academic advising interaction: An adaptationist account]. Waiyu yu waiyu jiaoxue [Foreign Languages and their Teaching], 6, 6–10.
Ren, Y. X. (2013b). Hanyu xueshu hudong zhong de jianyi huayu xulie tezheng yanjiu [Sequential characteristics of advising acts in Chinese spoken academic interaction]. Jinan xuebao (zhexue shehui kexue ban) [Jinan Journal (Philosophy and Social Sciences)], 35(3), 154–160.
Ren, Y. X. (2014). Constructing identities in academic advising interaction. Tianjin: Nankai University Press.
Ren, Y. X. (2015). Xueshu hudong zhong quanshi guanxi jiangou de yuyong fenxi [Constructing power in academic interaction: A pragmatic account]. Xiandai waiyu [Modern Foreign Languages], 38(2), 147–158.
Ren, Y. X. (2016). Xueshu huihua zhong rencheng daici shenfen jiangou gongneng yanjiu [Constructing identities by using personal pronouns in academic talk]. Waiyu yanjiu [Foreign Languages Research], 33(2), 23–28.
Ren, Y. X. (2018). Jigou quanshi zai xueshu hudong zhong de duochong jiangou – Jiyu han ying yujing xia lunwen dabian weiyuanhui zhuxi de huayu fenxi [Construction of the institutional power in academic talk: Based on the analysis of committee chairs’ discourse at dissertation defences]. Zhejiang waiguoyu xueyuan xuebao [Journal of Zhejiang International Studies University], 6, 14–25.
Simon, B. (2004). Identity in modern society: A social psychological perspective. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
Skyrme, G. (2010). Is this a stupid question? International undergraduate students seeking help from teachers during office hours. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 9(3), 211–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2010.02.012
Spencer-Oatey, H. (2008). Face, (im)politeness and rapport. In H. Spencer-Oatey (Ed.), Culturally speaking: Culture, communication and politeness theory (pp. 11–47). London: Continuum.
Stryker, S. (1987). Identity theory: Developments and extensions. In K. Yardley & T. Honess (Eds.), Self and identity: Psychosocial perspective (pp. 89–103). London: John Wiley.
Sun, Y. M. (2013). Yanjiusheng daoshi zu jiti shenfen de huayu jiangou yanjiu – Yi daoshi zu ‘women’ de shiyong weili [Construction of collective identities in institutional context: The use of ‘we/us’ by the supervision team]. Waiyu yu waiyu jiaoxue [Foreign Languages and their Teaching], 6, 11–15.
Swales, J. (2004). Research genres: Explorations and applications. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Tracy, K. (1997). Colloquium: Dilemmas of academic discourse. Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Tracy, K. (2002). Everyday talk: Building and reflecting identities. London: The Guilford Press.
Tracy, K., & Robles, J. S. (2013). Everyday talk: Building and reflecting identities (2nd ed.). London: The Guilford Press.
Van De Mieroop, D. (2007). The complementarity of two identities and two approaches: Quantitative and qualitative analysis of institutional and professional identity. Journal of Pragmatics, 39(6), 1120–1142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2006.01.009
Van De Mieroop, D. (2008). Co-constructing identities in speeches: How the construction of an ‘other’ identity is defining for the ‘self ’ identity and vice versa. Pragmatics, 18(3), 491–509. https://doi.org/10.1075/prag.18.3.07mie
Van De Mieroop, D. (2017). Identity and membership. In A. Barron, Y. Gu, & G. Steen (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of pragmatics (pp. 184–196). New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315668925-16
Vehviläinen, S. (2009). Student-initiated advice in academic supervision. Research on Language and Social Interaction,42(2), 163–190. https://doi.org/10.1080/08351810902864560
Vehviläinen, S. (2012). Question-prefaced advice in feedback sequences of Finnish academic supervisions. In H. Limberg & M. A. Locher (Eds.), Advice in discourse (pp. 31–51). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.221.04veh
Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Yuan, Z. M. (2014). Yuyong shenfen jiangou de dongtai shunyingxing fenxi [A study of dynamic adaptability on pragmatic identity construction]. Waiyu jiaoxue [Foreign Language Education], 35(5), 30–34.
Zimmerman, D. H. (1998). Identity, context and interaction. In C. Antaki & S. Widdicombe (Eds.), Identities in talk (pp. 87–106). London: Sage Publications.
