Fairbrother Lisa

Despite the large number of foreign companies operating in Japan, which employ speakers of many different languages, very little research has been conducted on the actual language practices in multilingual workplaces in Japan. Based on semi-structured and interaction interviews with plurilingual employees of European-owned multinationals, this study will show how interactional practices in such workplaces are 'multiform', including a variety of hybrid, pidginized and deliberately adjusted forms. Furthermore, these multiform practices are not limited to merely linguistic elements but also apply to sociolinguistic and sociocultural practices. However, in contrast with earlier studies that stress that multiform practices are undertaken for the purpose of aiding smooth communication, an analysis of the practices in this study, highlights the influence of the hierarchical power structure of the workplace. Multiform practices are not simply a choice but they may also be imposed on employees lower down in the hierarchy, affecting both the use of their own L1 and other lingua francas.

This article examines how participants in intercultural contact situations in Japan manage deviations relating to language and power in their daily life interactions. Based on the management summaries of eight plurilingual residents of Japan, this study investigates how deviations relating to language and power are noted and evaluated and what adjustment strategies are implemented in such cases. The results suggest that the management of language and power is complex and a number of interests may be in conflict. Deviations relating to power may be evaluated both positively and negatively and a lack of language proficiency can actually be used as a powerful tool. It is argued that speaker identity is a crucial issue that influences how interactional problems will be managed.

Although the stage of evaluation is the central component of language management theory, determining whether a deviation will become a problem or not and hence whether an adjustment should be made or not, it has been given relatively little attention by researchers. This paper, therefore, presents an overview of the evaluation stage of language management based on the findings of past research, focusing on processual features, the type of deviations that are evaluated, the effect of the speaker’s perception of their interlocutor on the evaluation process, the norms that govern whether or how a deviation will be evaluated and individual differences between evaluators. Finally, it will be suggested that different people may evaluate the same type of deviation differently because of their different levels of contact situation proficiency.