THE USE OF CODE SWITCHING BETWEEN ARABIC AND

ENGLISH LANGUAGES AMONG BILINGUAL JORDANIAN

SPEAKERS IN MALAYSIA

Alaa Qasim Mohammad Al-Hourani

(4110044)

Thesis submitted in fulfilment for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDIES

Faculty of Major Languages Studies

UNIVERSITI SAINS ISLAM MALAYSIA
Nilai

September 2016
i
 ii

AUTHOR DECLARATION
‫ﺑﺴﻢ ﷲ اﻟﺮﺣﻤﻦ اﻟﺮﺣﯿﻢ‬

I hereby declare that the work in this thesis is my own except for quotations and
summaries which have been duly acknowledged.

Date: September 2016 Signature:

Name: Alaa Qasim Al-Hourani

Matric No: 4110044

Address: 17-2-23 Palladium condominium, Jalan gurney 2, 54000 Kuala Lumpur.

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BIODATA OF AUTHOR

Alaa Qasim Al-Hourani is a PhD candidate at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia. He was
born on 23 of March 1985 in Jordan. He was a student at Yarmouk University, Jordan
where he obtained his Bachelor Degree in English Literature in 2009. Thereafter, he
moved to Malaysia and graduated from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) where
he obtained his Masters Degree in English Studies in 2011.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious and the Most Merciful. First of all, I am most
grateful to Allah Almighty with his blessing, this thesis is completed finally. My
grateful thanks and my most heartfelt gratitude are also to my supervisors, DR. Tun
Nur Afizah Zainal Ariff and PROF. Madya Dr. Harison@Hanisa Binti Mohd Sidek for
their kind and constant help, wise guidance, stimulating feedback and encouragement
throughout my research.

I sincerely wish to give my deepest gratitude and special appreciation to my

father, who saw me through my educational journey, for his prayers, unlimited spiritual
support and encouragement, which without his sacrifices this work would be
impossible. Many very special thanks also are due to my brothers (Ahmad, and Ali) and
sisters for their support and motivation. I would like to thank all of them for their
patience, and support.

Finally, this thesis is heartily dedicated to my beloved mother who passed away
before the completion of this work.
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Abstract
Code switching phenomena was investigated in different contexts where English is
spoken as a first language (i.e. inner circle), English is spoken as second language (i.e.
outer circle), and where English is spoken as a foreign language (i.e. expanding circle).
However, very few studies addressed the issue of code switching among Jordanian
speakers in outer circle countries such as Malaysia. Therefore, this study was conducted
to fill the gap in the literature. This research investigates the bilingual Jordanian
speakers’ use of code switching in their daily oral interactions (i.e. formal and informal
communicative events from a sociolinguistic perspective). This research identified the
contexts in which Arabic-English code switching occurs, including the communicative
events in which Arabic-English code switching occurs, described and investigated the
functions of Arabic-English code switching among the bilingual Jordanian speakers in
Selangor, Malaysia from a sociolinguistic perspective, investigated the code switching
patterns and investigated whether the communicative events and the patterns of code
switching influence each other. Following a qualitative research design, data were
collected ethnographically from five Jordanian speakers by employing two tools of
enquiry namely observation and semi-structured interview. Findings revealed that
Jordanian speakers code switch in both formal and informal communicative events.
Furthermore, Jordanian speakers code switch from English to Arabic and vice versa for
several sociolinguistic functions i.e. to bridge the lexical gap, to quote someone's
speech, to further explain a point, to exclude someone out of the conversation, and to
demonstrate capability. In addition, findings revealed that there are two patterns of code
switching that Jordanian speakers employed in their daily oral interactions namely
intra-sentential and inter-sentential switching. However, intra-sentential code switching
is used more frequently than inter-sentential code switching. Finally, the findings of
this research revealed that the communicative events and the patterns of code switching
do not influence each other.
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ABSTRAK

Fenomena penukaran kod (code switching) telah di siasat dalam konteks yang berbeza
dimana Bahasa Inggeris dituturkan sebagai Bahasa pertama (iaitu, golongan dalaman),
Bahasa Inggeris dituturkan sebagai Bahasa kedua (iaitu, golongan luaran), dan di mana
Bahasa Inggeris ditutur sebagai Bahasa asing (iaitu golongan yang membesar). Namun,
sangat sedikit kajian yang menangani isu penukaran kod di kalangan penutur berbangsa
Jordan dalam negara golongan luaran seperti Malaysia. Oleh itu, kajian ini telah
dijalankan untuk mengisi kekurangan dalam literatur. Kajian ini menyiasat penggunaan
penukaran kod oleh penutur dwibahasa berbangsa Jordan di dalam interaksi oral harian
mereka (iaitu, acara-acara komunikasi formal dan tidak formal dari perspektif
sosiolinguistik). Kajian ini mengenalpasti konteks di mana penukaran kod Bahasa
Arab-Bahasa Inggeris berlaku termasuklah acara-acara komunikasi di mana penukaran
kod Bahasa Arab – Bahasa Inggeris berlaku, menggambar dan menyiasat fungsi-fungsi
penukaran kod Bahasa Arab-Bahasa Inggeris di kalangan penutur dwibahasa berbangsa
Jordan di Malaysia dari perspektif sosiolinguistik, menyiasat pola penukaran kod
tersebut dan menyiasat samada acara komunikasi dan pola penukaran kod
mempengaruhi satu sama lain. Berdasarkan rekabentuk kajian kualitatif, data telah
dikumpul secara etnografi daripada lima orang penutur berbangsa Jordan dengan
menggunakan dua kaedah iaitu pemerhatian dan temuramah separa-berstruktur. Hasil
dapatan menunjukkan bahawa penutur berbangsa Jordan menukar kod dalam kedua-
dua acara komunikasi formal dan tidak formal. Juga, penutur berbangsa Jordan
menukar kod dari Bahasa Inggeris ke Bahasa Arab dan sebaliknya bagi beberapa fungsi
sosiolinguistik iaitu, bagi merapatkan ruang ‘lexical’, untuk memetik ucapan seseorang,
untuk menerangkan dengan lebih lanjut sesuatu pandangan, untuk memisahkan
seseorang daripada perbualan, dan untuk menunjukkan kemampuan. Tambahan lagi,
hasil dapatan menunjukkan terdapat dua pola penukaran kod yang digunakan oleh
penutur bangsa Jordan di dalam interaksi oral harian mereka iaitu penukaran kod ‘intra-
sentential’ dan penukaran kod ‘inter-sentential.’ Namun, penukaran kod ‘intra-
sentential’ digunakan dengan lebih kerap berbanding penukaran kod ‘inter-sentential.’
Akhir sekali, hasil dapatan menunjukkan kajian bahawa acara-acara komunikasi dan
pola penukaran kod tidak mempengaruhi antara satu sama lain.
 vii

CONTENTS PAGE
NO.

DECLARATION OF THESIS AND COPY RIGHTS i

AUTHOR DECLARATION ii
BIODATA AUTHOR iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv
ABSTRACT
v
ABSTRAK
vi
CONTENTS
vii
LIST OF TABLES
x
LIST OF FIGURES
xi
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1.0 RESEARCH BACKGROUND 1

1.1 JORDANIAN SPEAKERS IN MALAYSIA 5
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM 6
1.3 RESEARCH PURPOSE 9
1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 9
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 10
1.6 THEORTICAL FRAMEWORK 11
1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 13
1.8 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 15
1.9 DEFINITION OF TERMS 16
CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW

1.0 INTRODUCTION 19
2.1 DEFINITIONS OF CODE SWITCHING 19
2.2 BILINGUALISM 23
2.3 COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS 25
2.4 FUNCTIONS OF CODE SWITCHING 29
2.5 CODE SWITCHING PATTERNS 32
2.5.1 Inter-Sentential Code Switching 33
2.5.2 Intra-Sentential Code Switching 34
2.6 PREVIOUS STUDIES 36
2.7 SUMMARY 40
CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
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2.0 INTRODUCTION 41
3.1 RESEARCH APPROACH 41
3.2 RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS 43
3.2.1Profile of the Participants 46
3.3 TOOLS OF INQUIRY 49
3.3.1 Observation 49
3.3.1.1 Field notes 49
3.3.1.2 Audio recordings 50
3.3.2 Interviews 50
3.4 DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES 52
3.5 DATA ANALYSIS 54
3.5. 1.What are the communicative events in which the Jordanian
55
bilingual speakers code switch?
3.5. 2.How are the sociolinguistic functions of the code switching
57
used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers?
3.5. 3.What are the patterns of code switching used by the bilingual
61
Jordanian speakers?
3.5.4 Do the communicative events and the patterns of code
62
switching influence each other?
3.6 TRUSTWORTHINESS 62
3.6.1Triangulation 63
3.6.2 Member Checking 63
3.6.3 Prolonged Engagement 64
3.6.4 External Audit–Cohen’s Kappa Evaluation 64
3.7 ETHICAL ISSUES 68
3.8 SUMMARY 69
CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONPART 1
4.0 INTRODUCTION 70
4.1 THE COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS IN WHICH THE
70
JORDANIAN BILINGUAL SPEAKERS CODE SWITCH
4.1.1 Jafar 72
4.1.1.1 Formal communicative events 73
4.1.1.2 Informal communicative events 76
4.1.2 Amer 80
4.1.2.1 Formal Communicative Events 80
4.1.2.2 Informal communicative events 84
4.1.3 Ali 90
4.1.3.1 Formal communicative events 91
4.1.3.2 Informal communicative events 94
4.1.4 Mohammad 97
4.1.4.1 Informal communicative events 97
4.1.4.2 Informal communicative event with formal sub-
103
communicative event
4.1.4.3 Formal communicative events 105
4.1.5Ayman 106
4.1.5.1 Formal communicative event 106
4.1.5.2 Informal communicative events 108
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4.2 SUMMARY 112

CHAPTER V: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONSPART 2

5.0 INTRODUCTION 114

5.1 THE FUNCTIONS OF CODE-SWITCHING 114
5.1.1Code Switching to Bridge the Lexical Gap 115
5.1.2 Code Switching to Quote Someone Else 118
5.1.3 Code Switching to Demonstrate Capability 121
5.1.4 Code Switching to Exclude Someone out of the Conversation 123
5.1.5 Code Switching to Express Feelings 126
5.1.6 Code Switching to Further Explain a Point 128
5.1.7 Code Switching to Change Topics 130
5.1.8 Code Switching to Maintain Technical and Religious Terms and
132
Expressions
5.1.8.1 English technical terms 133
5.1.8.2 Islamic expressions in Arabic to demonstrate faith 135
5.2 PATTERNS OF CODE SWITCHING USED IN THE
138
INTERACTIONS
5.2.1 Intra-Sentential Code Switching 139
5.2.2 Inter-Sentential Code Switching 140
5.3 COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS AND PATTERNS OF CODE
142
SWITCHING
5.4 SUMMARY 143
CHAPTER VI: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS

6.0 INTRODUCTION 145

6.1SUMMARYAND DISCUSSION OF MAJOR FINDINGS 146
6.1.1 The Communicative Events in Which English-Arabic/ Arabic-
146
English Code Switching were Clearly Noticeable
6.1.2 The Functions of English-Arabic and Arabic-English Code
147
Switching
6.1.3 The patterns of English-Arabic and Arabic-English code
149
switching
6.1.4 The Relationship between the Communicative Events, and the
150
Patterns of English-Arabic and Arabic-English Code Switching
6.2 IMPLICATIONS OF THE RESEARCH 150
6.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE CURRENT STUDY AND
154
SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
6.4 SUMMARY 156
REFERENCES 157
APPENDIX A: Letter of Consent 173
APPENDIX B: Interview Parameters 174
APPENDIX C: A Sample Of Interaction 175
APPENDIX D: Transcription Notation 186
APPENDIX E: Observation sheets 187
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LIST OF TABLES

Table No. Page

Table 2.1: Code switching functions 30

Table 3.1: Background of the participants 46

Table 3.2: Sample from the Cohen's Kappa document 65

Table 3.3: Calculation Results of Cohen’s Kappa 67

Table 3.4: Interpretation of Kappa. 67

Table 4.1: Observation length and emerging communicative events 71

Table 5.1: Percentage of occurrences of patterns of code switching 139

Table 5.2: The correlation between the communicative events and the 142
patterns of code switching
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LIST OF FIGURES

Figures No. Page

Figure 4.1: Data analysis procedures 72

Figure 5.1:Data analysis procedures 115

 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.0 RESEARCH BACKGROUND

In the past few decades, the world has witnessed significant development and

changes that shape our culture. As a result, many bilingual and multilingual societies

have been created. For example, the increase in population caused by migration in many

parts of the earth has led to massive increases in bilingualism and multilingualism

(Milroy &Muysken 1995; House &Rehbein 2004; Aronin& Singleton 2008). By

observing how people from different communities use several languages in their daily

life, it has become possible to learn how these bilingual or multilingual societies use

language variations in general (House &Rehbein 2004).

From a bilingual or multilingual communication perspective, there are many

modes of interaction that speakers of different languages can employ to interact (Atas,

2012). The first mode of communication is when one of the speakers speaks only the

other language and abandons his native language. The second mode is choosing one

language as lingua Franca (House, 2003) or global language (Cristal, 2003). The third

option is used when speakers of two different languages use their own languages to

speak with each (Zeevaert and ten Thije, 2007). The fourth mode is used when speakers

code switch from one language to another during their conversation. The focus of this

particular study was on code switching.

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Several definitions have been formulated for the phenomenon of the code switching

without any commonality about the terminology (SharafEldin, 2014). Atas (2012)

argued that scholars who study code switching do not agreed on precise and common

terminology that covers all other language contact phenomena and terms such as code

switching, code mixing, or code alternation. For example, Wardhaugh (2010) defined

code switching as the process that occurs when people choose a particular code when

they speak and they may also switch from one code to another or even combine codes

to create a new code. Some earlier definitions of the code switching include, “the

alternate use of two or more languages varieties of a language or even speech event

styles” (Hymes, 1977, p. 103) and the, “alternating use of two languages on the word,

phrase, clause, clause or sentence level” (Valdes-Felles, 1978, p. 6). According to these

definitions, it would seem that the definition of “switching” is stable in the literature

with a general meaning of, "to alter” or “to mix,” whereas, the definition of “code” is

more complex and broad and it can differ according to the viewpoint of the researcher

(Atas, 2012). Although the definition of code switching is unclear, the concept itself is

clear (Iqbal, 2011). In other words, code switching is the process of altering between

the use of two or more languages in the same conversation (Milroy and Muysken,

1995). Most studies on code switching, or at least those involving English, involve

bilingual communities (Riehl, 2005).

The phenomenon of code switching is a natural fact in immigrant groups

particularly for second generation immigrants (Amorim, 2012). As English continues

to spread around the world to become the most influential international language, code

switching is becoming a natural, universal consequence of globalization and

multilingualism (Amorim, 2012). In countries where English is widely used, including

Malaysia where this study was conducted, there is evidence of code switching with
 3

English as one of the language pairs in various sociolinguistic settings such as the

Internet, music, media, advertising, business and everyday conversation (Zakaria,

2011).

Code switching has been studied from both the structural and sociolinguistic

perspectives (Backus, 2010; Bentahila & Davies, 1983; Myers-Scotton, 1993; Poplack,

1981; Redouane, 2005).Those who studied the phenomenon of code switching from a

structural perspective focus on the grammatical aspects of code switching, such as

identifying the syntactic and morphosentactic constraints on code switching (Backus,

2010;Bentahila& Davies, 1983; Myers-Scotton, 1993; Poplack, 1980; Redouane,

2005). While those who studied code switching from the sociolinguistic perspective

focus on the sociolinguistic functions of code switching in context and patterns of code

switching within a data set (Alrowais, 2012; MacSwan, 2000; Milroy and Wei, 1995;

Moyer, 1998; Poplack, 1980; Yamamoto, 2001, Shin, 2010).

Scholars investigated code switching during different formal and informal

communicative events to describe the functions of code switching. For example,

speakers may use code switching as an identity marker (Shin, 2010; Carmen Fought,

2003; Sridher, 1996; Nishimura, 1995; Kroskrity, 1993; Woolard, 1989; Gumperz,

1982), solidarity marker (Hannah Bradby, 2002), for dominance and prestige (Karen

Wong, 2000; Waseem, 2000), preciseness (Hussein, 1999; Bonvillain, 1993), as a

strategy of neutrality (Myers Scotton, 1993), style shifting (Hannah Bradby, 2002),

reiteration, personalization, address specification, interjection and quotation (Gumperz,

1982). More recently, patterns of code switching were investigated by several

researchers to determine what patterns were possible within a given data set (e.g.

Mayers-Scotton, 2002, 2004; Poplack 1980, 2001; MacSwan, 2006). All of these

studies involved a variety of language pairs, social settings, and speaker types.
 4

Although the data sets for bilingual speech share many features, they also have a wide

variation in patterns and the frequency of code switching is different (Bakaeva, 2010).

Some researchers argue that further studies on the phenomenon of code

switching from a sociolinguistic perspective in various contexts are needed to gain a

more clearly defined sociolinguistic explanation of the phenomenon of code switching

(Alenezi, 2010; Alrowais, 2012). Most of the studies found in the literature examined

one single pre-identified communicative event such as an interview, EFL classroom,

group discussion, or online social network (e.g. Chaiwichian, 2007; Peters, 2008;

Puwakarta, 2009; Yamamoto, 2001).

Code switching in Arabic has also been researched (e.g. Warschauer, 2002; Al

Khalil, 2003; Al-Harahsheh, 2004; Al-Tamimi and Gorgis, 2007; Al Khatib and

Sabbah, 2008;Jdetawy, 2011;Elsaadany, 2013; Hussein, 1999). For example,

Warschauer (2002) examined the use of English-Arabic code switching in online

communications between young Egyptian educators. The results of this study showed

that participants switched from English to Arabic to show knowledge, to emphasize a

point, and to reveal their identity. Code-switching by Jordanian speakers has been

researched in different contexts. For example, Al Khatib and Sabbah (2008) examined

the linguistic structure and sociolinguistic functions of Arabic-English code switching

used by a group of Jordanian university students in mobile text messages. In another

study, Elsaadany (2013) investigated code switching between Jordanian speakers in the

United State to determine the functions of code switching used by Jordanians in their

interactions. Additionally, Jdetawy (2011) investigated the functions and patterns of

code switching among Jordanian speakers at a public university in Malaysia. It was

very few studies have addressed the issue of code switching among Jordanian speakers
 5

in a context where bilingual speakers can exercise code switching (USA and Malaysia)

except for those studies conducted by Elsaadany (2013) and Jdetawy (2011).

This study was carried out to address the lack of studies on code switching from

a sociolinguistic perspective, during different communicative events, and among

Jordanian speakers in a context where English is considered to be a second language

(such as Malaysia).In other words, this study was conducted to investigate how

bilingual Jordanian speakers in Malaysia used code switching in their daily oral

interactions including formal and informal communicative events from a sociolinguistic

perspective.

1.1 JORDANIAN SPEAKERS IN MALAYSIA

Foreigners come to Malaysia for several reasons, including making Malaysia

their home, during a transitional stage in their lives, to achieve certain goals such as

obtaining an academic degree, and to conduct business prior to returning home

(Muthusamy, 2009). Malaysia is a multilingual and multiracial country where several

major languages are used to communicate including Bahasa Malaysia, English, Tamil,

Chinese, and Arabic (Ariffin and Husin, 2011). It is common to observe Bahasa

Malaysia-English code switching (MohdShariff, 2004), Chinese-English code

switching (Chen, 2007) and Tamil-English code switching in Malaysia (David, 2006).

It is also common to observe Arabic-English or English-Arabic code switching in

Malaysia since many Malaysians are interested in learning Arabic since this language

is related to their culture as well as their religion (Teh, Embi, Yusoff, &Mahamod,

2009). Due to the influx of Arabic students in Malaysia, it has been observed that
 6

bilingual Jordanian will code switch from Arabic to English and vice versa when

communicating with each other (Al-Hourani &ZainalAriff, 2013).

Jordanians Arabic speakers represent many of the foreigners in Malaysia. In

2016, 450 Jordanian Arabic speakers currently reside in Malaysia according to the

Jordanian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Jordanians come to Malaysia for several

purposes including education and business. The focus of the study was on bilingual

Jordanian speakers in the state of Selangor in Malaysia. The researcher choose this state

since the majority of Jordanian speakers in Malaysia live in Selangor because of its

tertiary educational institutions, multinational companies, and because it is a strategic

place for foreigners to set up businesses. Being one of the most developed states in

Malaysia, Selangor offers many opportunities and has attracted many foreigners

(http://www.tourismselangor.my).

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

While code switching appropriately is vital to ensure effective communication

and in some cases decision making (Alenezi; 2010; Alrowais, (2012; Al-Hourani &

ZainalAriff, 2013), there is a lack of study conducted that addressed the use of Arabic-

English among bilingual Arab speakers, in general, and bilingual Jordanian speakers in

specific. Coming from Jordan, the researcher and the bilingual Jordanians who came to

Malaysia to study, for example, did not undergo any preparatory course to study abroad.

The Jordanian students lack, among others, communication skills which include the art

of code switching in daily conversations, that is, when and how to use code switching

effectively. It can be argued that no such preparatory course is offered due to lack of

awareness in the importance of such course and potential course trainers (if any) may

not know what to include in the course.

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Many researchers have examined the phenomenon of code switching among

Jordanian speakers in different inner circle countries. The inner circle includes countries

where English is the native language such as the United States, Canada, United

Kingdom, and Australia (Kachru, 1992). For example, Elsaadany (2013) investigated

the phenomenon of code switching among Jordanian speakers in United States to

determine the functions of code switching used by Jordanians in their interactions. The

results of this study showed that Jordanian speakers code switched from English to

Arabic and from Arabic to English to enhance communication and to make fun of other

dialects that may not be very popular or refined. Very few studies addressed the issue

of code switching among Jordanian speakers in outer circle countries (where English is

used as a second language) such as Malaysia where there is a large number of

Jordanians and where code switching between English-Arabic and vice versa can be

observed. Not much is known about the phenomenon of the use of code switching with

regards to Jordanian in general, and Jordanians in Malaysia and thus, less information

is documented in the literature on when, why and how the Jordanians code switch in

their daily conversations. Therefore this study was conducted to fill the gap by

identifying the contexts and communicative events in which Arabic-English code

switching occurs, to investigate and describe the functions of Arabic-English code

switching among bilingual Jordanian speakers in Selangor from a sociolinguistic

perspective, to investigate the patterns of code switching, and to determine if the

communicative events and the patterns of code switching influence each other.

Atas (2012) argued that code switching involves several languages and several

code switched utterances that indicate the speaker’s underlying motivations for

switching codes. Accordingly, code-switching has been approached from different

perspectives including linguistic and sociolinguistic. From a linguistic perspective,

 8

researchers often focus on identifying grammatical factors such as morphological and

syntactic constrains (e.g. Backus, 2010; Bentahila& Davies, 1983; Myers-Scotton,

1993; Poplack, 1980; Redouane, 2005). While from sociolinguistic perspective,

researchers go beyond the question of how code switching emerges towards the reasons

behind code switching such as the function and patterns of code switching. Researchers

focus on the discourse features of code-switching such as the functions of code

switching in context (e.g. Alrowais, 2012; MacSwan, 2000; Milroy and Wei, 1995;

Moyer, 1998; Poplack, 1980; Yamamoto, 2001). Alenezi (2010) and Alrowais (2012)

argued that more studies on the functions of code switching from a sociolinguistic

perspective in various contexts should be conducted so as to gain a clearly defined

sociolinguistic explanation of code switching. Thus, this particular study was conducted

to address this need.

Additionally, most of the researchers that examined the code switching among

Jordanian bilingual speakers, had examined the phenomenon of code switching in pre-

identified single communicative event which in turn limited the exploration of the

phenomenon under discussion due to limited data collected in these single

communicative event (e.g. Mustafa, 2011; Bader, 2003;Soliman, 2008; Taweel and

Btoosh, 2012). For example, Mustafa (2011) examined the phenomenon of code

switching in pre-identified communicative events (i.e. SMS texting) among teenagers

in Jordan and the reasons behind switching either to English or Arabic while texting.

For this purpose, this study had contributed to the existing knowledge of Jordanian code

switching research by explore the phenomenon of code switching in different

communicative events. That is, this research examined the code-switching phenomenon

in different formal and informal communicative events in bilingual speakers’ daily

interactions. This in turn had broaden the scope of exploration of the phenomenon of
 9

code switching since several code switching occurrences were spotted and analyzed

different formal and informal communicative events.

It is hoped that the study will help linguists who are interested in studying

Arabic-English bilinguals and the use of Arabic-English code switching to better

understand the use of Arabic-English code switching, and provide some ideas to trainers

who are interested to design and conduct a preparatory course for Jordanians (and Arabs

in general) who will study abroad (especially those who will be studying in Malaysia)

by including a section on how to code switch between Arabic and English in context

where authentic contexts are used as reference and for practice. Learning how to code

switch appropriately would help Arabic-English bilinguals to achieve their

communication ends/goals more effectively especially in contexts where their

communication can be enhanced and communication ends/goals can be achieved

through the use of code switching.

1.3 RESEARCH PURPOSE

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the use of code switching by

bilingual Jordanian speakers in their daily oral interactions during formal and informal

communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective.

1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The study attempted to achieve the following objectives.

1. Identify the contexts in which Arabic-English code switching occurs, including

the communicative events in which Arabic-English code switching occurs.

 10

2. Describe and investigate the functions of Arabic-English code switching among

the bilingual Jordanian speakers in Selangor, Malaysia from a sociolinguistic

perspective.

3. Investigate the code switching patterns.

4. Investigate whether the communicative events and the patterns of code

switching influence each other.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What are the communicative events in which the Jordanian bilingual

speakers code switch?

This question encouraged the researcher to look at the details of each of the

communicative events in which the five bilingual Jordanian speakers were involved

and code switched from English to Arabic or vice versa. To answer this research

question, the researcher observed the Jordanian speakers during some of their daily oral

interactions for the period of six months. The field notes generated from these

observations were recorded on observation sheets (See Appendix E). These observation

sheets used a design based on Hymes (1974) SPEAKING grid (Setting and Scene,

Participants, Ends, Act of Sequence, Key, Instrumentalities, Norms, Genre) to ensure

the observations were systematic and would help the researcher describe the

communicative events in a more effective way. In other words, the communicative

events in these observation sheets were identified based on the analysis of SPEAKING

components as proposed by Hymes (1972). The researcher qualitatively analysed these

observation sheets by searching for recurrent themes using the ‘Bottom Up’ approach

proposed by Creswell (2005). (See Section 3.5.1 in Chapter Three).

 11

2. How are the sociolinguistic functions of the code switching used by the

bilingual Jordanian speakers?

The central theme of this question is to investigate how code switching is used

strategically. To answer this research questions, data was collected from observations

and interviews. From the transcripts of the communicative event interactions generated

from observing the Jordanian bilingual speakers for six months, the researcher had

adopted Gumperz’s (1982) list of code switching functions in order to identify the

functions that Jordanian bilingual speakers had employed in their interactions.

3. What are the patterns of code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian

speakers?

To investigate the patterns of code switching, the researcher observed the

Jordanian bilingual speakers over a period of six months and recorded their

communicative events.

4. Do the communicative events and the patterns of code switching influence

each other?

To answer the fourth and final research question, further analysis was conducted

to determine if there was a relationship between the communicative events and patterns

of code switching.

1.6 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The focus of the study was on investigating the use of code switching by bilingual

Jordanian speakers in their daily oral interactions during formal and informal
 12

communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective. For the purpose of the study,

Hymes’ (1972) SPEAKING grid, Gumperz’s (1982) code switching categories or

semantic theory and Myers-Scotton’s (1993b) were referred to.

The researcher had employed Hymes’(1974) SPEAKING grid as reference to

identify the communicative events in which Jordanian bilingual speakers code

switched. Hymes grid helps a researcher to identify the components that make up a

communicative event and assists the researcher to analyze and make sense of the

communicative event observed (Cameron, 2001; Duranti, 1997)

In order to understand and describe the functions of code switching by the

Jordanian bilinguals, Gumperz's (1982) categories of code switching function or also

known as the semantic theory of conversational code-switching (Auer, 1984) was

referred to. According to Gumperz (1982) code switching is conceptualized as

situational and metaphorical in its function. Situational code switching accommodates

a change in setting, topic or participants and serves to redefine the situation. On the

other hand, metaphorical code switching happens without any change in the social

situation and enables speakers to evoke certain mood or to change their footing or

relative status with other speakers (Blom and Gumperz, 1986). Further elaboration on

the code switching function categories is in Chapter 2.

In order to investigate the patterns of code switching used by the Jordanian

bilingual speakers, Myers-Scotton’s (1993b) code switching patterns theory i.e. inter-

sentential code switching and intra-sentential code switching. Inter-sentential switch

occurs between sentences at the sentences boundaries that highlights a particular point

uttered in the other language. And intra-sentential code switching refers to instances

where lexical items and grammatical features from two languages appear in one

sentence. See Chapter 2 for further discussion.

 13

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study is significant for a number of reasons; firstly, there is no consent

agreement between the previous researchers on whether code-switching phenomenon

is considered as a language deficiency or linguistic talent. For example, Martin-Jones

& Romaine (1986) argued that code switching occurs because the speaker is not

sufficiently proficiency in either language, whereas different scholars argued that code

switching plays an important role in bilingualism and it is not a random phenomenon

but it is a discourse strategy. (e.g. MacSwan, 2000; ZainalAriff, 2012). Therefore, it

was significant to investigate the phenomenon of code switching among Jordanian

bilingual speakers which would help to further strengthen the argument claiming that

CS is a form of competence.

Secondly, most of the studies in the literature investigated the phenomenon of

code switching in pre-identified communicative events such as telephone

conversations, mobile text messages, and interviews (e.g. Abu Mathkour, 2004; Sabbah

and Al-Khatib, 2008; Btoosh and Taweel, 2012). This research was significant in that

it investigated the phenomenon of code switching among Jordanian bilingual speakers

in formal and informal communicative events. This in turn widened the scope of

communicative events and helped further define and describe the functions of code

switching among Jordanian bilingual speakers.

Thirdly, most of the studies on the phenomenon of code switching among

Jordanian bilingual speakers were done in the context where English is spoken as a

foreign language i.e. in Jordan (e.g. Abu Mathkour, 2004; Sabbah and Al-Khatib, 2008;

Btoosh and Taweel, 2012). This in turn limited the chance to record code switching in
 14

different communicative events due to a limited exposure to English in different

contexts. This study was conducted in Malaysia where English is spoken as a second

language thus, it was easy for the researcher to record different code switching

occurrences due to vast exposure to English language with other speakers in different

communicative events. Therefore, this study was significant in investigating whether

the functions of code switching of Jordanian bilingual speakers differ based on the

contexts where English is spoken as a second a language.

Fourthly, from methodological perspective, previous studies that investigated

the use of code switching from a sociolinguistic perspective did not refer to any

particular grid when collecting and analyzing their observation data. On the other hand,

this study had utilized Hymes’ (1978) SPEAKING grid, which was a useful and helpful

tool for conducting a more systematic approach to identifying and describing the

context of code switching and assist in analyzing the function of code switching with

reference to context.

Fifthly, some researchers argue that further studies on the phenomenon of code

switching from a sociolinguistic perspective in various contexts are needed to gain a

more clearly defined sociolinguistic explanation of the phenomenon of code switching

(Alenezi, 2010; Alrowais, 2012). Therefore this study was significant in that it

examined the phenomenon of code switching among Jordanian bilingual speakers from

sociolinguistic perspectives in order to gain a clearly defined sociolinguistic

explanation of code switching phenomenon among bilingual speakers.

Finally, most of the studies in the literature investigated the phenomenon of

code switching among different bilingual and multilingual speakers (e.g. Backus, 2010;

Bentahila& Davies, 1983; Myers-Scotton, 1993; Poplack, 1980; Redouane, 2005;

Alrowais, 2012; MacSwan, 2000; Milroy and Wei, 1995; Moyer, 1998; Poplack, 1980;
 15

Yamamoto, 2001). These studies were conducted in different communicative events to

investigate the functions and patterns of code switching within a data set. The current

study contributed to the study of code switching by further investigating the relationship

between the communicative event and the pattern of code switching among bilingual

Jordanian speakers from a sociolinguistic perspective. That is, apart from identifying

the communicative events in which Jordanian speakers use code switching, the

functions of code switching, and the patterns of code switching, this study investigated

whether the communicative events and the patterns of code switching influence each

other by using the Pearson correlation coefficient test. This test was performed to find

out if there is a positive or negative correlation between the two variables (See Section

3.5.4 in Chapter three for further discussion).

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The researcher acknowledged the following limitations in this study:

1. Since this study employed a qualitative research design, generalizing the

findings is not appropriate because only a small number of participants (5

Jordanian speakers) were studied. Moreover, all the participants in this study

were males as the researcher was unable to recruit any female participants.

2. Another limitation of this study was the observation period. The researcher

observed the Jordanian speakers for only six months during which he audio-

recorded their communicative events to investigate the functions and patterns of

code switching. Recording communication events over a period of six months

was enough to spot code switching functions and patterns in these

communicative events audio-recordings (Creswell, 2012) although it would be

 16

more valuable if the observation period was over a year or more to enhance the

credibility of the research results (Creswell, 2012).

3. Finally, since the main purpose of this study was to investigate bilingual

Jordanian speakers’ use of code switching in their daily spoken interactions,

non-verbal interactions were excluded.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Several terms were particularly important in conducting this research. These are

defined below:

• Code switching

Although there is no clear consent among scholars on the definition of code

switching, this study employed the definition proposed by Wardhaugh (2010) who

define it as the process that occurs when people choose a particular code whenever they

speak and they may also switch from one code to another or sometimes even combine

them to create a new code.

• Bilingualism

Bilingualism, in the context of this study refers to the knowledge of Jordanian

speakers of two different languages that allows code-switching to take place (Muler,

2012).

• Ethnography of Speaking (EOS)

EOS is a method of discourse analysis proposed by Dell Hymes (1972) who

developed it to analyse communication within the wider context of social and cultural

practices and the beliefs of the members of a particular culture or speech community.
 17

EOS was employed in the context of this study as a tool for describing the

communicative events collected during the observation period of six months.

• Communicative Competence

Canale and Swain (1980) understood communicative competence as a synthesis

of an underlying system of knowledge and skills needed for communication. In their

concept of communicative competence, knowledge refers to the conscious or

unconscious knowledge about a language and about other aspects of language use.

• Strategic competence

Strategic competence is defined as a speaker’s ability to adapt certain verbal and

nonverbal languages to avoid a breakdown in communication and to ease

communication (Dornyei and Thurrell, 1991).

• Patterns of Code Switching (Inter-Sentential Switch and Intra-Sentential

Switches)

Inter-sentential pattern refers to the CS that occurs between sentences at the

sentences boundaries, that emphasizes a particular point uttered in another language.

(Myers- Scotton, 1993b). Inter-sentential switching happens at the clausal or sentential

level where each clause or sentence is in either one of the languages. Intra-sentential

patterns are those where lexical items and grammatical features from the two languages

appear in one sentence (Myers- Scotton, 1993b).

• Sociolinguistic perspective of code switching:

Sociolinguistic perspective of code switching focuses on the sociolinguistic

functions of code switching in context and patterns of code switching within a

 18

data set (Poplack, 1980). From a sociolinguistic point of view, code switching

is viewed and explained in the context in which code switching occurs and thus,

the focus is not on the grammatical and syntactic investigation of code switchin.
 CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

2.0 INTRODUCTION

Code switching studies have attracted a lot of attention. Code-switching is not

only about changing the language you speak, but it also accounts for several phenomena

crucial to bilingualism and multilingualism (Milroy &Muysken 1995). This chapter

presents the literature related to code switching. This chapter is divided into six

sections. The first section is a discussion of the various definitions for code switching

and the definition adopted. The second section is an overview of bilingualism. The third

section talks about the communicative events. The fourth section talks about the

functions of code switching. The fifth section looks at the code switching patterns and

the sixth section looks at previous studies on code switching. The last section ends with

the summary of the chapter.

2.1 DEFINITIONS OF CODE SWITCHING

In order to understand the phenomenon of code switching, it is important to

define the concept and some of key terms. Many linguistic and sociolinguistic scholars

have studied the phenomenon of code switching using interlocutors of a speech event

and have offered a number of definitions for the phenomenon that depend on the nature

of their studies (Erman, 2002; Gross, 2006; Poplack, 1980; Sichyova, 2005;

Wardhaugh, 2010). In general, code switching can be defined as switching from one
 20

language code to another during a single communicative event. It also is comprised of

alternation between one or more languages or dialects in the middle of a conversation

between people who have more than one language in common (Sichyova, 2005;

Wardhaugh, 2010).

Erman (2002) viewed code switching as a device used in a functional context in

which a multilingual person makes alternate use of two or more languages. Gumperz

(1982) defined code switching as, “the juxtaposition within the same speech, exchange

of passages of speech belonging to two different grammatical systems or subsystems”

(p.59). Similarly, Poplack(1980) stated that, “Code switching refers to the mixing by

bilinguals (or multilingual) of two or more languages in discourse, often with no change

of interlocutor or topic, such mixing may take place at any level of linguistic structure,

but its occurrence within the confines of a single sentence, constituent or even word,

has attracted most linguistic attention” (p.1).

The definitions above illustrate that code switching is the act of shifting from

one language to another in a conversation. It is a normal everyday practice among

people used for various reasons and it is usually an unconscious activity (Moghadam,

Samad, & Shahraki, 2012). Poplack (1990) further defined code switching as “the

juxtaposition of sentences or sentence fragments each one is internally consistent with

the morphological and syntactic rules of its lexifier language” (p. 200). Mesthrie,

Swann, Deumart, and Leap (2000) defined code switching as the “switching back and

forth of languages on varieties of the same language, sometimes within the same

utterance” (p. 14). Furthermore, Wong (1979) noted that code switching is the alternate

use of two or more distinct languages, varieties of a language or even speech styles

within the same conversation by the same speakers. She broadened the meaning of code

switching to include not only language, but speech styles as well.

 21

According to Gross (2006) “Code switching is a complex skilled linguistic strategy

used by bilingual speakers to convey important social meanings. This occurs in order

to conform to the interlocutor or deviate from him/her. The interlocutor usually

determines the speaker’s choice of language variety, i.e. either to gain a sense of

belonging or to create a clear boundary between the parties involved.” (p. 144). Code

switching is also seen as a boundary-leveling or boundary-maintaining strategy (Wei,

2003). According to Wei, the interlocutors share an understanding of the

communicative resources from where the code is drawn so that the communication is

meaningful. Code switching normally occurs in bilingual community settings during

sociolinguistic interactions. For example, a family who has just migrated to a new

country or setting where the primary language is different from their native tongue (L1)

may switch languages when communicating or alternate between LI and the new

language. Switching is common depending on the subject of discourse or the

sociolinguistic settings, for a number of definable reasons.

Suan (1990) emphasized that code switching can originate from genetically

unrelated languages to two styles of the same language. For instance, a person would

be unlikely to use similar words or phrases that they would use with their friends in less

formal situations when speaking to their bosses. This implies that a speaker may also

be in possession of two different registers of a language depending on who there are

interacting with. Chad Nilep (2006) claimed that code switching is a communicative

strategy used by speakers within a linguistic situation where two or more languages co-

exist within the confines of one society. The speaker switches from one communicative

code to another under specific situations and conditions that may be linguistic,

psychological, social, or pragmatic in nature.

 22

Since code switching is also seen as an instance of language alternation, Auer

(1984) suggested that as a common occurrence, code switching can be viewed from

three perspectives: the grammatical, the interactional, and the sociolinguistic. The

grammatical perspective refers to a switch that shows a change in grammatical

structure. The grammatical perspective is related to the interactional and sociolinguistic

perspectives that were the most relevant to that study, which was concerned with code

switching in conversational interactions. Auer (1998) defined the term, “code

switching” as “code alternation” because code switching is the alternating use of two

or more codes within the same conversation.

Like Auer (1998), Milory and Muysken (1995) also saw code switching as the

alternative use of two or more languages in the same conversation by bilinguals. They

stated that sometimes a switch may occur between turns of different speakers in the

conversation, sometimes between utterances within a single turn, and sometimes even

within a single utterance. In multilingual settings, code switching is a central part of

bilingual or multilingual discourse (Zuraidah, 2003). Thus, with reference to the above

review of the definitions of code switching, it is obvious that there are various ways of

looking at the code-switching and this is not surprising, considering that the occurrence

is so prevalent.

In this particular study, based on Gumperz (1982) definition, the term “code

switching” is seen as a mixture of two languages, such as Arabic and English within an

utterance. One of the purposes of this study was to investigate the use of code switching

by bilingual Jordanian speakers in their daily verbal interactions from a sociolinguistic

perspective.
 23

2.2 BILINGUALISM

The study of bilingualism is multidimensional and connected to different areas

related to applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, and psycholinguistics. However, in the

present study bilingualism is discussed in reference to sociolinguistics because this

study explored the sociolinguistic functions of code switching among bilingual

Jordanian speakers during their interactions in different communicative events. Iqbal

(2006) stated that code switching is a normal behaviour linked with bilingual and

multilingual environments and his hypothesis was that not only bilingual adults but

bilingual children use code switching as a communicative strategy. Niemiec (2010)

defined bilingualism as a phenomenon where speakers in of a particular society or

community speak at least two common languages, often mixing them in their

conversations. While a bilingual speaker can competently communicate in two of the

common languages within a society or community, a multilingual speaker a person who

is able to use and speak more than two languages. Jordanian speakers in Malaysia who

can speak English and Arabic are examples of bilingual speakers.

Suan (1990) stated that the concept of bilingualism refers to the fact that there

are significant language alternations in terms of phonology, morphology, and syntax

identified in the verbal behaviors of a particular population. Genesee (2002 p.174)

stated that “true bilingual communicative competence entails the ability to adapt one’s

language use on-line in accordance with relevant characteristics of the situation,

including the preferred or more proficient language of one’s interlocutor.” This current

study attempted to investigate the use of code switching among bilingual Jordanian

speakers in different communicative events, which took place between the speakers in

informal communicative environments(shops, restaurants, and their homes) and formal

 24

communicative environments(classroom, interviews, and meetings)by observing and

recording the interactional patterns of the speaking processes.

Kinginger (2004) suggested that bilingualism simply means that the speaker has

the ability to speak or to use more than two languages with some degree of proficiency

at any time. Although the term bilingualism suggests having the ability to use and speak

two languages simultaneously, there are various classifications of bilingualism. Baker

(2001: 266) states that term such as an “equilingual” or “a true bilingual” are terms used

to refer to a speaker who has “equal fluency of the two languages he speaks” and

“complete bilingualism” refers to a person who is as competent as a native speaker in

both languages.

In any bilingual or multilingual society, speakers are inclined towards speaking

the languages that are common in their linguistic community. This study aligns itself

with Chad Nilep’s (2006) definition of bilingualism, that is, speakers may be equally

fluent in all common languages, one particular language will often be used

predominantly depending on the situation, speakers, or topic discussed, and that a true

bilingual is a rare occurrence in most bilingual and multilingual societies. He explained

that speakers are also more prone to use one language more frequently but this does not

mean that they are less fluent in the languages they use less frequently. Muller (2012)

stated that bilingualism refers to "the state of a linguistic community in which two

languages are in contact with the result that two codes can be used in the same

interaction and that a number of individuals are bilinguals." Thus, in the case of the

bilingual Jordanian speakers who were the focus this study, they were more prone to

use one language more frequently but this was not an indication that they were less

fluent in the languages they used less frequently. For the purpose of this study, the
 25

researcher viewed the bilingual Jordanian speakers as individuals who could adequately

function in Arabic and English depending on communicative event or interaction. Thus,

this study identified the communicative events in which Arabic-English code switching

occurred, attempted to understand the functions of code switching, and identify the code

switching patterns of the bilingual Jordanian speakers.

While most previous studies focused on identifying the structure of the type of

code switching (Backus, 2010; Bentahila & Davies, 1983; Myers-Scotton, 1993;

Poplack, 1980; Redouane, 2005), the current study deals with the code switching used

by Jordanian speakers in their daily verbal interactions such as in formal and informal

communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective.

2.3 COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS

Hymes emphasized that language in its linguistic form is tied to the reasons why

it is used and the way it is used. To fully understand a language and language patterns,

it must be examined in its social and cultural context. Duranti (1997) stated that Hymes

(1964) study was based on ethnographic modes of inquiry. Observing participants in a

communicative event is an ethnographic mode of inquiry that can be used to

contextualize a communicative event.

Duranti (1997) also stated that Hymes used the speech or communicative event

as a unit of analysis. Saville-Troike (1982) defined communicative events as, "a unified

set of components throughout, beginning with the same general topic, and involving

the same participants, generally using the same tone or key and the same rules for

interaction, in the same setting" (p. 29). Gumperz (1982) clarified the idea of a

communicative event when he defined them "sequences of acts bounded in real time
 26

and space, and characterized by culturally specific values and norms that constrain both

the form and the content of what is being said" (p. 154).

The initial step taken by the researcher is to determine what communicative

events are significant in terms of their study and then use observations and interviews

to gather information about the communicative events. Duranti (1997) pointed out that

Hymes developed a framework for identifying communicative events. Hymes

framework allows a researcher to identify several components that make up a

communicative event and analyze communicative events (Cameron, 2001 p.27).

According to Hymes (1972), each component in his framework represents questions

the researcher should ask. Hymes also pointed out that, depending on the context of the

conversational event, the researcher is not required ask every possible question as some

components may not be relevant. The purpose of Hymes SPEAKING grid is, ‘to be

both comprehensive and applicable to any community’s way of speaking’ (Cameron,

2001 p.57). Other researchers have described Hymes grid as ‘heuristic’ (Schriffin,

1994) and as an ‘exploratory device’ (Cameron, 2001).

Hymes was not the only researcher to develop a framework. Small (2008)

developed a framework that described speech genres to discover the qualities that

determine ‘real communication’ and the rules behind speaker competence. Small

purposely designed his framework to examine the everyday use of language in specific

speech communities (Newmeyer, 2004).

In order to determine a communicative/speech event, as previously mentioned,

Hymes (1974) provided a framework that can be used to determine if an event is a

communicative event by analyzing the components that contribute to the event. He

arranged this framework into a mnemonic acronym known as the SPEAKING model.

This model includes the physical circumstance in which communicative events take
 27

place (setting), the addressor and addressee of this communicative event (participants),

the purpose of the communicative events (ends), the form and order of the

communicative events (act), the overall tone manner or spirit of the communicative

event (key), the form and styles of the speech (instrument), the code switching norm

during the conversation (norms), and the kind of conversation that is associated with

the communicative events (genre). Hymes asserted that it is possible to define an event

as communicative even when some of the components are missing. Instead he focused

on the heuristic characteristics of his framework and noted that the communicative

norms of a community mean that some of the components are not relevant. In other

word, SPEAKING provides a guideline rather than hard and fast rules that can be used

to determine what components can be included in the ethnographic collection of data

and to define the beginning and ending of a communicative event. According to Saville-

Troike (2003), "in addition to identifying the components of a communicative event it

is important to ask questions which relate each component to all of the others" (p. 124).

Establishing how the components of a communicative event are related results is a more

precise description of the event and a more accurate analysis.

The data collected using the grid does not need to be analysed using all the

components of the grid because the grid is functioning as a guideline. Schriffin (1994)

and Cameron (2001) both agree that the grid is often used as a ridged analytical model

that, ‘it is not always easy to apply the framework in a straightforward way to data’

(p.57) because the data may not fit all the components. Using the grid as a ridged model

means that the researcher may miss obtaining valuable data if they rely solely on the

description of the unit of analysis rather than ‘explaining why particular events occur

and why they have particular characteristics’ (p.57). In this study, the SPEAKING grid
 28

was used as a guideline for describing the communicative events in which the

participants engaged in Arabic-English and English-Arabic code switching.

Even though the SPEAKING grid is a traditional in nature, there are several

studies that depend on it as a tool to describe communicative events. One such study

was conducted by ZainalAriff (2012). Ariff’s study consisted of an ethnographic

spoken discourse analysis of the propagators of the spoken discourse strategies used by

Islamic speakers when interacting with non-Muslims and those who were converting to

Islam during a Conversion to Islam Ceremony (communicative event) in Malaysia.

Ariff used Hymes SPEAKING grid as a guideline and discovered that the Islamic

speakers used code switching, humour, politeness, and topic management as strategies

while communicating with potential converts. Zand-Vakiliet al. (2012) turned to

humour when examine the speech events in a comedy series to study spoken discourse.

Zand-Vakili’s study focused on frequent speech events, the speaking behaviours of

native speaker and used the SPEAKING grid to determine what speaking behaviours

were the most common. The results of this study indicated that the most common

speaking behaviour in a conversation between friends were confiding, sharing

problems, asking for help, consultation, and looking for sympathy.

Zain and Koo (2009) studies speech patterns using the posts published on a

medical student’s blog. They used the SPEAKING grid to describe how multimedia

literacy can enhance a student’s writing. In a similar study Herring (2007) developed a

system for classifying computer-mediated discourse (CMD) to analyse computer-

mediated communication (CMC). Herring’s system was built on Hymes SPEAKING

grid. Herring found that there are several social and situational factors that cause
 29

differences in CMD and these factors resembled the components found on the

SPEAKING grid. Consequently, she was inspired to use Hyme’s grid as the basis of

her framework to describe and analyse the social and technical factors the affect the

language used in CMC.

Hymes SPEAKING grid is frequently referenced in the literature on discourse

analysis illustrates its long lasting relevance and validity. Hymes grid is used for etic

accounts and to provide a descriptive classification of observed events. Even though

the SPEAKING grid does not explain why language is use in a certain way, descriptions

based on the SPEAKING grid can contribute to the etic account of a context (e.g.

Cameron, 2001; Herring, 2007; Hymes, 1972; Marcela, 2012; Saville-Troike, 2003;

Schiffrin, 1994; ZainalAriff, 2012).

2.4 FUNCTIONS OF CODE SWITCHING

In order for fundamental questions such as ‘why do people code-switch?’ and

‘what are the functions of this code-switching phenomenon?’ to be answered, Gumperz

(1982) outlined six metaphorical functions of code switching namely, quotation,

addressee specification, interjections, reiterations, message qualification and

personalisation versus objectivization. Table 2.1 Presents the Code-switching functions

in Gumperz’s (1982) semantic model:

 30

Table 2.1 Code switching functions taken from Gumperz, (1982, pp. 75-81)

Function Description Example

Quotation Serves as direct She doesn't speak

quotations or as re-ported English, so, dice que la reganan:

speech. "Si se les vaolvidar el idioma a

lascriatura" (she says that they

would scold her: "the children are

surely going to forget their

language")

Addressee Serves to direct the A: Sometimes you get

specification message to one of several excited and then you speak in

addressees. Hindi, then again you go on to

English. B: No non-sense, it

depends on your command of

English. A: [shortly after turning

to a third participant, who has just

re-turned from answering the

doorbell] Kənhaibai(who is it)?

Interjections Serves to mark an A: Well, I'm glad I met

interjection or sentence you. B: Andale pues(O.K. swell).

filler. And do come again. Mm?

Reiteration Serves to repeat a Keep straight.

message from one code to Sidhajao[louder] (keep straight)

another code either literally

 31

or in somewhat modified

form.

Message Serves to qualify The oldest one, la grande

qualification constructions such as la de once anos(the big one who

sentence and verb is eleven years old).

complements or predicates

following a copula.

Personalisation Serves to A: Vigələ ma

versus distinguish between talk yəsaamericə(Wigele got them

objectivisation about action and talk as from America) B: Kanadapridə

action, the degree of (it comes from Canada). A:

speaker involvement in, or kanadamus I səgn nit (I would not

distance from, a message, say Canada).

whether a statement reflects

personal opinion or

knowledge, whether it

refers to specific instances

or has the authority of

generally known fact.

Situational Code switching

code-switching resulting from a change in

social setting: topic, setting

or participants.
 32

Gumperz’s semantic theory provides a tool to account for why a speaker switches

language in a particular context and explains how speakers exploit linguistic choices to

convey intentional meaning (Onyango, 2009). That is, language is a function of

dynamic interactions and the semantic model is able to encompass “the multiple

relations between linguistic means and social meaning” (Onyango, 2009, p. 153). For

the analysis of sociolinguistic functions among bilingual Jordanian speakers in their

daily interaction, Gumperz’s (1982) semantic theory was employed as a theoretical

framework for reference purposes. For example, a reiteration involving a switch from

English to Arabic and then back to English again is treated as two instances of

reiteration (e.g. Get up. T'3al "come". Get up). However, the word “okay” was not

considered code-switching due to the popular use of the word in other languages besides

English and including it would over represent the extent of code-switching (see Then

& Ting, 2009). Thus, the researcher had adopted Gumperz’s (1982) list of code

switching functions in order to identify the functions that Jordanian bilingual speakers

had employed in their interactions.

2.5 CODE SWITCHING PATTERNS

Code switching is part and parcel of a bilingual's repertoire. Bilingual speakers

use several patterns when they code switch from one language to another (Socarraz-

Novoa, 2015). Iqbal (2011), however, stated that it is necessary to point out that

speakers should be aware of their code switches, whether at word, phrase, clause, or

sentence level. It is necessary for bilinguals to be able to know how to code switch

strategically to enhance their strategic competence (Moodley, 2010; ZainalAriff, 2012).

Being aware of how strategic code switching can help bilingual speakers expedite and

economize expressions, enhance explanations, and bridge the gap between the speakers
 33

(Iqbal, 2011; Moodley, 2010; Poplack, 1980; ZainalAriff, 2012). There are two major

code switching patterns according to Myers- Scotton (1993b). They are inter-sentential

code switching and intra-sentential code switching.

2.5.1 Inter-Sentential Code Switching

Inter-sentential switch occurs between sentences at the sentences boundaries,

which serve to highlight a particular point uttered in the other language. The switch

helps indicate to whom the speech is addressed and it provides a direct quote from

another conversation (Myers- Scotton, 1993b). According to Myers-Scotton, inter-

sentential switching happens at the clausal or sentential level where each clause or

sentence is in one of the two languages. Occurring within the same sentence or between

speaker turns, this pattern of code switching requires its speaker to be fluent in both

languages in order to conform to the rules of the languages. In the other words, inter-

sentential switching takes place at a clause or sentence boundary by triggering a clause

or sentence from the other language. It can also occur during turn taking in a

conversation. For example, sometimes the researcher will start a sentence in Arabic o

anhiha balarbi. [Sometimes I’ll start a sentence in Arabic and finish in Arabic].

Also, Zirker (2007) stated that intersentential switching consists of language

switches at phrasal, sentence, or discourse boundaries. For example, a speaker may

finish his thought concerning how schools should increase their funding for music

programs in Spanish, and then begin his subsequent thought regarding a college football

game in English. “Y yopiensoquetodos los estudiantes en aprender a tocarinstrumento

(‘and I think that all the students should learn to play an instrument’) so, did you see

the football game last night? Byu really did some damage to poor boise state…” This
 34

kind of switching requires greater fluency in both languages, as each part of the

utterance must agree with the rules of the corresponding language being spoken.

2.5.2 Intra-Sentential Code Switching

Muysken (2000) uses the term intra-sentential code switching to refer to all

cases where lexical items and grammatical features from two languages appear in one

sentence. Rabia (2005) asserted that intra-sentential code switching involves a switch

within the clause or sentence boundary that may also include mixing within word

boundaries; for example, switching of noun phrase, verb phrase, prepositional phrases,

nouns and adjective phrases.

Dayang Hajjah Fatimah (2007) defined intra-sentential code switching as the

shift of smaller units, usually words or idiomatic expressions. In other words, intra-

Sentential code switching involves the mixing of affixes, words, phrases, and clauses

from more than one language within the same sentence and speech situation.

Grammatical rules from all the languages involved are integrated into the discourse.

For example, Tok-Pisin/English intra-sentential code-switching might sound like this:

What's so funny? Come, be good. Otherwise, yubai go long kot. {you'll go to court}.

Lipski (1985) carried out a study on the type and frequency of Spanish-English

code switching and uses Poplack’s (1981) rules as a guide for individual code shifts.

Prior to his analysis, Lipski (1985 p. 78) divided acts of code switching into three

general patterns: Type I, II, and III code switches. He argues that Type I code switches

represent second language (L2) noun insertions and are the most common type of

monolingual code switching. In his analysis, he asserted that Type I does not

presuppose a high level of bilingualism among readers or speakers, although

 35

biculturalism plays a role. The speakers participating in this type of code switching

know very little about the second language, but they are somewhat familiar with the

most common words. An example of a Type I code switch can be seen in the following

sentence: alsh'ebbkhyr, I mean anhqadr 'elaal’eysh (Jordanian people are fine. I mean,

they can live).

Type II code switches are inter-sentential code switches that occur within

sentence or independent clause boundaries. Lipski (1985) explained that Type II code

switches are typically used by individuals who have learned each of the languages in

different cultural landscapes, and who can relate contexts and consequently,

propositions with a certain language. An example of Type II code switching can be seen

in the following sentence: I feel like to speak in English waktob balarbi (I feel like to

speak in English and write in Arabic).

Type III code switches are intra-sentential code switches. These are switches

that take place in the middle of an independent clause. Lipski (1985) concluded that

Type III code switches are typical used by individuals who have learned and used both

languages in similar contexts and thus indicates very strong bilingual integration and a

good balance of bilingual grammar. An example of Type III code switching can be seen

in the following sentence: What is the matter man! Relax and take a breath. Otherwise,

rah ntsl balshrth. (We will call the police).

Abdel Jalil (2009) suggested that a preliminary investigation on the level of

proficiency of the participants be carried out in an attempt to compare the proficiency

of participants and predict the most frequent code switching patterns. He also

recommended future research on patterns and possible switching sites, by using larger

data sets or by repeating this research under different conditions. Accordingly, the
 36

current study investigated the inter-sentential and intra-sentential code switching

patterns among bilingual Jordanian speakers whether in different contexts. Many

studies looked at the patterns of code switching with special focus on grammatical

constraints and attempted to give practical treatments to the purely linguistic aspect of

code switching (e.g. Iqbal, 2011; Myers-Scotton, 1993; Redouane, 2005). This current

study, however, looked at the sociolinguistic aspect of code switching by identifying

the contexts in which Arabic-English code switching occurred, investigating the

functions of Arabic-English code switching among the bilingual Jordanian speakers

from a sociolinguistic perspective, investigating the patterns of code switching, andif

the communicative events and the patterns of code switching influenced each other.

Thus, the researcher followed Myers-Scotton (1993b) to identify the instances of code

switching based on inter and intra code switching in bilingual Jordanian speakers'

interactions.

2.6 PREVIOUS STUDIES

There were many studies on code switching that inspiredthis particular study.

Although the studies differed from each other in terms of their main aims, they served

as a backdrop forthis particular Arabic-English code switching study.

For many years, researchers have investigated the types and functions of code

switching among bilingual speakers around the world. Research on code switching has

identified different functions of code switching in different contexts. Blom and

Gumperz (1972) who are considered the pioneers of interactional sociolinguistics,

viewed code switching in a positive light and were the first to adopt a positive view of

code switching. They saw it as an indicator of the fluency of the speakers involved. In
 37

their study on language use through observation and the analysis of taped recordings in

a Norwegian fishing village, they argued that the switch in language depends on the

topic being discussed and the situation the speakers found themselves in. Thus,

language code switching served several purposes and it was employed by various

speakers to perform a range of functions (Gumperz, 1982).

In his major study, Gumperz (1982) stated that there are six basic discourse

functions that code switching plays in conversation. His work is very influential and

many studies have been conductedin several different languages on the basis of his

theory on thefunctions of code switching. He identified six basic discourse functions

that code switching plays in conversation. The first discourse function is quotation

where code switching occurs to report someone else’s utterance as a direct quotation.

The second function is addressee specification where the switch serves to direct the

message to one particular person among several addressees. Interjection is the third

discourse function and occurs when code switching serves to mark sentence fillers.

Code swithing can also be used to clarify what has been said or increases the utterance’s

perlocutionary effect such as when the speaker repeats the message in the other code.

This is known as reiteration. The fifth discourse function is message qualification where

code switching is used to elaborate on the preceding utterance in the other code. The

sixth and final discourse funtion is personification versus objectivization where code

switching indicates the degree of speaker involvement in what is being said.

As mentioned in Chapter One, very few studies have addressed the issue of code

switching among Jordanian speakers in a context where bilinguals can exercise code

switching (Abalhassan and Alshalawi, 2000). This study, therefore, hopes to fill this

gap.Therefore, the aim of the current study was to investigate how bilingual Jordanian
 38

speakers used code switching in their daily verbal interactions, such as in formal and

informal communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective. It is suggested that

more studies be conducted to investigate the patterns and functions of code switching

in different contexts to help the Arab bilingual speakers achieve strategic competence

(Abedelbadie, 2003; Abu Mathkour, 2004; Alenezi, 2010; Alrowais, 2012; Othman,

2006; Zerg, 2006).

Abu Mathkour (2004) investigated the functions of Arabic-English codes

switching by reviewing six hours of tape-recorded speech of speakers of Jordanian

Arabic (JA) on Jordan Television. The study examined the effect of the speakers' gender

on the frequency of the functions. The participants included33Jordanians (15 males, 18

females) from a mixture of programs who provided 82 instances of code switching. The

findings indicated that quotation; interjection; reiteration; message qualification, and

personification vs. objectification were functions that code switching fulfilled in these

conversations. The interjection function was the most common code switching function

used by JA speakers, especially by females.

Abedelbadie’s (2003) investigated code switching among Arabic speakers.

These Arabic speakers had lived in the United States, thus they had English in their

linguistic repertoire but because they are from different Arab regions, they also spoke

different varieties of Arabic. These speakers were composed of Egyptians, Sudanese,

Saudi Arabians, Moroccans, and Jordanians. Abedelbadi’s study found that when these

speakers communicate among themselves, they tend to code switch depending on the

context and the topic discussed and did not necessarily resort to Modern Standard

Arabic (MSA) in cross-dialectical conversations. His study also provided evidence that

suggested that code switching is not always employed as a means of enhancing verbal
 39

communication; it can be used to poke fun at other dialects that may not be very popular

or seen as less refined. He also suggested that the two occurrences of code switching

between Arabic and English occur in a continuum. Abedelbadi concluded that code

switching is a type of competence, in this case, strategic competence.

In a study where the setting is non-Arabic in nature, Othman (2006) investigated

the language choices of first generation Arabic-English bilingual individuals in

Manchester, England. This study set out to determine if the language choices made by

Arabic bilinguals represented the maintenance of the status of Arabic or represented its

role as a minority language in Manchester. Othmansurveyed16families originally from

different Arabic countries, including Egypt, Libya, Jordan, and Syria who showed signs

of Arabic maintenance. Code switching was observed in the participants' speech in

contexts including their homes, conversations between friends, at work, and at

university. Othman argued that code switching was used among the participants as a

communication strategy. This current study had a similar goal as it attempted to

understand the functions of Arabic-English code switching among Jordanian speakers

in another non-Arab setting (i.e. in Malaysia).

Koziol (2000) argued that although nearly a quarter of all code switching

occurrences could not be classified due to a speaker’s effort to personalize their

message for their listener, the following code switching functions can be found in a

spoken discourse: personalization, reiteration, designation, substitution, emphasis,

clarification, objectification, and aggravating messages, interjections, parenthesis,

quotation, and topic shift. For the purpose of this current study, the researcher

investigated the functions of code switching in different informal communicative

events such as shops, restaurants and the homes of the participants, and formal contexts

such as classrooms, during interviews, and in meetings.

 40

As discussed earlier, research on the phenomenon of code switching has been

conducted by many researchers in several countries. Many of the studies were

conducted in inner circle countries where one of the official languages was spoken in

the settings being research, for example, studying Arabic-English code switching in an

Arabic setting (Abu Mathkour, 2004; Khuwaileh, 2002; Zerg, 2006). Limited studies

have been conducted in outer circle countries (Abdelbadie and Al-Khatib, 2003;

Othman, 2006). Therefore, this study was conducted in an outer circle country to fill

this gap in the literature.

2.7 SUMMARY

In this chapter, various aspects related to code-switching were highlighted.

Code switching is a situation in which a speaker switches from one language into

another in a conversation. Many linguists and researchers have investigated code

switching in different contexts and analysed code switching from different points of

view. This chapter discussed the various definitions of code switching and provided an

overview of bilingualism, functions of code switching and code switching patterns.

This chapter also looked at the communicative events and the previous studies on code

switching. The next chapter discusses the research methodology used in this study.
 CHAPTER III

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.0 INTRODUCTION

The main purpose of this study was to investigate bilingual Jordanian speakers’

use of code switching in their interactions during formal and informal communicative

events from a sociolinguistic perspective. This chapter presents the overall road map

that was followed in order to conduct the present study. This includes a description of

the research approach, the participants of the research, the tools of inquiry, data

collection procedures, data analysis and a discussion on the trustworthiness issues of

the research. Then, there is a brief discussion on the ethical considerations involved in

conducting the study. The chapter ends with the summary of the chapter.

3.1 RESEARCH APPROACH

The research approach chosen for any study should help the researcher achieve

the purpose of his study, the specific objectives of his study and answer the research

questions posed by his study (Creswell, 2012). The primary purpose of this study was

to investigate how bilingual Jordanian speakers use of code switching in their daily oral

interactions during formal and informal communicative events from a sociolinguistic

perspective. In order to achieve that purpose, the following objectives and

corresponding research questions were established:

 42

1. Research objective one: To identify the contexts in which Arabic-English code

switching occurs such as the communicative events in which Arabic-English code

switching occurs.

1.1. Corresponding research question one: What are the communicative events

in which the Jordanian bilingual speakers code switch?

2. Research objective two: To investigate and understand the functions of Arabic-

English code switching among the bilingual Jordanian speakers in Selangor,

Malaysia from a sociolinguistic perspective.

2.1. Corresponding research question two: How are the sociolinguistic functions

of the code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers?

3. Research objective three: To investigate the patterns of code switching.

3.1. Corresponding research question three: What are the patterns of code

switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers?

4. Research objective four: To investigate whether the communicative events and

the patterns of code switching influence to each other.

4.1. Corresponding research question four: Do the communicative events and

patterns of code switching influence each other?

This study was qualitative in nature and it followed an ethnographic approach

in which the main focus was to provide a detailed description, analyse, and interpret ‘a

culture- sharing group’s shared patterns of behaviour, beliefs and language’ (Creswell,

2012 p. 462). Ethnographic tools of inquiry namely, observation and interviews, were

the main tools employed to collect data to help the researcher make a detailed

description of the code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers in both

formal and informal communicative events including ‘the cultural meaning and beliefs
 43

that participants attached to their activities, events and behaviours’ (Dornyei, 2007, p.

18).

For the purpose of this study, the researcher answered the third and the fourth

research questions by quantitizing the qualitative observation data so as “to facilitate

pattern recognition” and “extract meaning from qualitative data” and to “verify

interpretations” (Sandelowski, Voils, and Knafl, 2009 p. 210). Quantitizing the

qualitative data is achieved by conducting a frequency count in a qualitative study. It

does not, however, make a research quantitative (Baralt, 2012; Becker,1970; Erickson,

2007; Hammersley, 1992; Miles & Huberman, 1984).

3.2 RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS

The participants of the study (bilingual Jordanian speakers) were purposely

chosen to help the researcher learn and understand (Creswell, 2012; Dornyei, 2007)

how bilingual Jordanian speakers use code switching in their daily verbal interactions

during formal and informal communicative events from a sociolinguistic perspective.

As of 2014, there were 540 Jordanians in Malaysia and the majority of these

were students (Letter from the Jordanian Embassy). It was not in the interest of the

study to approach all 540 Jordanians to participate in the study as the study was

qualitative and focused only on understanding the use of code switching by bilingual

Jordanian speakers who were well versed in English and Arabic. Several criteria were

laid down for the purpose of the study:

1. Bilingual Jordanians who are living in Selangor, Malaysia. The majority of

Jordanian speakers in Malaysia live in Selangor because this state has many

tertiary education institutions and multinational companies. Being one of the

 44

most developed states in Malaysia, Selangor offers many opportunities and has

attracted many foreigners (http://www.tourismselangor.my) including

Jordanians. Since Selangor is a huge state, the researcher purposefully

narrowed down his search for participants to Kajang, Bangi, Serdang, and

Shah Alam so as to obtain richer data. These areas have a large population of

foreigners (students and expatriates) due to the many universities and

multinational companies established within the societies.

2. Potential participants must have obtained either a minimum score of 550 in

their Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOFEL) (a minimum score of 22

for speaking, 20 for reading, 15 for listening and 20 for writing, or a minimum

score of 6.5 with a 6.0 minimum for speaking, listening, writing and reading

in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or at least

Band 3 in their English proficiency test at the Malaysian universities in which

they were, and are studying. In general, these scores were the minimum

requirement set for international students who are interested to apply for a

Masters and PhD at a Malaysian university. Achieving these scores means that

they are considered competent in English.

3. All potential participants must have formally learned English at school and

university. For example, they may have taken English courses and taken

subject specific courses in linguistics, accounting and finance that were taught

in at Jordanian and Malaysian universities and thus, were exposed to English

for more than 14 years.

4. Potential participants must be willing to participate in the study.

 45

The number of participants for a qualitative study can range from one to 40

(Creswell, 2012). The researcher decided to limit the number of participants to 15 as he

personally knows 15 Jordanian bilinguals from Selangor who may be interested to

participating in his study. Fifteen were considered an appropriate and manageable

number of participants by the researcher as he was required to follow and observe each

of his participants for the purpose of collecting data. This qualitative study did not

require a large number of participants because the focus was to provide a detailed

description and an in-depth analysis of a particular phenomenon. A large number of

participants would lead to superficial results (Creswell, 2012). Out of the 15 bilingual

Jordanians, only Amer, Mohammad, Jafar, Ali, and Ayman (pseudonyms) agreed to

participate in the study (five out of 15). Amer was a former housemate of the

researcher’s housemate in Bangi agreed to participate in the study almost automatically.

Similarly, Mohammad and Ayman, who were completing their PhD at the time of

observation were also willing to participate in the study. Jafar was classmate of the

researcher and they met while doing their Master’s at a Malaysia university. At a certain

point in the data collection phase, snowball sampling occurred (Creswell, 2012). A

snowball approach is used to select participants and it is an approach that can be used

to identify key information-rich informants (Patton, 2014). An example of snowball

sampling occurred when Jafar was approached and he not only agreed to participate but

also suggested that the researcher approached his friend Ali who is a Jordanian. Jafar

and Ali are proficient in both English and Arabic and live in Selangor.

It is important to note that it was challenging to get the female Jordanians to

willingly participate in a study where a male researcher is required to follow, observe,

and interview them. In general, most female Jordanians are not comfortable with the

idea of a non-Mahram male, a human being is not related to a particular person by blood
 46

or breastfeeding. So, they can marry each other (Stacey, 2012), following and observing

them even for the purpose of conducting a study. The ones that the researcher

approached were hesitant to be followed and observed. Thus, the participants of the

study were all males.

The research participants were homogenous in a sense that they were all

Jordanians and (at the time of the study) had either just finished their PhDs or were

working towards their PhDs in Malaysia. This meant that not only were their PhDs

written in English, but that the participants had studied at a Malaysian university for

their Master’s degrees, had been exposed to English for more than 14 years, had been

actively using English in Jordan and Malaysia, and were considered to be competent

English speakers based on their norm referenced test scores. The participants were also

motivated to further improve their English. This allowed the researcher to understand,

describe, and conduct a more in-depth analysis (Dornyei, 2007).

3.2.1 Profile of the Participants

A brief background of the participants of the study is provided in the following table:

Living Educational
No. Name Age
area background
1 Amer 27 Kajang PhD
2 Mohammad 31 Bangi PhD
PhD
3 Jafar 31 Shah Alam
4 Ayman 28 Shah Alam PhD
5 Ali 29 Bangi PhD

Table 3.1: Background of the participants

 47

1. Amer

Amer is a 27-year-old male from Irbid, a city located in the north of Jordan. He

comes from an educated family background. His father is a lecturer at a university and

his mother is a teacher. Education is very much emphasized in his family and all of his

immediate family members have at least a Bachelor’s degree. At the time of

observation, he was working towards his PhD in Accounting at a reputable university

in Selangor, Malaysia. He completed his Masters in Accounting from another reputable

Malaysian university prior to starting his PhD. The medium of instruction for his

Master’s and PhD is English. He explained that he has a strong desire to continue

improving his English so that he could write his thesis in English and to communicate

effectively with other English speaking people he meets in Malaysia. Being in Malaysia

allows him to practice his English on a daily basis.

2. Mohammad

Mohammad is 31-year-oldman from Amman, the capital city of Jordan. He also

comes from an educated family background. Mohammad is married to an educated

Malaysian woman and he has a son. He speaks English with his wife and son. This

gives him more opportunities to further improve his English. At the time of observation,

he was working towards a PhD in English at a reputable university in Malaysia. He also

obtained his Master’s from the same university prior to pursuing his PhD. While

pursuing his PhD, Mohammad was working as a part time English teacher at an

international school in Kuala Lumpur.

 48

3. Jafar

Jafar is a 31-year-oldman from an educated family from Alssarih, a city located

in the north of Jordan. At the time of observation, he was completing his PhD in English

at a reputable university in Selangor, Malaysia where he also obtained his Master’s.

While pursuing his PhD, he was working part time as an administrator at an

international university in Selangor where he had to deal with colleagues with different

backgrounds allowing him to further improve his English.

4. Ali

Ali is a 29 years old from Irbid, a city located in the north of Jordan. His father

is a dentist in a private clinic in Irbid and his mother is a teacher. Prior to his PhD, he

had been in Malaysia for five years and he is currently living with his wife and daughter.

At the time of observation, he was pursuing his PhD in English a reputable university

in Malaysia. He also obtained his masters from the same university. Being in Malaysia

allows him to practice his English with his friends from different countries.

5. Ayman

Ayman is the eldest in his family and he is also from a family that puts emphasis

on education. He is 28 years old and comes from Irbid, a city located in the north of

Jordan. At time of observation, he was working towards his PhD in Finance at a

reputable university in Malaysia and he was working as a part time lecturer at a well-

known private university in Kuala Lumpur in which the medium of instruction is

English. Living, studying, and working in Malaysia provides him with many

opportunities to improve his English.

 49

3.3 TOOLS OF INQUIRY

With reference to research objectives and research questions, the following tools

were used to collect the data. This is in line with Creswell's (2012) argument that the

choice of tools used to collect data should be appropriate and allow the researcher to

meet the research objectives and answer the research questions. The following section

addresses the data collection tools.

3.3.1 Observation

Creswell (2012) stated that observation is the process of gathering open-ended,

first-hand information by observing people and places at a research site. It has several

advantages including “the opportunity to record information as it occurs in a setting, to

study actual behaviour, and to study individuals who have difficulty verbalizing their

ideas" (p. 211). For the purpose of the study, the researcher played the role of a non-

participant observer. He followed the participants in different communicative events

and made field notes without becoming involved in the interactions in which code

switching occurred. The observation period lasted for six months. Audio recording and

field notes were produced from the observations.

3.3.1.1 Field notes

The field notes were descriptive and reflective in nature. In the descriptive field

notes, the researcher described the communicative events that Jordanian bilingual

speakers were engaged in using Hymes grid (1974) (Appendix E for observation sheet).

Whereas the reflective field notes (Appendix E) recorded the personal thoughts of the
 50

researcher including his insights, hunches, and any ideas or themes that emerged during

the observations (Creswell, 2012). The reflective field notes were used to understand

the functions of Arabic-English code switching among the bilingual Jordanian speakers

from a sociolinguistic perspective. As a non-participant observer, the researcher had

observed the participants for a period of 6 months. Meanwhile, observations field notes

generated from observing the participants were taken and thereafter typed immediately.

It should be noted that the participants were informed by the researcher that their

conversation will be confidential and will be used for research purposes only.

3.3.1.2 Audio recordings

Audio recordings captured the verbal interactions that occurred during the

observations. Audio recording is a technique employed in qualitative research to

capture, in detail, the naturalistic interactions of the participants in the research field

(Burn, 1999; Silverman, 2005). The audio recording proved to be a very useful tool and

they helped the researcher replay verbal interactions for the purpose of transcription

and analysis (Appendix C for sample). The researcher followed and audio taped the

communicative events after agreeing with the participants the events which he/she

audio taped.

3.3.2 Interviews

Another tool of enquiry employed in this study was interviews. According to

Creswell (2012) interviews in qualitative research occurred when the researcher asks

one or more participants open-ended questions and record their answers. In this study,

the researcher conducted one-on-one semi structured interviews and recorded the
 51

answers of only one participant at a time using a high quality audio recorder in order to

ensure clear, quality recordings. This type of one-on-one semi structured interview was

employed because the participants in this study did not hesitate to speak and express

themselves (Creswell, 2012).

This study also employed semi-structured interviews because it granted the

researcher the chance to discover the reasons behind the language switching and

identify some pertinent points that were relevant to the study that could not have been

obtained using other tools (e.g. observation) (Dorneyi, 2007; Wray & Bloomer, 2006).

Semi structured interviews gave the researcher the flexibility to cover matters that he

felt were important for his analysis, while also giving the interviewees the opportunity

to be flexible in their responses (e.g. Bryman, 2004).

The interviews were conducted at places and time that were convenient to the

participants (e.g. home, restaurant, Library, via Skype). Pre-observation interviews

were held to learn more about the backgrounds of the participants. Although, the

researcher knew most of the participants, he only knew them at a very superficial level.

Thus, it was necessary to get to know more about their backgrounds for the purpose of

the study. Post interviews were held based on the observations. Based on the field and

reflective notes, the researcher prepared a set of questions (e.g. Why did you suddenly

switch to English just now?). Refer to Appendix B for the Interview parameters.

Interview parameters helped the researcher maintain the direction and focus of the

interviews (e.g. Bryman, 2004; Green, 2005).

 52

3.4 DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES

The main purpose of the study was to investigate how bilingual Jordanian

speakers used code switching in their daily verbal interactions during formal and

informal communicative events from a sociolinguistic perspective. With reference to

the purpose of the study, two main tools were employed for data collection. The two

main tools were observation including making field notes and audio recording the

verbal interactions that took place at the communicative events observed, and semi-

structured interviews. The use of different tools was used to capture sufficient data to

answer the research questions of the study and thus it helped the researcher triangulate

his data (Creswell, 2007). Triangulation can serve as a powerful tool that can strengthen

qualitative research.

The following procedures were carried out for the purpose of the study. First,

the researcher contacted the participants to explain his study and reassured them that

their conversations were confidential and used for research purposes only (See

Appendix A). Secondly, after getting the participants' permission, the researcher kept

in touch with the participants by making appointments with them to follow and observe

them at least twice a week. For example, the researcher contacted two different

participants to ask them if they were free to be observed every week and then the

researcher made an appointment to observe at least one participant in a week. The

participants determined where and when they could be followed and observed. This

process was repeated for 6 months until the researcher felt that the data obtained was

sufficient for the purpose of the study. It should be noted that there were weeks where

the researcher was able to follow and observe more than one or two participants and

there were also weeks that none of the participants were available.
 53

The main feature of an ethnographic study includes prolonged observation in a natural

setting (Harklau, 2005; Barbara, 2005). The researcher should immerse themselves in

the participants’ culture and spends an extended period of time observing them and

collecting data. Therefore, “a minimum stay of 4-12 months is usually recommended

to achieve the necessary prolonged engagement” (Dornyei, 2007 p.131). A prolong

engagement of at least six months in the context of this particular study was essential

to investigate how bilingual Jordanian speakers used code switching in their daily

verbal interactions during formal and informal communicative events from a

sociolinguistic perspective.

As a non-participant observer, the researcher observed and audio recorded the

participants’ verbal interaction. Field notes were also taken during the observation

periods (see Appendix E for an example of an observation sheet) and later typed. The

audio recordings of the verbal interactions were transcribed using Gumperz and

Berenz’s (1993) transcription conventions (see Appendix D). This allowed the

researcher to get back to the relevant information concerning code switching.

Post observation interviews were conducted after the observations when the

researcher needed to clarify pertinent questions or matters that occurred during

observations with regard to code switching. For interview purposes, the researcher

contacted the participants to set an appointment. The matters that needed to be clarified

were put forward during the interview. For example, when Ayman was observed during

one of his telephone conversations with his friend, Maher, he code switched from

Arabic to English,
 54

Excerpt E: (Informal communicative event) Information sharing via telephone with a

bilingual friend at home such as when Ayman tells his friend, Maher that he passed his

PhD viva.

1 Ayman Alsalam 'alikom (Peace be upon you).

2 Maher Walikom Alsalam (And peace be upon you).

3 Ayman Dret Ani khlset aldktora (You know; I have finished my PhD)

4 Maher Wallah! Jad? (Oh my god! Really?)

5 Ayman Eh wallah khlset (Yes, I swear that I have finished). ((in a

jovial yet proud tone)) You can call me doctor!

6 Maher Reito alef mbrok yaahla doctor! (Congratulations handsome

doctor!)

To find out why Ayman suddenly code switched to English, the researcher in

his post interview asked "When you were talking to Maher in Arabic during the phone

conversation, you said in English “You can call me doctor!” and then continued to

speak in Arabic. Why did you switch to English then?”

3.5 DATA ANALYSIS

This study investigated how bilingual Jordanian speakers used code switching

in their daily verbal interactions during formal and informal communicative events

from a sociolinguistic perspective. Accordingly, four research questions were

formulated to identify the communicative events in which the Jordanian speakers code

switched and investigate the functions of code switching that Jordanian speakers

employed in their communicative events, the patterns of code switching, and to if the
 55

communicative events and the patterns of code switching influence each other. The

following sections present the data analysis procedures for each research questions

asked in this study.

3.5.1 What are the Communicative Events in which the Jordanian Bilingual
Speakers Code Switch?

This question encouraged the researcher to look at the details of each of the

communicative events in which the five bilingual Jordanian speakers were involved

and in which the bilingual Jordanian speakers code switched from English to Arabic or

vice versa. To answer this research question, the field notes generated from the

observation of Jordanian bilingual speakers in different communicative events for the

period of 6 months were taken and recorded on observation sheets (See appendix E).

These observation sheets described the communicative events based on Hymes (1974)

SPEAKING grid.

Dell Hymes (1974) developed the SPEAKING grid that was used as a reference

grid used to describe the communicative events in this study. This description includes

the physical circumstance in which communicative events take place (setting), the

addressor and addressee of this communicative event (participants), the purpose of the

communicative events (ends), the form and order of the communicative events (act),

the overall tone manner or spirit of the communicative event (key), the form and styles

of the speech (instrument), the code switching norm during the conversation (norms),

and the kind of conversation that is associated with the communicative events (genre).

The following is the sample of observation sheet used in this study to record the

communicative events that involved one of the participants.

 56

Speaking Jaf. Obs. 20.4.2014. F. Int.

Grid
S Discussion room at Tun Seri Lanang Library at University Kebangsaan
Malaysia.
P Jafar is the interviewer and Ayman, Mohammad, Amer and Ali are the
interviewees. All of them are male Muslims.
E To collect data for research
A 1. Jafar introduces himself and explains the purpose of his study to
his interviewees.
2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves.
3. The interviewees introduce themselves.
4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees.
5. The interviewees respond to Jafar’s questions.
6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees
when he needs the interviewees to further clarify/elaborate their
answers.
7. The interviewees further clarify/elaborate when prompted by
Jafar.
8. Jafar ends the interview.
K Formal
I Face to face interview
N Jafar starts the interview in Arabic e.g. "Assalam alikom" peace be upon
him as a form of greeting and duaa prayer for the interviewees. Then, he
code switches English. Throughout the interview, English is mostly
used. Jafar code switches from English to Arabic when he needs to
clarify his points.
G Interview

In order to identify the major themes that identify the communicative events in which

the Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched, the researcher employed “Bottom Up”

qualitative approach as proposed by Creswell (2005). The “Bottom Up approach” was

employed in the context of this research since it is inductive in nature and it provided
 57

the researcher with a tool to narrow the data into a few themes (Creswell, 2012).

After examining the observation sheet above, the researcher coded the

communicative event as a formal communicative event and the Genre was identified as

an interview (e.g. Genre – (Formal Communicative Event) -Interview). The genre was

identified after using SPEAKING to describe communicative event. The researcher

then examined the other observation sheets for coding purposes. The codes generated

from all of the observation sheets were then examined so as to identify overlapping and

redundant codes. The researcher then collapsed the codes into themes, for example,

‘Formal communicative Event-Interview’. Recurring themes represented the

communicative events in which code switching occurred.

3.5.2 How are the Sociolinguistics Functions of the Code Switching used by the
Bilingual Jordanian Speakers?

The aim of this research question was to identify the functions of English-Arabic

and Arabic-English code switching among bilingual Jordanian speakers in Selangor,

Malaysia from a sociolinguistic perspective. As mentioned earlier in Chapter One, this

study viewed code switching as a strategic competence (Basudha, 2012; Chan, 2008;

Shin, 2010; Zainal Ariff, 2012). Therefore, purpose of this question was to understand

how code switching was used strategically. To answer this research questions, the

transcripts of the communicative event interactions and interviews were employed for

analysis.

For the transcripts of the communicative events’ interaction, the researcher had

adopted Gumperz’s (1982) list of code switching functions in order to identify the

functions that Jordanian bilingual speakers had employed in their interactions. The

researcher also employed the “Bottom Up” approach as proposed by Creswell (2005),
 58

to identify recurring themes such as the functions of code switching. In the first stage,

the researcher spotted the code switching occurrences by bolding them as the following

interaction transcript sample shows:

1 Jafar Alsalam 'alikoum (peace be upon him)

2 Othman Walikoum alsalam, keefk? (peace be upon him, how are you?)

3 Jafar Alhamdullah tamam I miss u (Praise be to God, good)

4 Othman Ana aktar, mn zaman ma sm'ana sotak! Weink mkhtfi (I do more,

long time I have not heard your voice! Where have you been?)

5 Jafar Wallah ma fi waket elyoum nroh nshof supervisor(I swear that I

do not have time to see my supervisor.)

6 Othman Leish? (Why?)

7 Jafar Ma b'atona ajazat (they have not given us a leave)

8 Othman Allah ykon b'aonk (May Allah help you)

9 Jafar Lsatk mdawm bal mdrsea alibya? (Are you still working in Libyan

school?)

10 Othman Ah, ween bdna nroh? (yes, where shall I go?)

Then, these code-switching occurrences were assigned by codes (functions) as shown

below:

Code switching: Alhamdullah tamam I miss u (Praise be to God, good)

Code: Code switch to show feeling

Code switching: Wallah ma fi waket elyoum nroh nshof supervisor(I swear that

I do not have time to see my supervisor.)

Code: Code switch to bridge the lexical gap

 59

Finally, the researcher examined the codes generated from all the communicative event

interactions for overlap and redundancy and collapses these codes into themes. The

themes generated in this final process represented the sociolinguistics functions of the

code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers.

For interview transcripts, the researcher purposely employed this type of data for

triangulation purposes (See section 3.6.1 for further discussion). These interview

transcripts granted the researcher the chance to discover the reasons behind the

language switching and also to identify some pertinent points that were relevant to the

study and would not have been obtained through other tools (e.g. observation) (Dorneyi,

2007; Wray & Bloomer, 2006). These interview transcripts underwent the same

analysis process proposed by Creswell (2005). The researcher identified the reasons for

code switching reported by the Jordanian speakers during their interviews by bolding

them, as the following interview sample shows:

Interviewer: Why do you code switch from Arabic to English and vice versa? Vice

versa means from English to Arabic.

Jafar: Actually, they are some reasons just as I told you for example if I am in

supermarket or restaurant I speak in Arabic but sometimes with Yamani

waitress I feel that the person can't understand so I use some English

words

Interviewer: Yes

Jafar: I use some English words in Arabic language because most of Arab

speakers are familiar with those words and they do not say it in

Arabic. For example, network, internet, and supervisor.

Interviewer: That is good, do u have any more reasons?

 60

Jafar: Ah, actually in some situations I'd like to show that I know how to speak

English but not usually but sometimes.

Interviewer: You mean show off?

Jafar: Not exactly, just I like to show if can speak English well

Interviewer: To show that you are educated?

Jafar: Somehow!

Interviewer: Any other reasons?

Jafar: Sometimes I code switch when I want to emphasize about something

or I want to clarify more about anything. You know sometimes I

speak in Arabic and you don't want someone to understand your speech

so I switch to English, to send a message to exclude someone out of

the conversation

Next, these segments of information were assigned by codes (functions) as followings:

Segment: I feel that the person can't understand so I use some English words

Code: Code switch to ease communication

Segment: I use some English words in Arabic language because most of Arab

speakers are familiar with those words and they do not say it in

Arabic

Code: Code switch to bridge the lexical gap

Segment: I like to show if can speak English well

Code: Code switch to show ability of speaking

 61

Segment: emphasize about something or I want to clarify more about

anything.

Code: Code switch to clarify a point

Segment: to send a message to exclude someone out of the conversation

Code: Code switch to ensure privacy

Finally, the researcher examined the codes generated from all the interview

transcripts for overlap and redundancy and collapsed these codes into themes. The

themes generated in this final process represented the sociolinguistics functions of the

code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers.

3.5.3 What are the patterns of code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian
speakers?

To investigate the pattern of code switching, the researcher examined the

interaction transcripts manually to identify the patterns of code switching, such as inter-

sentential and intra-sentential, as proposed by Myers-Scotton (1993) (see Section 2.4

in Chapter 2 for further discussion on the patterns of code switching). Then the

researcher assigned number (1) to the first variable (intra-sentential) and number (2) to

the second variable (inter-sentential) for statistical analysis purposes. Then this data

was keyed into a SPSS statistical package (version 19) to calculate the percentage of

occurrences of inter-sentential and intra-sentential patterns.

 62

3.5.4 Do the Communicative Events and Patterns of Code Switching Influence

each other?

To answer the fourth and final research question further an analysis was

conducted to find out whether there was a relationship between the communicative

events and patterns of code switching by employing a Pearson correlation coefficient.

A Pearson correlation coefficient is a measure of the linear correlation between two

variables (X and Y) and gives a value between +1 and −1, where 1 is a completely

positive correlation, 0 is no correlation, and −1 is a completely negative correlation

(Nikolic, Muresan, Feng and Senger, 2012). This test was performed to find out if there

was a positive or negative correlation between the communicative event and the

patterns of code switching variables.

3.6 TRUSTWORTHINESS

An important aspect that should be considered when conducting any particular

qualitative research is its validity and reliability or its trustworthiness (Creswell, 2012).

Validity means that the researcher determines the accuracy or credibility of the findings

through different strategies (e.g. member checking or triangulation). In this study,

several strategies were used throughout the process of data collection and analysis to

ensure that the researcher’s findings and interpretations were trustworthy. Thus, for the

purpose of this study, the several strategies were used to ensure the trustworthiness of

the findings.
 63

3.6.1 Triangulation

Triangulation is the process of corroborating evidence from different type of

data, such as observations and interviews, or methods of data collection, such as

documents and interviews, to generate descriptions and themes in qualitative research

(Creswell, 2012). Triangulation was employed in this study to ensure valid and reliable

results. In other words, to answer the first and second research questions, the researcher

employed two methods of data collection (observation and interviews) either to confirm

or disprove the results generated by the data and support the evidence.

3.6.2 Member Checking

Member checking is the process in which the researcher asks one or more

participants in the study to check the accuracy of their account (Creswell, 2012). The

researcher employed this strategy by taking a hard copy of the findings back to the five

Jordanian bilingual speakers who participated in the study, and asking them to review

their interview transcripts, their observation audio-recordings transcripts, and the

results generated based on the data. Moreover, the participants were asked if the themes

generated were accurate and if the interpretations were fair and representative. For

example, the researcher presented the functions of code switching to participants, such

as excluding someone from a conversation, to confirm with the participants that the

themes were realistic and accurate and if the interpretation of the data was fair and

provided an accurate representation of the event.

 64

3.6.3 Prolonged Engagement

Prolonged engagement is another strategy that can be used to ensure research

trustworthiness (Creswell, 2012). Creswell and Miller (2000) argued that a minimum

stay of four months in a study is essential in order to understand and record all the

aspects regarding the phenomena under investigation. Creswell and Miller (2000)

further emphasised that the aim of this prolonged engagement is to concretise evidence,

build rapport with the participants so that they are comfortable with the researcher, and

most importantly to confirm the data and clarify hunches. For the purpose of this study,

the researcher was immersed in the formal and informal communicative events that the

Jordanian speaker participated in for a period of six months collecting data from

different sources, including interviews and observations, in different communicative

events such as giving advice, interviews, and friendly conversations. This prolonged

engagement had provided the researcher with a powerful lens to examine and

understand the communicative events, the functions, and the patterns of code switching

among bilingual Jordanians speakers in Malaysia and thus ensure valid and credible

research findings (Creswell, 2012).

3.6.4 External Audit–Cohen’s Kappa Evaluation

Creswell (2012) defined external audits as a process in which the researcher

hires or obtains the services of an individual outside the study to review different

aspects of the study to evaluate the weaknesses and strengths of the findings. For the

purpose of this study, the Cohen Kappa evaluation method was employed to evaluate
 65

the findings. Two external auditors were chosen according to their knowledge in the

areas of code switching and the ethnography of speaking.

Two professors from English department of the Universiti Kebangsaan

Malaysia (UKM) were approached to participate in this study. Once they agreed, the

researcher gave them a copy of the inter-rater form and briefed them on the Cohen’s

kappa evaluation method and related form. Figure 3.2 is a sample of the Cohen’s kappa

evaluation form.

Table 3.2 Sample from the Cohen's Kappa document

Ratter’s agreement
Communicative Evidence from data (Please tick ( / ) to
Events (CE) indicate
agreement)

Observation Y No Comment
Formal CE es
Speaking Jaf. Obs. 20.4.2014. F. Int.
Grid
S Discussion room at Tun Seri
Lanang Library at University
Kebangsaan Malaysia.
Interview P Jafar is the interviewer and
Ayman, Mohammad, Amer and
Ali are the interviewees. All of
them are male Muslims.
E To collect data for research
A 1.Jafar introduces himself and
explains the purpose of his
study to his interviewees.
2.Jafar invites the
interviewees to introduce
themselves.
3.The interviewees introduce
themselves.
4.Jafar asks a series of
questions to the
interviewees.
 66

5.The interviewees respond to

Jafar’s questions.
6.Jafar asks for clarification or
elaboration from the
interviewees when he needs
the interviewees to further
clarify/elaborate their
answers.
7.The interviewees provide
further clarify/elaborate
when prompted by Jafar.
8.Jafar ends the interview.
K Formal
I Face to face interview
N Jafar starts the interview in
Arabic e.g. "Assalam
alikom"(peace be upon him) as a
form of greeting and duaa
(prayer) for the interviewees.
Then, he code switches English.
Throughout the interview,
English is mostly used. Jafar
code switches from English to
Arabic when he needs to clarify
his points.
G Interview

The numbers of items marked as “agreed” or “disagreed” were gathered and evaluated

using Cohen’s kappa intercoder calculation (Bernard and Ryan, 2010). The following

equation was adopted to find the kappa value:

P Rated – P Expected = K (Kappa Value)

N-P Expected

Where P rated is the number of agreed coded data, P expected represents50 % of the

number of coded data expected to agree, and N signifies the total amount of coded data
 67

measured for agreement. When the Kappa values were obtained from the two auditors,

they were calculated to determine the mean Kappa value that indicates the reliability of

the coded data in this study. Table 3.2 shows the calculation results.

Table 3.3 Calculation Results of Cohen’s Kappa

1st Auditor 2ndAuditor Mean Kappa value

K = 111-58 = 0.913 K = 113-58 = 0.948 0.913 + 0.948= 0.930

116-58 116-58 2

As seen in table 3.1, when the Kappa values were obtained from the two

auditors, they were calculated to determine the mean Kappa value that indicated the

reliability of the coded data in the study. The researcher adopted Viera and Garret’s

(2005) calculation results to interpret the Kappa value as the shown in Table 3.4.

Table 3.4: Interpretation of Kappa. Adopted from Viera and Garret (2005)

Kappa Agreement

<0 Less than chance agreement

0.01-0.20 Slight agreement

0.21-0.40 Fair agreement

0.41-0.60 Moderate agreement

0.61-0.80 Substantial agreement

0.81-0.99 Almost perfect agreement

As shown in Table 3.2, with the mean Kappa value of (0.930), the reliability of

the coded data in this research has achieved an almost perfect agreement with the
 68

auditors. It should be noted that the Cohen’s Kappa intercoder reliability exercise

should not be seen as only adding a number to the study; the exercise was also reviewed

by the auditors in terms of how it refined and defined the themes.

3.7 ETHICAL ISSUES

Since this research was qualitative in nature it involved ethical issues (Dornyei,

2007). Qualitative research often intrudes into an individual’s private sphere to explore

their views and it often targets sensitive or intimate matters (Punch, 2005). Thus, it was

vital to ensure that this study conformed to the ethical principles of using humans as

study participants so that the participants and researcher would be protected.

Ruane (2005) and Merriam (2009) cautioned that an ethical study should not

cause any harm to its participants. To make ensure that all participants in this study

were willing to participate, a consent form was distributed so that they could confirm

their decision to participate in this study before data collection could take place (See

Appendix A). Dornyei (2003) states that “a basic dilemma in educational research

concerns the fact that although ideally our participants should remain anonymous, we

often need to identify the respondent to be able to match their performances on various

instruments or tasks” (p.65). Thus, for the purpose of confidentiality and protecting the

participants the researcher used pseudonyms.

Creswell (2012) also pointed out several other ethical issues that must be

considered in the context of research. These issues are relationships, handling the

collected data, and ownership of the data. For this study, the researcher had explained

to the participants the purpose of this study so they are fully aware for why, when, and

how the findings of this study would be used. Furthermore, in order to protect the data
 69

collected (e.g. interview recordings), the researcher made sure that no one but himself

and the participants has access to the data.

3.8 SUMMARY

This chapter presented the methodological framework for this study to clarity

how this study was conducted. The first section of this chapter presented the

researcher’s approach and the data collection and analysis procedures. The discussion

addressed the criteria used to select the participants, and provided a profile for each

participant. Then the tools of inquiry that were used to collect data to answer the

research questions were discussed.

Data collection procedures were addressed in detail followed by data analysis

where the researcher explained how each research question was analysed. Next, this

chapter addressed the trustworthiness issues in this study by presenting the strategies

that were used to ensure valid and reliable results. Finally, ethical issues were discussed.
 CHAPTER IV

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

PART 1

4.0 INTRODUCTION

The aim of this chapter is to provide a description of the communicative events

in which code switching occurred. This chapter discusses the findings of research

question one 'What are the communicative events in which the Jordanian bilingual

speakers code switch?' The researcher followed, observed and interviewed five

participants. This chapter describes the communicative events for each of the

participant where code switching occurred beginning with Jafar, Amer, Ali,

Mohammad, and ending with the communicative events involving Ayman. The chapter

ends with a summary of the chapter.

4.1 THE COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS IN WHICH THE

JORDANIAN BILINGUAL SPEAKERS CODE SWITCH

The first research question of the study was “What are the communicative

events in which the Jordanian bilingual speakers code switch? “It is important to

identify the contexts in which English-Arabic and Arabic-English code switching

occurs in terms of their respective goals and conventions (Bhatia et al., 2008; Cameron,

2001; Schiffrin, 1994; Zainal Ariff, 2012). Thus, this question required the researcher

to look at the details of each of the communicative events in which the five bilingual

Jordanian speakers were involved in, and in which they code switched from English to

Arabic or vice versa. It should be noted that throughout the six months, not all of the
 71

communicative events observed included examples code switching. Some

communicative events were conducted completely in English or Arabic. There were

also times when the bilingual speakers were willing to be observed but refused to be

recorded. For the purpose of the study, the communicative events were analysed using

Hymes’ (1974) SPEAKING grid (Setting and Scene, Participants, Ends, Act of

Sequence, Key, Instrumentalities, Norms, Genre) as discussed in Chapter Two. Table

4.1. below shows the observation length and the communicative events that emerge

from the observation data collected.

Table 4.1: Observation length and emerging communicative

Participants Dates weeks Communicative events Notes

Formal/ information inquiries,
Emails, interviews and speeches.
Jafar 16 weeks Informal/ discussions, information
inquiries, telephone conversations
and chats.
Formal/ interview, information
inquiries, conference.
Amer 17 weeks Informal/ friendly conversation,
discussions, problem sharing, and
suggestions giving.
Formal/ Interview, meetings and The participant
1\4\2014 presentation. determined when
Ali till 16 weeks Informal/ problem sharing, and where could
1\10\2014 information inquiries and be followed and
discussions. observed.
Formal/interview, information
inquiry and presentation.
Mohammad 17 weeks
Informal/ discussions, information
sharing and informal inquiries.
Formal/ Meetings, interviews and
discussions.
Informal/ discussions, information
Ayman 19 weeks
sharing, chats, telephone
conversation, and experience
sharing.
 72

The data analysis procedure for research question 1 is as below:

RQ1: What are the communicative events in which the Jordanian bilingual speakers code switch?

Collapsing codes into themes Considering whether the data in hand is enough to start
analysis

Reducing overlap and redundancy of codes

Thinking about the organization of the data

Labeling the segments of information with codes.

Jotting down ideas in memo form in the margins of
transcripts
Dividing the text into segments of information

Reading the data to get general sense

Process of coding the data

Explored the data transcripts manually

Dell Hymes SPEAKING grid

(1974)

Observation

Figure (4.1): Data analysis procedure

The communicative events in which English Arabic/Arabic-English code switching

were clearly noticeable are discussed in the following sections.

4.1.1 Jafar (See Chapter III for information on Jafar)

Jafar code switched in both formal and informal spoken interactions.

Throughout the six months of observation, Jafar code switched during an interview with

bilingual Jordanian students, when asking for information at the Jordanian embassy

(formal communicative events), and when conversing with his other bilingual friends

(informal communicative events).

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4.1.1.1 Formal communicative events

4.1.1.1.1 Information inquiry at Jordanian embassy

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

At the Jordanian embassy, Jafar had a conversation with an Indian receptionist

(P). Then he requested that the receptionist call Mr. Mahmoud, who was an

administrative and technical staff member at the Jordanian embassy (P). In other words,

Jafar had a formal face-to-face conversation with the receptionist (I) (G) and a verbal

telephone conversation with Mr. Mahmoud (I) (G). The conversations occurred at the

reception counter of the Jordanian embassy (S). The setting as well as the aim of the

interaction were formal. It could be said that the key for the talk was formal(K).

Act of sequence (A) ,Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of the interaction was to renew Jafar’s passport (E). The acts of

sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar greets the employee at the reception counter.

2. The receptionist replies.

3. Jafar asks the receptionist about the procedures of renewing his passport.

4. The receptionist asks Jafar if the passport is still valid.

5. Jafar replies.

6. The receptionist informs Jafar that it takes around two months.

7. Jafar asks about the passport renewal fees.

8. The receptionist replies.

9. Jafar code switches from English to Arabic to express his frustration. Then he

asks about Mr. Mahmoud.

 74

10. The receptionist tells Jafar that Mr. Mahmoud has just left.

11. Jafar requests the receptionist to call Mr. Mahmoud.

12. The receptionist calls Mr. Mahmoud and asks him to talk with Jafar.

13. Jafar talks to Mr. Mahmoud to confirm about the procedures and fee of passport

renewal.

14. Mr. Mahmoud responds.

15. Jafar tells Mr. Mahmoud that the fee is expensive.

16. Mr. Mahmoud suggests Jafar renew his passport in Jordan by sending it via mail

or passing it to someone who is going back to Jordan.

17. Jafar tells Mr. Mahmoud that he is worried that he will get his renewed passport

late if he was to renew his passport in Jordan.

18. Mr. Mahmoud advises Jafar to renew his passport in Jordan by sending it via

mail or by passing it to someone who is going back to Jordan if he is in a hurry.

19. Jafar thanks Mr. Mahmoud.

20. The conversation ends.

During the conversation, Jafar code switched from English to Arabic when he

needed to express his frustration, such as when the receptionist said, "I don't know this

is the rules" and Jafar replied "Masari haram lanha"(because it is illegal money)) (N).

4.1.1.1.2 Interview with bilingual Jordanian students

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

The face-to-face interview (I) between Jafar and a group of bilingual Jordanian

students was more of a formal interview (G). Jafar was the interviewer who controlled

the direction of the interview and were four other bilingual Jordanians involved in the

interview, namely, Ayman, Mohammad, Amer and Ali(P). The interview was
 75

conducted at a small and minimally decorated discussion room at the library of the

university in which Jafar was studying (S). The interviewer and interviewees sat facing

each other during the interview and it was conducted in a formal key (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Jafar conducted the interview to collect data for his researches (E) The act of

sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar introduces himself and explains the purpose of his study to his

interviewees.

2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves.

3. The interviewees introduce themselves.

4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees.

5. The interviewees respond to Jafar’s questions.

6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees when he needs the

interviewees to further clarify/elaborate on their answers. Jafar code switches to

better explain his point.

7. The interviewees further clarify/elaborate when prompted by Jafar.

8. Jafar ends the interview.

During the interview, Jafar and the other bilingual Jordanians code switched

from English to Arabic. He code switched when he needed to better explain his point,

for example when he said, “Will you feel frustrated y'ani lma ts'aor balahbat” (It

means that when you feel frustrated)) (N).

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4.1.1.2 Informal communicative events

4.1.1.2.1 Informal discussion with bilingual friends at Old Town Café

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was a more informal discussion (G). It took

place at Old Town Cafe (S). Jafar was conversing with his three bilingual Jordanian

friends, namely, Mohammad (refer to Chapter III), Amer (refer to Chapter III) and

Salem (P). Salem was pursuing his Master’s in Biology at another Malaysian university.

Due to the relationship between the speakers, it could be said that the key for the event

was informal(K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Jafar and his friends met up for drinks at the café and unlike the ‘catching up

with a friend’ conversation at Starbucks, the conversation at Old Town Café was an

informal discussion. The discussion was concerned with identifying the best university

in Malaysia and it was observed that it was more of ‘to share opinion’ sort of

conversation. (E). The acts of Sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Amer starts the interaction by asking ‘Which is the best university in Malaysia?’

2. Mohammad states that the public universities are better than the private ones.

3. Jafar agrees with Mohammad that the government universities are better than

the private ones.

4. Then Salem responds by saying he disagrees with Mohammad and Jafar. He

feels that the Multimedia University, a private university, is one of the best

universities in Malaysia.

5. Amer asks his friends for further elaboration regarding their opinions on the best

universities in Malaysia.
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6. Jafar and the other speakers elaborate. So, Jafar code switches to explain his

point.

7. Mohammad ends the interaction when he says "different people means different

quality".

During the interaction, Jafar and his bilingual Jordanian friends code switched

from Arabic to English. It was observed that Jafar code switched when he needed to

explain his point and he said, bt'atmd 'alakhbrthom (it depends on their experience) it

means their experience and qualification) (N).

4.1.1.2.2 Information inquiry via the telephone with a bilingual friend

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This conversation was an informal telephone conversation (I) (G). It happened

in Jafar's office at an international university in Selangor, Malaysia (S) between Jafar

and Othman who is a friend of Jafar’s who works at an international school in Kuala

Lumpur (P). Due to the relationship between Jafar and Othman, this interaction was in

an informal key (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The main purpose of calling Othman was to ask for help to get a job as an

English teacher in a Libyan school (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar calls Othman.

2. Othman picks up the call.

3. Jafar greets Othman.

4. Othman replies and asks Jafar how he is doing.

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5. Jafar responds and tells Othman his problem.

6. Othman makes dua for Jafar.

7. Jafar asks Othman about his experience working in Libyan school.

8. Othman elaborates.

9. Jafar asks Othman about English teacher vacancies at the Libyan school.

10. Othman says that he will check and get back to Jafar.

11. Jafar explains that he needs to get a new job and he informs Othman his status

by code switching to quote his supervisor's speech.

12. Othman suddenly switches the topic by asking Jafar about his study.

13. Jafar code switches to express his feeling.

14. The conversation ends.

Throughout the conversation, it was observed that Jafar code switched from

Arabic to English when he needs to quote his supervisor’s speech (i.e.aldktora haktli

(My supervisor told me) you have to see your status in PPS), and to express his

feelings (i.e. Alhamdullah tamam (thank Allah, I am fine) I miss u) (N).

4.1.1.2.3 Informal discussion with bilingual friends at Starbucks Café

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This oral face-to-face verbal interaction (I) was an informal discussion (G). In

this informal discussion was conducted at a Starbucks Cafe in KLCC (S). Jafar was

discussing with his two bilingual friends, namely, Ayman (refer to Chapter III) and

Mazen, who is a bilingual friend pursuing his Master’s in civil engineering at a

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Malaysian university (P). Due to the setting as well as the relationship between the

speakers, it the overall key of the event was informal.

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The conversation took place to share the excitement about the final football

match between Real Madrid and Atlatico Madrid (E). After collecting their orders at

the counter, they sat down and started talking about the final match. The act of sequence

(A) were as follows:

1. Jafar starts the conversation by asking Ayman and Mazen about the excitement

surrounding the Champions League final.

2. Ayman and Mazen respond.

3. Jafar code switches when talking about Ramous.

4. Mazen disagrees and says that Real Madrid was so lucky to score in the last

minute of the extra time.

5. Ayman informs Jafar and Mazen that the match was so exciting.

6. Jafar in his respond to Ayman and Mazen code switches.

7. Ayman talks about the extra time at the second half of the match and how he

acted at that time.

8. Mazen ends the conversation by telling Jafar and Ayman that they will see

Barcelona team in the football match next year.

During the conversation, Jafar code switched from Arabic to English. It was

observed that Jafar code switched when talking about Ramous “bahkilk alsah(I am

telling you the truth)he is a brilliant player” and when talking about the match, “the

match, the referee” (N).

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4.1.2 Amer (See Chapter III for information on Amer)

Amer code switched in both formal and informal spoken interactions.

Throughout the six months of observation, Amer code switched during an interview

with a bilingual researcher, in a formal conversation with an employee of the Post

Graduate Centre at the university that he was studying at the time of observation, during

a formal conversation with the receptionist of the Time Square Hotel (formal

communicative events), and when conversing with his other bilingual friends (informal

communicative events).

4.1.2.1 Formal Communicative Events

4.1.2.1.1 Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian researcher)

This is the same interview (communicative event) in which Jafar was the

interviewer and Amer, Ali, Ayman, and Mohammad were the interviewees. Thus, the

Genre, Participant, Setting, Instrumentality, Key (K), Act sequence and Ends were

similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

The face-to-face interview (I) was a formal interview (G). The researcher, Jafar,

was the interviewer who controlled the direction of the interview and Amer was one of

the interviewees (P). The interview was conducted at a small and minimally decorated

discussion room at the library of the university in which Jafar was studying (S). The

interviewer and interviewees sat facing each other during the interview and it was

conducted in a formal key (K).

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Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Jafar conducted an interview to collect data for his research (E) The acts of

sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar introduces himself and explains the purpose of his study to his

interviewees

2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves

3. The interviewees, including Amer, introduce themselves

4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees

5. The interviewees, including Amer, respond to Jafar’s questions

6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees when he needs the

interviewees to further clarify/elaborate their answers

7. The interviewees, including Amer, further clarify/elaborate when prompted by

Jafar. Amer code switches from English to Arabic to explain his point.

8. Jafar ends the interview.

During the interview, Amer and the other bilingual Jordanians code switched

from English to Arabic. He code switched when he needs to further explain his points.

For example, one of the interviewees says "Maybe because they exchange you the same

feeling "Amer explains by saying that "Yea, bqblo kolshi ma 3ndhom mshakel"(They

accept everything, they have no problems)) (N).

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4.1.2.1.2 Information inquiry at the Post Graduate Centre

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This oral face-to-face interaction (I) was a formal information inquiry (G). The

formal conversation occurred at the reception counter of the Post Graduate Centre at

the university that Amer was studying at during the time of observation (S) between

Amer and Mustafa, who was one of the Malaysian staff members at the centre)(P). Due

to the setting, the overall key of the communicative event was formal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Amer had submitted his PhD thesis a month before the interaction occurred. He

went to the centre to ask about the result of his appeal to stay in Malaysia for another

three months as he had sent an appeal letter to the Immigration Unit of his university

three weeks before the conversation took place. The main purpose of this interaction

was to learn the result of an appeal (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Amer greets Mustafa at the reception counter.

2. Mustafa replies.

3. Amer asks Mustafa about the result of his appeal.

4. Mustafa responds by saying that it is still being processed.

5. Amer informs Mustafa that he was told by the Immigration Unit to leave

Malaysia within fourteen days but he does not want to leave because he wants

to be in Malaysia until he finishes his visa.

6. Mustafa, firmly, restates that Amer's appeal is still being processed and

suggests that Amer should be patient and pray that the appeal would be

accepted.
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7. Amer tries to calm down by code switching from English to Arabic.

8. Amer ends the conversation when he says "Ok thank you, I will call you

tomorrow, Salam".

Throughout the conversation, it was observed that Amer code switched from

English to Arabic when he was trying to calm himself down and seek Allah's guidance

and mercy (InshAllah (If Allah willing), La hawl wla qewa ela bellah (None has the

right to be worshipped except Allah)) (N).

4.1.2.1.3 Information inquiry at Time Square Hotel

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) at the hotel lobby (S) was an information inquiry

interaction (G). Amer spoke English to the hotel's receptionist, but code switched from

English to Arabic when speaking to Ali who had accompanied him to the hotel. The

key of the interaction between Amer and the receptionist at the reception counter at the

hotel was formal in nature (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of this interaction is to reserve a room (E). The acts of sequence (A)

were as follows:

1. The interaction begins when Amer briefly greets the receptionist.

2. The receptionist responds to the greeting.

3. Amer asks about the hotel’s rooms and their respective rates.

4. The receptionist responds.

5. Amer and Ali discuss about the hotel rooms and their daily rates. They code

switch to exclude the hotel's receptionist out of their conversation.

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6. After obtaining the required information from the receptionist, Amer books a

room.

7. The receptionist asks about his personal details.

8. Amer responds.

9. Ali ends the conversation by thanking the receptionist.

During the conversation, it was observed that Amer code switched from English

to Arabic when he needed to exclude the receptionist from his conversation with Ali

and for discussion purposes (i.e. I think wahada btkfi (one is enough)) (N).

4.1.2.2 Informal communicative events

4.1.2.2.1 Friendly conversations with bilingual friends at a Starbucks Café

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was more of a friendly conversation (G). It

happened at Starbucks cafe (S) between Amer and Mohammad (P). Mohammad is a

friend of Amer’s, a PhD student at a Malaysian university. Amer and Mohammad were

on an equal footing throughout the conversation. Due to the relationship of the speakers,

the overall key of the event was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

After collecting their orders at the counter, Amer and Mohammed headed to a

table that was located outside the café. The table faced the Kuala Lumpur City Centre

lake. They sat down and started talking about the things that were happening in Amer's

life including his life as a student, issues with his housemate, and his financial status.

Thus, their conversation was a ‘catching up with a friend’ conversation (E). The acts

of sequence (A) were as follows:

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1. Mohammad starts the conversation by asking Amer about his studies.

2. Amer responds and code switches to bridge the lexical gap.

3. Mohammad changes the topic by asking Amer about his current apartment.

4. Amer informs Mohammad that he has to find a new place to stay in Serdang

because he does not feel comfortable with his current housemate.

5. Mohammad asks Amer about his budget and informs him that you have to pay

a full deposit for anew room.

6. Amer states that the deposit is a big problem.

7. Mohammad informs Amer that he would help him.

8. Amer shares with Mohammad some of the problems that he has with his current

housemate.

9. Mohammad ends the conversation by inviting Amer to go for lunch.

Throughout the conversation, Amer code switched from Arabic to English. It

was observed that Amer code switched when he needed to bridge the lexical gap (re-

defense) (N).

4.1.2.2.2 Informal discussion with bilingual friends at Old Town Café

This is the same discussion (communicative event) involving Jafar, Amer,

Mohammed, and Salem that took place at Old Town Cafe. Thus, the Genre (G),

Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), and Acts in Sequence (A) and

Ends (E) are similar in nature. The norms of code switching (N), however, differ.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was more of an informal discussion (G). It took

place at Old Town Cafe (S). Amer was conversing with his three bilingual Jordanian
 86

friends (Mohammad, Jafar, and Salem) (P). Due to the relationship between the

speakers, the key of the event was informal(K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Amer and his friends met for drinks at the café and unlike the ‘catching up with

a friend’ conversation at Starbucks, the conversation at Old Town Café was an informal

discussion regarding the best university in Malaysia. This conversation was a ‘to share

opinion’ conversation. (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Amer starts the interaction by asking ‘Which is the best university in Malaysia?’

2. Mohammad states that the public universities are better than the private ones.

3. Jafar agrees with Mohammad that the government universities are better than

the private ones.

4. Then Salem responds by saying he disagrees with Mohammad and Jafar. He

feels that the Multimedia University, a private university, is one of the best

universities in Malaysia.

5. Amer asks his friends for further elaboration and he code switches to explain

his point (related to their opinion on the best universities in Malaysia).

6. The speakers elaborate.

7. Mohammad ends the interaction when he says "different people means different

quality".

During the interaction, Amer and his bilingual Jordanian friends code switched

from Arabic to English. It was observed that Amer code switched when he needs to

further explain his points and demonstrate capability (N).

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4.1.2.2.3 Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at home

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face verbal interaction (I) was a ‘problem sharing’ conversation

between the two friends (G) Amer and Arkan (P). Arkan is Amer’s classmate at his

university who came to visit Amer at home. The conversation happened in Amer's

living room (S). Due to the setting and the relationship between the speakers, the key

for the event was informal(K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Amer invited Arkan for tea. It was during tea that Amer shared his research

problems with Arkan. The end of the conversation was a ‘to consult a friend about a

problem’ conversation (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Amer begins the interaction by asking Arkan about his PhD Qualifying Test

(PhD defense).

2. Arkan replies and informs Amer that he had submitted three copies of his

proposal to the faculty.

3. Arkan then asks Amer about his study.

4. Amer explains to Arkan about his research problems and he code switches to

bridge the lexical gap.

5. Arkan gives Amer some suggestions to tackle his problem.

6. Then Amer tells Arkan what had happened in the meeting with his supervisor

and he code switches to quote his supervisor speech.

7. Arkan responds by making dua for Amer.

8. Conversation ends.
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During the interaction, Amer code switched from Arabic to English. It was

observed that Amer code switched from Arabic to English when he needed to bridge a

lexical gap, for example, when he used the words defense, cigarette and tobacco, and

to quote someone else (i.e. Hakali (He told me) very nice reason go and write it) (N).

4.1.2.2.4 Suggestion giving to a bilingual friend at home

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) in the living room of Amer's home (S) was a

suggestion giving session (G). The conversation was between Amer and Hussain (a

friend of Amer who is finishing his PhD in Accounting at another university in

Malaysia). Due to the relationship between Amer and Hussain, the key of the interaction

was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Unlike the ‘problem sharing’ conversation that Amer had with Arkan in which

Amer consulted Arkan about his study, Amer’s conversation with Hussein was focused

on Amer giving advice to Hussein. Hussein was worried about his research theories and

asked Amer for some suggestions. Thus, the end of the conversation was ‘to give

Hussein some suggestions’ (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Hussein starts the interaction by expressing his frustration with his research

theories.

2. Amer asks Hussein about his problem.

3. Hussein explains his problem and his research. Then, he asks Amer for some

advice on research theories that can be employed in his research.

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4. Amer replies by suggesting some theories to be employed. He code switches to

bridge the lexical gap in his interaction.

5. Hussein asks how can he employ the theories in his research.

6. Amer explains and then he suggests that Hussein discusses the theories with his

supervisor.

7. Hussein replies by saying that his supervisor told him to find suitable theories

and employ them in his study and then show him his written work.

8. Amer laughs at Hussein's reply and tells Hussein to go and read about suitable

theories for his research.

9. The conversation ends.

During the interaction, Amer code switched from Arabic to English when he

needed to bridge a lexical gap, for example, when he used the words, dissertations,

thesis and theories, to quote someone else (i.e.bthki hai (He said that) theory

information respective in decision usefulness), and when using technical terms such

as corporate governance (N).

4.1.2.2.5 Problem sharing with bilingual friends at home

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was a ‘problem sharing’ conversation (G). The

informal conversation occurred in a small room in Amer's home (S) between Amer and

Ahmad (a friend who came to visit Amer at home) (P). The setting as well as the

relationship between the speakers were casual. Thus, the overall key of the interaction

was informal (K).

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Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

During Ahmad’s visit, Amer informed Ahmad that there was a problem with his

‘status of stay in Malaysia.’ The end of the conversation was ‘to share a problem with

a friend’ (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Ahmed greets Amer.

2. Amer responds.

3. Ahmed asks Amer how he is doing.

4. Amer tells Ahmed that he is struggling.

5. Ahmed prompts Amer to share his problem.

6. Amer explains his situation regarding his visa related problems and he code

switches to quote someone speech to keep the originality of the text and to fill

the lexical gap.

7. Ahmed replies by making dua for Amer.

8. Conversation ends.

During the interaction, Amer code switched from Arabic to English language.

It was observed that Amer code switched when he needed to quote someone else (klhom

ysalo (all of them asked) where is Jordanian? where is Jordanian?) and to fill a lexical

gap (i.e. lma rohna m'atinhom sbe'a ayam (when we left they gave them seven days)

special pass wm'ahom (Also) tickets lal tayran (for their flights)) (N).

4.1.3 Ali (See Chapter III for information on Ali)

During the six months of observation, Ali code switched in both formal and

informal interactions. Ali code switched during an interview with a bilingual researcher,

in a formal meeting with his supervisor at his university, during a formal conversation
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with the receptionist of the Time Square Hotel (formal communicative events), and

when conversing with his other bilingual friends (informal communicative events).

4.1.3.1 Formal communicative events

4.3.1.1 Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian researcher)

This is the same interview (communicative event) in which Jafar was the

interviewer and Ali, Amer, Ayman, and Mohammad were the interviewees. Thus, the

Genre (G), Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A)

and Ends (E) are similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interview (I) was a formal interview (G). The researcher was

the interviewer and controlled the direction of the interview. Ali, Ayman, Mohammad

and Amer were the interviewees (P). The interview was conducted in a small and

minimally decorated discussion room at the library of the university were Jafar was

studying (S). The interviewer and interviewees sat facing each other during the

interview and it was conducted in a formal key (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Jafar conducted the interview to collect data for his research (E) The acts of

sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar introduces himself and explained the purpose of his study to his

interviewees

2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves

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3. The interviewees, including Ali, introduce themselves

4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees

5. The interviewees, including Ali, respond to the questions

6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees when he needs

the interviewees to further clarify/elaborate their answers

7. The interviewees, including Ali, further clarify/elaborate when prompted by

Jafar. Ali code switches when he needed to further explain his points

8. Jafar ends the interview.

During the interview, Ali and the other bilingual Jordanians code switched from

English to Arabic. It was observed that Ali code switched when he needed to further

explain his points (we can speak better lanha bdha momarsa (because it needs a

practice)) (Grammar, vocabulary, schema y'ani alasasiat (that means the

fundamentals)) (N).

4.3.1.2 Formal meeting with a lecturer at the university

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face to face meeting (I) was a formal meeting (G). This formal meeting

occurred in the lecturer's office at the university that Ali was studying during the time

of observation (S). Ali brought his friend, Wleed, to the lecturer's office (who was Ali's

formal supervisor) to ask about the Master’s of Arts (English) program at the university

(P). Wleed (a bilingual Jordanian speaker) would like to apply for the Master’s

program. The setting as well as the purpose of the interaction were serious indicating

that the key for this interaction was formal (K).

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Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of this interaction was to confirm the particulars for a Master’s program

with a lecturer (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. The interaction begins when Ali greets the lecturer and asks him how he is

doing.

2. The lecturer responds.

3. Ali introduces his friend, Wleed, to the lecturer.

4. The lecturer welcomes Wleed.

5. Wleed responds.

6. Ali informs the lecturer that Wleed would like to do his Master’s at the

university but he is worried that the Master’s degree will be in TESOL as he is

only interested in pursuing a Master’s in English and not TESOL.

7. Wleed confirms that he wants to study English and not TESOL.

8. The lecturer explains that the Master’s degree is in English.

9. Ali reassures Wleed that most of Jordanian students are doing their Master’s in

English at that particular faculty. He code switches to show appreciation for a

person by referring to Allah’s will

10. The lecturer confirms that there are many Jordanians studying at the faculty and

reassures Wleed that everything will be fine.

11. Ali code switches to exclude the lecturer out of the conversation to confirm

Wleed's decision.

12. Wleed ends the conversation by saying that he will come back to see the lecturer

again.

During the meeting, it was noted that Ali code switched when he needed to show

appreciation for a person by referring to Allah’s will. (i.e. Ma shaa Allah (God willed
 94

it), I was the last one) and to exclude the lecturer from of the conversation (i.e. Ali asks

Wleed that Aza bedak bahkilo (If you want I can tell him)) (N).

4.1.3.2 Informal communicative events

4.1.3.2.1 Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at the university

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was a problem sharing conversation (G). It took

place ina discussion room in the library at which Ali was studying at during the time of

observation (S) between Ali and Nedal, who is a bilingual Jordanian speaker pursuing

his Master’s at the same university. Due to the relationship between the speakers, the

key of the talk was informal.

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Ali and Nedal went to the library to study. Then they decided to go to one the

discussion rooms at the library so that they could speak to each other freely. The overall

purpose of the conversation was to discuss a problem (E). The acts of sequence (A)

were as follows:

1. Nedal tells Ali that he is struggling with his research.

2. Ali prompts Nedal to share his problem.

3. Nedal informs Ali that he is looking for a research advisor.

4. Ali code switches to fill a lexical gap and further explain a point when he

approaches his friends to get a research advisor.

5. Nedal asks Ali to be his research advisor.

6. Ali laughs and tells Nedal he would help him.

7. Nedal thanks Ali.

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8. Ali ends the conversation by asking Nedal to study hard.

Throughout the conversation, Ali code switched from Arabic to English

language when he needed to fill a lexical gap and to further explain a point (N).

4.1.3.2.2 Problem sharing with bilingual friends at a restaurant

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was a 'Problem sharing' conversation (G). It

took place at Arab House Restaurant, Kajang (S). Ali had a conversation with his two

bilingual friends, Ahmed and Mahmoud, who is a bilingual Libyan friend completing

his PhD in Physics at another Malaysian university (P). Due to the relationship between

the speakers, the key of the conversation was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

While waiting for their order, the speakers sat facing each other at a table to

discuss the Arab Spring. The conversation allowed to participants to discuss their

frustration regarding what happened because of the status of the Arab world (E). The

acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Ali begins the conversation by asking Mahmoud about the status of Libya.

2. Mahmoud replies and informs Ali that Libya has a lot of problems.

3. Ali switches the topic to the tragic status of Syria.

4. Ahmed states that Jordanian people consider Syria to be their second home.

5. Ali says that it is the American plan that protects Israel.

6. Everyone states his opinion regarding Arab Spring.

7. Mahmoud suddenly asks Ali and Ahmed when they will go back Jordan.

8. They respond. Ali code switches to quote someone's speech.

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9. Mahmoud asks Ahmed and Ali if they are studying using their own money or if

they had a scholarship.

10. They do not respond.

11. Ahmed switches the topic to the high living cost in Malaysia.

12. Ali ends the conversation by saying that he will be leaving for Jordan soon so

the high living cost in Malaysia does not bother him.

The conversation demonstrated that the speakers were on equal footing. During

the conversation, it was noted that Ali code switched from Arabic to English when he

needed to quote someone (i.e. bhko (They said) Jordan love it or leave it) (N).

4.1.3.2.3 Information inquiry at the Time Square Hotel

This is the same informal interaction (communicative event) in which Amer was

interacting with Ali in the hotel's lobby. Thus, the Genre (G), Participant (P), Setting

(S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A) and Ends (E) are similar in nature.

The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) in the hotel lobby (S) was an information

inquiry interaction (G). Ali spoke to the hotel's receptionist, but he code switched to

Arabic when speaking to Amer. The key of the interaction between Ali and the

receptionist at the reception counter at the hotel was formal in nature (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of the interaction was to reserve a room (E). The acts of sequence (A)

were as follows:

1. The interaction begins when Amer briefly greets the receptionist.

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2. The receptionist responds to the greeting.

3. Amer asks about the hotel’s rooms and their respective rates.

4. The receptionist responds.

5. Amer and Ali have discussed about the rooms and the respective rates.

6. After obtaining the required information from the receptionist, Amer books a

room.

7. The receptionist asks about his personal details.

8. Amer responds and code switches to exclude the receptionist out of the

conversation.

9. Ali ends the conversation by thanking the receptionist.

During the conversation, it was observed that Ali code switched from English

to Arabic when he talked to Amer and when he needed to exclude the receptionist from

his conversation (i.e. don't think so ma btsh'aor balraha (you will not feel

comfortable)) (N).

4.1.4 Mohammad (See Chapter III for information on Mohammad)

Mohammad code switched in both formal and informal spoken interactions.

During the six months of observation, Mohammad code switched during an interview

with a bilingual researcher (formal communicative events) and when conversing with

his other bilingual friends (informal communicative events).

4.1.4.1 Informal communicative events

4.1.4.1.1 Informal discussion with bilingual friends at Old Town Café

This is the same discussion (communicative event) in which Mohammed was

conversing with Amer, Jafar and Salem at Old Town Cafe. Thus, the Genre (G),
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Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A) and Ends

(E) are similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was an informal discussion (G). It took place at

Old Town Cafe (S). Mohammad was conversing with his three bilingual Jordanian

friends, Jafar, Amer, and Salem (P). Due to the relationship between the speakers, the

key of the event was informal(K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Mohammad and his friends met for drinks at the Old Town café. The

conversation was an informal discussion. The discussion focused on the best university

in Malaysia. It was a ‘to share conversation. (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as

follows:

1. Amer starts the interaction by asking ‘Which is the best university in Malaysia?’

2. Mohammad code switches to quote someone's speech in his reply to Amer’s

question.

3. Jafar agrees with Mohammad that the government universities are better than

the private ones.

4. Then Salem responds by saying he disagrees with Mohammad and Jafar. He

feels that the Multimedia University, a private university, is one of the best

universities in Malaysia.

5. Amer asks his friends for further elaboration (related to their opinion on the best

universities in Malaysia).

6. Mohammad and the other speakers elaborate.

7. Mohammad ends the interaction when he says "different people means different

quality".
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During the interaction, Mohammad and his bilingual Jordanians friends code

switched from Arabic to English. It was observed that Mohammad code switched when

he needed to quote someone.

4.1.4.1.2 Information sharing with bilingual speakers in a bus

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This oral face-to-face interaction (I) involved information sharing (G). This

informal conversation occurred in a Rapid bus (S). The conversation was between

Mohammad and two bilingual speakers, Rami, a friend of Mohammad who is finishing

his Master’s at a local university, and Wesam, who is also a friend of Rami’s and who

is pursuing his Master’s in Computer Science at a local university (P). Due to the setting

of the conversation and the relationship between the speakers, the overall key of the

event was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of this conversation was to share information (E). The acts of sequence

(A) were as follows:

1. Mohammad greets Rami and asks him where he is going.

2. Rami responds and informs Mohammad that he is going to Mid Valley Mall

with his friend, Wisam. Then Rami introduces Wisam to Mohammad.

3. Mohammad asks Wisam about his area of study.

4. Wisam informs Mohammad that he is studying Computer Science.

5. Mohammad asks Wisam about his semester of study.

6. Wisam replies by telling Mohammad that he is in the second semester.

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7. Mohammad suddenly switches the topic by asking Rami about a problem that

he had last week.

8. Rami tells Mohammad that he has some problems with his family.

9. Mohammad tries to calm Rami down by telling him everyone has a lot of

problems with their family.

10. Wisam agrees with Mohammad.

11. Mohammad shifts the topic by asking Rami about his plans after shopping at

Mid Valley. Mohammed code switches when he needed to change topic.

12. Rami informs Mohammad that he has no plans.

13. Wisam corrects Rami by saying that both of them will go to see a dentist.

14. Mohammad asks about the reason for going to the dentist.

15. Wisam tells him he has a problem with his teeth.

16. Mohammad makes dua for him.

17. Wisam thanks Mohammad.

18. Mohammad asks Rami if he is free to go out tomorrow with him and his friends.

19. Rami asks Mohammad who his friends are.

20. Mohammad replies.

21. Rami responds by saying that he will try to join them.

22. Mohammad invites Wisam too.

23. Rami explains that he has a lot of work to do.

24. Mohammad advices Rami to take it easy.

25. Wisam informs Mohammad that Rami scored a high grade in the last

examination.

26. Rami states that Math is easy for him.

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27. Mohammad changes his topic by code switching when he suddenly asks about

Messi's performance to get his friend's attention.

28. Wisam and Rami respond by praising Messi.

29. Mohammad informs his friends that Messi is the best player in the world for the

last ten years.

30. The conversation ends when Mohammad reaches his destination.

During the conversation, Mohammed code switched from English to Arabic. It

was observed that Mohammed code switched when he needed to change topics (i.e.

Ansa almodo’a (forget this matter) have you seen Messi last match), (i.e. asm'a (listen)

what do you have to do after shopping) (N).

4.1.4.1.3 Friendly conversations with bilingual friends at Starbucks Café

This is the same conversation (communicative event) that involved Amer and

Mohammad in an informal conversation at Starbucks Cafe. Thus, the Genre (G),

Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A) and Ends

(E) are similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interaction (I) was a friendly conversation (G). It happened at

Starbucks cafe (S) between Amer and Mohammad (P). Amer is a friend of

Mohammad’s, a PhD student at a Malaysian university. Amer and Mohammad were on

equal footing throughout the conversation. Due to the relationship between the

speakers, the overall key of the event was informal (K).

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Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

After collecting their orders at the counter, Mohammed and Amer headed to a

table that was located outside the café. The table faced the Kuala Lumpur City Centre

(KLCC) lake. They sat down and started talking about the things that were happening

in Amer's life (i.e. student life, housemate issues, and financial status). This was a

‘catching up with a friend’ conversation (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Mohammad starts the conversation by asking Amer about his studies.

2. Amer responds.

3. Mohammad changes the topic by asking Amer about his current apartment.

4. Amer informs Mohammad that he has to find a new place to stay in Serdang

because he does not feel comfortable with his current housemate.

5. Mohammad asks Amer about his budget and informs him that you have to pay

a full deposit for the new room.

6. Amer states that the deposit is a big problem.

7. Mohammad informs Amer that he would help him and he code switches to

bridge the lexical gap.

8. Amer shares with Mohammad some of the problems that he has with his current

housemate.

9. Mohammad ends the conversation by inviting Amer to go for lunch.

Throughout the conversation, Mohammad code switched from Arabic to

English. It was observed that Mohammad code switched when he needed to bridge a

lexical gap (i.e. deposit) and to demonstrate capability (i.e. Mtel ma hkitlk la thkal ham

masari (as I told you, do not worried about money), it is a small matter) (N).
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4.1.4.2 Informal communicative event with formal sub-communicative event

4.1.4.2.1 Informal inquiry at Kajang Specialist Hospital

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face to face interaction (I) was a friendly conversation (G). It took place in

a patient's room at the Kajang Specialist Hospital (S) between Mohammad and

Abdullah (P). Abdullah is a friend of Mohammad’s and a PhD Jordanian student at a

local university. The setting as well as the relationship between the speakers were

casual making the key of the event informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Mohammed went to visit his friend, Abdullah, who had dengue fever at the

Kajang Specialist Hospital. The end of the interaction was to ask about Abdullah's

health (E). The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Mohammad starts the conversation by making duaa for Abdullah.

2. Abdullah responds by making duaa for Mohammad.

3. Mohammad explains to Abdullah how he felt when he heard that Abdullah had

a dengue fever and he code switches to express his feelings.

4. Abdullah tells Mohammad that he felt he was going to die.

5. Mohammad makes duaa that Abdullah gets well soon.

6. Mohammad informs Abdullah that the doctor says he could leave tomorrow

morning. He code switches from Arabic to English by quoting the doctor's

speech.

7. Mohammad asks Abdullah how he is feeling.

8. Abdullah replies.
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9. Mohammad asks Abdullah about his experience being at the hospital.

10. Abdullah explains in detail.

4.1.4.2.2 Formal sub-communicative event -Information inquiry at Kajang

Specialist Hospital

A nurse comes to check Abdullah's blood pressure and temperature.

11. Mohammad asks the nurse about Abdullah.

12. The nurse replies by saying Abdullah is good.

13. Mohammad asks the nurse when Abdullah can leave the hospital.

14. The nurse says that she is not sure and Abdullah can ask the doctor.

15. Mohammad asks the nurse where the doctor is.

16. The nurse informs him that the doctor is not around but he will come back

around 11 a.m.

17. Mohammad thanks the nurse and asks about Abdullah's temperature.

18. The nurse replies and leaves.

19. Mohammad tells Abdullah that he has to go and meet his supervisor and will

come back within an hour. Then he asks Abdullah whether he needs anything.

20. Abdullah says that he wants "seafood soup".

21. Mohammad ends the conversation by saying that I will not be late.

During the conversation, it was observed that Mohammed code switched from

Arabic to English when he quoted the doctor (i.e. whkali (he told me) you will leave

tomorrow morning), to describe feelings (i.e. wallah (swearing) I shocked) and he

code switched from English to Arabic to exclude the nurse from the conversation (i.e.

Mohammad informs Abdullah that shklha z'alat (she got angry?)) (N).
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4.1.4.3 Formal communicative event

4.1.4.3.1Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian researcher)

This is the same interview (communicative event) in which Jafar was the

interviewer and Amer, Ali, Ayman, and Mohammad were the interviewees. Thus, the

Genre (G), Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A)

and Ends (E) are similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interview (I) was a formal interview (G). The researcher, Jafar,

was the interviewer and Mohammad, Ayman, Amer, Hamza, and Ali were the

interviewees (P). The interview was conducted in a small and minimally decorated

discussion room at the library (S). The interviewer and interviewees sat facing each

other during the interview and it was conducted in a formal key (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

Jafar conducted the interview to collect data for his research (E). In other words,

the interview was for research purposes. The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar introduces himself and explains the purpose of his study to his

interviewees.

2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves.

3. The interviewees, including Mohammad, introduce themselves.

4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees.

5. Mohammad (one of the interviewees) code switches to further explain his point

in response to Jafar’s questions.

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6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees when he needs the

interviewees to further clarify/elaborate their answers.

7. The interviewees, including Mohammad, further clarify when prompted by

Jafar.

8. Jafar ends the interview.

During the interview, Mohammad and the other bilingual Jordanians code

switched from English to Arabic. It was observed that Mohammad code switched

before introducing himself, for example, Assalm Alikom a form of greeting and dua

(prayer) for Jafar and the rest of the interviewees. Mohammad also code switched when

he needed to explain his points (i.e. throughout the semester I overcome I passed this

stage, Lano alkol balhwa sawa (because we all in the same level)), (i.e. because I told

you before I realized that they judge us as beginners y'ani mo fahmin shi (that means

we do not understand anything)) (N).

4.1.5 Ayman (See Chapter III for information on Ayman)

Ayman code switched during both formal and informal spoken interactions.

During the six months of observation, Ayman code switched during an interview with

a bilingual researcher (formal communicative event) and when conversing with his

other bilingual friends (informal communicative events).

4.1.5.1 Formal communicative event

4.1.5.1.1Interview with a Jordanian bilingual speaker

This is the same interview (communicative event) in which Jafar was the

interviewer and Ayman, Amer, Ali, and Mohammad were the interviewees. Thus, the
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Genre (G), Participant (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A)

and Ends (E) are similar in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This face-to-face interview (I) was a formal interview (G). The researcher, Jafar,

was the interviewer and Ayman, Amer, Mohammad, Hamza and Ali were the

interviewees (P). The interview was conducted in a small and minimally decorated

discussion room at the library (S). The interviewer and interviewees sat facing each

other during the interview and it was conducted in a formal key (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

This interview was conducted so that Jafar could collect data for his research

(E) The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Jafar introduces himself and explains the purpose of his study to his

interviewees.

2. Jafar invites the interviewees to introduce themselves.

3. The interviewees, including Ayman, introduce themselves.

4. Jafar asks a series of questions to the interviewees.

5. The interviewees, including Ayman, respond to Jafar’s questions.

6. Jafar asks for clarification/elaboration from the interviewees when he needs the

interviewees to further clarify/elaborate their answers.

7. The interviewees, including Ayman, further clarify/elaborate when prompted

by Jafar. Ayman code switches when he needed to quote someone else.

8. Jafar ends the interview.

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During the interview, Ayman and the other bilingual Jordanians code switched

from English to Arabic. Ayman code switched when he needed to quote someone else

(i.e. as people said mn jad wjad wmn sar 'aldrb wasal (if you study hard and walk in

the right path you arrive in)) (N).

4.1.5.2 Informal communicative events

4.1.5.2.1 Informal discussion with bilingual friends at Starbucks Café

This is the same conversation discussed earlier where (communicative event)

Ayman talked with Jafar and Mazen at Starbucks Cafe. Thus, the Genre (G), Participant

(P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I), Key (K), Act sequence (A) and Ends (E) are similar

in nature. The norm of code switching (N), however, differs.

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

This oral face-to-face verbal interaction (I) was informal discussion(G). At the

Starbucks Cafe in KLCC (S), Ayman talked with Jafar and Mazen (P). The setting and

the relationship between the speakers meant that the overall key of the event was

informal.

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

During the conversation, the speakers discussed their excitement about the final

football match between Real Madrid and Atlatico Madrid (E). After collecting their

orders at the counter, they sat down and talking about the final match. The acts of

sequence (A) were,

1. Jafar starts the conversation by asking Ayman and Mazen about the excitement

surrounding the Champions League final.

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2. Ayman and Mazen respond.

3. Jafar states that Ramous was the best player in the match.

4. Mazen disagrees and says that Real Madrid was so lucky to score in the last

minute of the extra time.

5. Ayman informs Jafar and Mazen that the match was so exciting.

6. Jafar agrees and tells Ayman and Mazen what had happened in the match in

detail.

7. Ayman code switches to express his feeling and to quote someone when talking

about the football players.

8. Mazen ends the conversation by telling Jafar and Ayman that they will see

Barcelona next year.

During the conversation, Jafar code switched from Arabic to English. It was

observed that Ayman code switched when he needed to quote someone (i.e. sm'at

Alshwali lma haka (Have you heard Alshwali when he said) Ramous is the new golden

boy) and when he needed to express his feelings (i.e. Bas bdek sahih l'aibea (the truth

that they are playing well) they are awesome) (N).

4.1.5.2.2 Information sharing via telephone with a bilingual friend at home

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

The verbal telephone conversation (I) took place in Ayman's room (S). The

conversation was an example of an 'information sharing' conversation (G). It was

between Ayman and Maher (P). Maher is a bilingual Jordanian friend of Ayman’s who
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is living in Jordan. The setting, as well as the relationship between the speakers were

casual meaning that the key of conversation was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The goal of the conversation was for Ayman to tell his friend, Maher, that he

had passed his PhD viva (E).The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Ayman greets Maher.

2. Maher responds.

3. Ayman code switches to show his capability by informing Maher that he had

passed his PhD viva.

4. Maher congratulates Ayman and asks him about his reaction when he passed

his PhD viva.

5. Ayman tells Maher that he is extremely happy.

6. Maher asks Ayman when he will come back to Jordan.

7. Ayman replies by saying that he is not sure.

8. Maher suggests Ayman to come back to Jordan as soon as possible.

9. Ayman code switches by changing the topic to ask Maher how he is doing.

10. Maher replies.

11. Ayman advises Maher to do his PhD in Malaysia.

12. Maher tells Ayman that he wants to finish his Master’s first then he will think

about PhD. Then he asks Ayman about his Viva.

13. Ayman responds by saying it went well and code switches to fill some lexical

gaps. Then he ends the conversation by telling Maher that he needs to go to his

university now.
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During the interaction, Ayman code switched from Arabic to English for

different reasons, such as to demonstrate capability (hlaa (now)you can call me

doctor), to describe feelings (Bas (but)I miss Jordan so much), to quote the examiner's

speech (examiners haka (said) your work is very good you worked hard.) and to

change topics (Forget this matter, sho akhbarek? (How are you doing?)) (N).

4.1.5.2.3 Experience sharing at the university

Genre (G), Participants (P), Setting (S), Instrumentality (I) and Key (K)

The oral face-to-face interaction (I) at the lobby of the faculty where Ayman

was studying during the time of observation (S) was an example of experience sharing

(G). It occurred between Ayman and two bilingual Jordanian speakers, Mohammed and

Salem who were completing their PhDs in Management (P). Due to the setting as well

as the relationship between the speakers, the key of the talk was informal (K).

Act of sequence (A) and Norm of interaction (N), and the End (E)

The aim of the conversation was to share Ayman's PhD viva experience (E).

The acts of sequence (A) were as follows:

1. Ayman begins the interaction by thanking Allah that he had finished his PhD.

2. Mohammad makes dua that he can finish his PhD too.

3. Salem congratulates Ayman.

4. Ayman responds.

5. Salem asks Ayman about the examiners.

6. Ayman replies and code switches by quoting the examiner's speech.

7. Mohammad asks about the examiners' concerns.

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8. Ayman replies that the examiners' concern revolved on the Methodology and

the result chapters and he code switches to fill the lexical gap.

9. Salem asks Ayman about the most important things to focus on when

conducting a study.

10. Ayman informs Salem that the theory is the most important thing.

11. Salem switches the topic by asking Ayman whether he had informed his family.

12. Ayman replies.

13. Mohammad asks Ayman about his family's reaction.

14. Ayman explains.

15. The conversation ends when Ayman's supervisor arrives.

During the interaction, Ayman code switched from Arabic to English. It was

observed that Ayman code switched when he needed to describe feelings (i.e. they were

so kind), to fill a lexical gap (i.e. theory, Methodology and Viva) and to quote the

examiners' speech (i.e. wahd amnhom salatni (one of them asked me) how did you

choose your sample). (N).

4.2 SUMMARY

It was noted that English-Arabic and Arabic-English code switching occurred

in both formal and informal communicative events (N) regardless if the events took

place face-to-face or during a telephone conversation (I). During formal communicative

events such as a research interview, information inquiry in informal settings, and formal

meetings(G). The participants (Jafar, Amer, Ali, Mohammad, and Ayman) used code

switching for different functions. The events were considered to be formal depending

on the physical setting of the event (S), the relationship between the participants (P),
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the ends of the interactions (E), the form and the order of sequence (A) and the overall

key of the interaction (K).

During their interactions with their bilingual friends, an informal

communicative event, Jafar, Amer, Ali, Mohammad and Ayman code switched for

different reasons. The informal communicative events observed included informal

discussions between friends, friendly conversations, problem sharing between friends,

suggestion giving, information sharing, experience sharing, friendly telephone

conversation, and information inquiries (G). The events were classified as informal

depending on the physical setting of the events (S), the relationship between the

participants (P), the ends of the interaction (E), the form and the order of sequence (A)

and the overall key or tone of the interaction (K).

 CHAPTER V

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

PART 2
5.0 INTRODUCTION

While Chapter 4 provided a description of the communicative events in which

code switching occurred by looking at the interactions between bilingual Jordanian

speakers, this chapter discusses the findings for Research Questions Two, Three, and

Four. The chapter begins by discussing the findings for Research Question Two before

moving on to the results for Research Question Three and Research Question Four. The

chapter ends with the summary of the chapter.

5.1 THE FUNCTIONS OF CODE-SWITCHING

Question 2- How are the sociolinguistic functions of the code switching used by the

bilingual Jordanian speakers?

The aim of Research Question Two was to investigate and describe the functions

of English-Arabic and Arabic-English code switching for the bilingual Jordanian

speakers in Selangor, Malaysia from a sociolinguistic perspective. As mentioned earlier

in Chapter One, this study views code switching as a type of strategic competence

(Basudha, 2012; Chan, 2008; Shin, 2010; Zainal Ariff, 2012). Therefore, the central

theme of this question is to understand how code switching is used strategically.

The participants were observed in two types of communicative events i.e.

formal and informal as discussed in Chapter 4. It was observed from the data collected

that Jordanian speakers switch from English to Arabic and vice-versa for various
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sociolinguistic functions such as to bridge a lexical gap, to quote someone, to

demonstrate capability, to exclude someone out of the conversation, to express feelings,

to further explain a point, to change topics, and to maintain technical or religious terms

or expressions.

The data analysis procedure for research question 2 is as below:

RQ2: What are the sociolinguistics functions of the code switching
used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers?

Triangulation

Considering whether the data in Considering whether the data in

Collapsing codes into themes Collapsing codes into themes
hand is enough to start analysis hand is enough to start analysis

Reducing overlap and redundancy of Thinking about the organization of Reducing overlap and Thinking about the organization of
codes the data redundancy of codes the data

Labeling the segments of Jotting down ideas in memo form Labeling the segments of Jotting down ideas in memo form
information with codes. in the margins of transcripts information with codes. in the margins of transcripts

Dividing the text into segments of Reading the data to get general Dividing the text into segments Reading the data to get general
information sense of information sense

Process of coding the data Process of coding the data Explored the data transcripts manually
Explored the data transcripts manually

Gumperz (1982)

Interview audio recordings

Observation
transcripts

Figure 5.1:Data analysis procedures

5.1.1 Code Switching to Bridge the Lexical Gap

The participants code switched when they could not find an equivalent word or

phrase in their mother tongue. Thus, they code switched from Arabic to English

language within a conversation to fill a lexical gap. Jafar, when he acted as an

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interviewer in Excerpt A explained that "I use some English words in Arabic language

because most of Arab speakers are familiar with those words and they do not say it in

Arabic. For example, network, internet and supervisor." [Jafar.Skype.8.8.2014]. When

interviewed, Mohammad (in Excerpt B) stated that "Sometimes when I can't find an

equivalent word in the speech so I code switch."[Mohammad. X library.1.8.2014].

Excerpt A:(Informal communicative event) Information inquiry via telephone with a

bilingual friend - Jafar calls Othman to ask for help

1 Jafar Alsalam 'alikoum (peace be upon him)

2 Othman Walikoum alsalam, keefk? (Peace be upon him, how are you?)
3 Jafar Alhamdullahtamam I miss u (Praise be to God, good)
4 Othman Ana aktar, mn zaman ma sm'ana sotak! Weink mkhtfi (I do more,
long time I have not heard your voice! Where have you been?)
5 Jafar Wallah ma fi waket youm nroh nshof supervisor (I swear that I
do not have time to see my supervisor.)
6 Othman Leish? (Why?)
7 Jafar Ma b'atona ajazat (they have not given us a leave)
8 Othman Allah ykon b'aonk (May Allah help you)
9 Jafar Lsatk mdawm balmdrsea alibya? (Are you still working in Libyan
school?)
10 Othman Ah, ween bdna nroh? (Yes, where shall I go?)

In this conversation where Arabic was the dominant language, it was observed

that Jafar (Line 5) code switched to English when he mentioned “supervisor.”

Excerpt B: (Informal communicative event) Conversation with a bilingual friend at

Kajang Specialist Hospital - Mohammed asked about Abdulla's health.

34 Mohammad Wallah mostshfa mrtbea (I swear that it is a good hospital)

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35 Abdulla Hai ahsan nurse balgsem (she is the best nurse in the
department
36 Mohammad she is cute [laugh]
37 Abdulla Nkhtblk ayaha (let us ask her for engaged)
38 Mohammad La wahdabtkfi[smile] Mn ween bdna nsref 'alihen? (No, one
is enough, how can I arrange our financial with them?)
39 Abdulla Rbak byser (Allah helps)
40 Mohammad waln'aembAllah, 'andi meeting m'a supervisor bdi sa'a bdk
ashi m'ai? (Thanks to Allah, I have a meeting with my
supervisor. I need an hour; do you need anything?)
41 Abdulla seafood soup

It was observed that Mohammad in Line 40 switched from Arabic to English

when he used the words “meeting” and “supervisor”.

The English words “supervisor” and “meeting” are widely used when referring

to a supervisor and meeting by native Arabic speakers [Jafar.Skype.8.8.2014;

Mohammad.Xlibrary.1.8.2014], thus, the use of these English words are considered to

be spontaneous and unconscious.

The code switching observed in Excerpts A and B is in line with the findings of

Pena et al. (2012), and Green et al. (2012). They argued that bilinguals code switched

spontaneously when they cannot find, or when it is difficult to find, equivalent words

or phrases, or when there are no readily available words or phrases in their mother

tongue. At the end (E) of the interaction in Excerpt B code switching was employed

because the participants (P) of the particular communicative events were familiar with

the English words used. Thus, bridging the lexical gap via code switching is considered

a strategy to enhance the effectiveness of communication.

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5.1.2 Code Switching to Quote Someone Else

All five participants code switched when they quoted someone. Excerpts C and

D illustrate how the Jordanian speakers used code switching for quoting purposes.

When interviewed, Amer (Excerpt C) said "When I report speech I have to say the

words as I heard” [Amer. Home. 27.7.2014], and Mohammad (Excerpt D) in an

interview said that "sometimes I code switch when I quote someone"[Mohammad. X

library.1.8.2014].

Excerpt C: (Informal communicative event) Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at

home -Amer consults a friend about a problem.

18 Amer Ana 'andi alshrkat atnin wsb'aen, tl'a 'andi sta w'ashreen shreka fihen
19 'alagha been voluntary disclosure w corporate performance w arb'a
20 warb'aen shreka ma fi 'alagha. Mashi?
(I have 72 companies; 26 of them have relationshipsbetween
voluntary
disclosure and corporate performance and 44 companies have no
relationship. Okay?)
21 Arkan Ah, b'aden? (Yes, then?)
22 Amer Hla sho bhkili almoshref (Nowadays, my supervisor tells me) “we
23 have to find justification for all 44companies that have no
relationship.”
24 Arkan Tra klhom btlkhshom bwahdea y'ani moshrettshrah 'anhom (You
can give a general justification. So, it is not compulsory to explain
them) one by one.

25 Amer Ah! (Yes!)

26 Arkan Lazem thki m'a alardoni. (You have to ask the Jordanian guy.)
27 Amer Nzel 'alardon (He went back to Jordan).
28 Arkan Ahkim'ao (Call him)
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29 Amer Bshtghel 'alamodo'atani (His area of research is different)

30 Arkan Meen bshtghel bmodo'ak? (Who is in your research area?)
31 Amer Mohammad and Raed
32 Arkan Bdak nas expert hdol alshbab mo kteer (You need an expert, they
33 are not
expert enough to help you)
34 Amer Hkit lldktora noa' alaafsah jab shrkat glass kan alafsah fihom
35 'aliwagal Alshrekat afsah kant aldokhan. (I told the doctor that the
high disclosure is in glass company and the low disclosure is in
cigarette company)
36 Arkan Sho haka (What did he say?)
37 Amer Aja salni (He asked me) "what are the reasons behind your
result?"
38 Arkan Sho wadhtlo? (What is your justification?)
39 Amer Hakitlo ano glass company ma 'andhom ashia saiea. y'ani rah ykon
40 bad 'andom high disclosure (I told him that the glass company is not
bad. So, it has a high disclosure.)

The end (E) of Excerpt C of the interaction was to consult a friend about his

research problems that were highlighted by the supervisor. To ensure that Arkan

understood what his problems were Amer quoted his supervisor on Lines 22 to 23 and

37. Thus, the code switching was for the purpose of quoting and it was done to maintain

the originality of the speech or text as it was important to reinforce exactly what was

said by the supervisor (Gal, 1979; Gumperz, 1982). In this excerpt, the speaker acted

as the animators of the quote (Goodwin, 1990; Shin, 2010; Turnbull, 2007).
 120

Excerpt D:(Informal communicative event) Friendly conversation with bilingual

friends at Starbucks Cafe - catching up with a friend. Amer and Mohammad discuss
Amer's life.

49 Mohammad Ana bnshak tghir wtshoflk ghorfa 'alshan tdlo habaib.

(I advise you to shift and find new room to keep your friendship
with them (your housemates)).
50 Amer Ma ana hakitlk mesh mlaghi shkli bdi aroh adwer bel (I told you
51 that I haven't found a new room, I will go to check in) Sepakat
One.
52 Mohammad Serdang ahsanlk (Serdang is better).
53 Amer Ana mesh mlaghi (I have not found any room there).
54 Mohammad Shof 'ala Mudah btlaghi (You can check Mudah. You will find
one).
55 Amer Mlit ya rejal (I got bored).
56 Mohammad Sahbi almalizy hkali (My Malaysian friend told me) “I like to
57 live with Arab guy” asalak ayah? (If you like I will ask him?)

Excerpt C shows that Amer told Mohammad that he was having problems with

his Jordanian housemates. Mohammad advises him to rent a new place. Mohammad,

on Lines 56 to 57, code switched from Arabic to English when quoting his Malaysian

friend. It can be argued that Mohammad was suggesting that Amer rent a place with his

Malaysian friend who says that 'I like to live with Arab guy. 'However, the quotation

was used to encourage Amer to consider his suggestion, thus it was necessary to

maintain the originality of the speech being quoted. Similar to Amer in Excerpt C,

Mohammad only served as the animator of the quote.

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5.1.3 Code Switching to Demonstrate Capability

Based on observations, the participants code switched from Arabic to English for the

purpose of demonstrating their English language skills. This was confirmed during

interviews with the researcher when they explained that they code switch “to show that

they can speak English fluently” "[Ayman. Home. 26.7.2014; Jafar. Skype. 28.7.2014].

Excerpt E: (Informal communicative event) Information sharing via telephone with a

bilingual friend at home such as when Ayman tells his friend, Maher that he passed his
PhD viva.

1 Ayman Alsalam 'alikom (Peace be upon you).

2 Maher Walikom Alsalam (And peace be upon you).
3 Ayman Dret Ani khlset aldktora (You know; I have finished my PhD)
4 Maher Wallah! Jad? (Oh my god! Really?)
5 Ayman Eh wallah khlset (Yes, I swear that I have finished). ((in a
jovial yet proud tone)) You can call me doctor!
6 Maher Reito alef mbrok ya ahla doctor! (Congratulations handsome
doctor!)
7 Ayman 'Ala rasi wallah. (Appreciate it).
8 Maher Keef kant frhetak w keef ahlak? (How happy are you and how
is your family?)
9 Ayman Wallah frha ma b'adha frha artiah mesh 'aadi! (It is fantastic
and unbelievable!)

The end (E) of the interaction in Excerpt E revealed Ayman sharing with his

friend, Maher, that he passed his PhD viva. The code switching on Line 5 took on a

jovial yet proud tone. It can be argued that Ayman code switched to show his capability

to speak English. With reference to the literature of Arabic-English code switching,

English is associated with prestige, civilization (Bagui, 2014; Yusuff, 2008), and a high

level of education. Many Jordanian speakers switch consciously to English to sound

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more civilized and prestigious. Thus, Ayman's code switching to English can be viewed

as an expression of success.

Excerpt F: (Informal communicative event) Information inquiry via telephone with

bilingual friend i.e. Jafar calls Othman to ask for help

14 Jafar Meen bdres 'andkom enjlizi? (Who is teaching English

language at the school?)
15 Othman Mohammad and Yaseein
16 Jafar Ma bdhom wahed talet? (Does the school need one more?)
17 Othman Elak? (For you?)
18 Jafar Ah eza fi mjallano mesh ghader astmer hon lano sart mosthel
19 twafeq bein drasa wlashghol (Yes, I cannot work at my
existing place and study at the same time).
20 Othman Khlini ashoflk! (Let me check!)
21 Jafar ((in a jovial yet proud tone)) As you know I am a good
teacher.
22 Othman Aha, akeed! (Yes, sure!)
23 Jafar Thank you my dear.

The end (E) of the interaction was to ask for help in getting a job as an English

teacher at Othman's school. It can be argued that Jafar code switched (Line 21) to

demonstrate his capability to speak English (Cerqua, 2000; Harmer, 2007). Cerqua

(2000) in his study, found that the North American bilinguals who speak Spanish and

English, code switch from Spanish to English when they need to demonstrate their

capability of speaking more than one language in their classes. Similarly, bilingual

Swedish speakers in Nalunga (2013) switched abruptly to English in their classrooms

to show that they were able to speak English.

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5.1.4 Code Switching to Exclude Someone out of the Conversation

The participants also code switched when they needed to exclude someone out

of the conversation as demonstrated in Excerpts G, H and I. Amer (Excerpt G) in an

interview mentioned that "I switch to exclude someone out of the conversation." [Amer.

Home. 27.7.2014], and Ali (Excerpt G and H) said that " You know sometimes I feel

embarrassed to say something in front of some people so I code switch to different

language" [Ali.home.15.8.2014].

Excerpt G: (Formal communicative event) Information inquiry at Time Square Hotel

- Ali and Amer reserving a room

1 Ali ((smiles)) Hello

2 Receptionist Hello, Sir
3 Ali ((in a calm tone)) Do you have a room for two people?
4 Amer [I think wahadabtkfi! (One is enough!)
5 Ali ((looks at Amer)) I don't think so ma btshaorbalraha (you
will not feel comfortable) [
6 Receptionist [Yes, sir. For how many nights?
7 Ali For about three days.

The setting (S) for Excerpt G was a formal setting. The interaction was between

Ali and the non-Arabic speaking receptionist and then the interaction was interjected

by Amer (P) (Line 4). Amer interjected Ali in a code mixof English and Arabic. Ali

responded to Amer in a mix of English and Arabic. As both Ali and Amerare bilingual,

it seemed natural for them to code switch (Hung et. al, 2015; Nwobia & SharafEldin,

2014). The brief conversation between Amer and Aliin English and Arabic was a

strategy to exclude the receptionist. The exclusions made via code switching towards
 124

the non-Arabic receptionist was neither scripted nor was it orchestrated. The exclusion

was positive in nature as the reason to exclude the receptionist was not done to hurt the

receptionist's feelings or to ignore or ostracize the receptionist (Dabrowska, 2013;

Hughes et al., 2006). In this case, code switching was used to exclude someone out of

the conversation.

Excerpt H: (Formal communicative event) Formal meeting with lecturer at the

university- Ali and Maher discuss the Master’s of English Language Studies program
with a lecturer.

13 Lecturer The certificate will be in English Language. It depends on your

14 final project.
15 Wleed I am worried if it will be in TESOL
16 Ali ((smiles)) Don't worry, all Jordanian students did their master
17 in this faculty y'aniklomakhedshadtomnhaialkolia. (all of them
got their certificated from this college)
18 Lecturer Yes yes I supervised more than ten Jordanian students.
19 Ali Ma shaa Allah (God willed it), I was the last one
20 Lecturer I have two more this semester
21 Wleed ((in joking tone)) Maybe I will be the third one! [
22 Ali ]zabedakbahkilo(if you like I can tell him)
23 Wleed B'aden (later)
24 Ali Thank you dr.

The setting (S) of the interaction described in Excerpt H was a formal setting.

The interaction was between Ali, Wleed, and Ali's ex-supervisor (a non-Arabic speaker)

(P). Wleed expressed his concern on Line 15to the lecturer. This concern was a genuine

concern, especially for Jordanians as it is difficult for them to find work in Jordan if the

degree awarded to them has the word 'TESOL' on it as there are already an
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overwhelming number of TESOL graduates in Jordan. On Lines 16 and 17, Ali tried to

assure Wleed that the Jordanians who studied at this particular faculty were awarded a

Master’s degree in English Language and not TESOL. The lecturer confirmed Ali's

point on Line 18. On Line 21 Wleed jokingly said "Maybe I will be the third one!" Ali,

who was excited about Wleed becoming one of his ex-supervisor's new supervisees,

interjected on Line 22 in Arabic. This was an example of exclusion as the function of

the interjection was to exclude the lecturer from the interaction between him (Ali) and

Wleed. Similar to Excerpt G, the exclusion can be viewed in a positive light as it was

not meant to ignore the lecturer but to promptly confirm or make a decision.

Excerpt I: (Formal communicative event) Conversation between Mohammad and the

nurse at Kajang Specialist Hospital

21 Nurse Excuse me we would like to check his pressure and

temperature
22 Mohammad Okay, how is Abdullah?
23 Nurse He is good
24 Mohammad When is he going to leave?
25 Nurse I am not sure you can ask the doctor
26 Mohammad ((looks at Abdullah)) Shklhaz’alat? (She got angry?)
27 Abdullah No, she is the best
28 Mohammad ((looks at the nurse)) Where can I see the doctor?
29 Nurse He is not around, after 11 he will come.
30 Mohammad Thank you, how is his temperature?
31 Nurse Normal
32 Mohammad Alhamdullah (Praise and thanks be to Allah)
33 Abdullah Thank you sister
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The setting (S) of the interactions in Excerpt I was a formal setting. The

interaction was between Mohammad and a non-Arabic speaking nurse. In Line 26,

Mohammad looked at Abdullah (P) and switched from English to Arabic to ask him

about the nurse "Shklhaz'alat?" The exclusion can be viewed in a positive light as it

was not meant to ignore the nurse but to confirm the nurse’s feelings.

5.1.5 Code Switching to Express Feelings

It was also found that code switching is used to express feelings in English.

When interviewed, Ayman (Excerpt J) said that “Sometimes when I describe feelings

like, love and hate, I describe them in English."[Ayman. Home. 26.7.2014].

Mohammad (Excerpt K) in an interview explained that, "I express myself, my feelings

in English" [Mohammad. X library.1.8.2014].

Excerpt J: (Informal communicative event) Experience sharing at the university-

Ayman shared his PhD's viva experience with his friends.

5 Salem Keef kano examiners? (How were the examiners?)

6 Ayman Ma shaaAllah’alihom (Glory be to Allah);they were so
kind!
7 Mohammad 'Ala sho aktr shi salok? (What did they concentrate on?)
8 Ayman Methodology w (and) result mtl anbhkili wahadmnhom (one
9 of them asked me) “how did you choose your sample”?
10 Mohammad Shohakitlo? (What was your answer?)
11 Ayman “I chose them purposively; it depends on their criteria”.
12 Salem Shobtnsahnay'ani 'alashonrkez? (What is your advice to us?)

Code-switching can be used by speakers to express feelings, such as happiness,

excitement, anger, sadness, and feeling overwhelmed (Al-Khatib, 2003, SharafEldin,
 127

2014). The code switching shown on Line 6 was used when Ayman wanted to express
happiness and relief.

Excerpt K: (Informal communicative event) conversation with a bilingual friend at the

Kajang Specialist Hospital - Mohammed asks about Abdulla's health.

1 Mohammad Alhamdullah 'alaslamtkwallah ma tshofshar( praise and

thanks be to Allah that you are good)
2 Abdulla Allah yslmk (thank you)
3 Mohammad Wallah (I swear)Ishocked!Lmahkoliano (when they told me)
Dengue fever.
4 Abdulla Rohet ma amot! (I was going to die)
5 Mohammad Slamtk, khbretahlak (Have you told your parents?)
6 Abdulla La ma b’arfo. Alyoumaja doctor whkali (No, they don't
know. The doctor told me) you will leave tomorrow morning.
7 Mohammad Momtaz w keefsarwd'ak (Great, how do you feel?)

The end (E) of the interaction of Excerpt K was to ask about Abdullah's health.

The exclamation 'Ishocked'on Line 3 was uttered to express Mohammad’s

overwhelming feelings upon hearing Abdullah's condition.

While there are studies that found EFL speakers were more inclined to express

their feelings in their mother tongue rather than in English (Fotos, 1990). The results of

this study were in line with the studies conducted by Warschauer, El-Said and Zohyr

(2002) where bilingual Egyptian speakers code switched from Arabic to English to

express their positive and negative feelings. In addition, this current study confirmed

the results of studies conducted by Muthusamy (2010), Rios (2013), Maratab et al.

(2015), Chowdhury (2013), Goldbarg (2009) and Ahlberg (2010) that revealed that

bilingual speakers would code switch to English when they expressed their feelings. It

is argued that feelings can be economically expressed in English rather than in their
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mother tongues (Ahlberg, 2010; Chowdhury, 2013; Maratab et al., 2015; Muthusamy,

2010; Rios, 2013). In the case of Excerpts J and K, the expression in Arabic for “they

are so kind!” and "I shocked!” would be longer then the English phrases.

5.1.6 Code Switching to Further Explain a Point

It was found that the participants code switched from English to Arabic and vice

versa when they needed to further explain a point. Excerpts L and M illustrate how

bilingual Jordanian speakers code switched to clarify a point. When interviewed, Ali

(Excerpt L) said that "when I say a term in Arabic or English I clarify it in different

language. "and in an interview with Jafar (Excerpt M) hesaid that “sometimes I code

switch when I want to emphasize about something or I want to clarify more about

anything." [Jafar.Skype.8.8.2014].

Excerpt L: (Formal communicative event) Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian

researcher) - Ali's responses to Jafar's questions

537 Jafar Ok what makes you apprehensive in BM class in general?

538 Ali In general, two times weekly makes me frustrated la2no ma fi
539 waqet rah tkon apprehensive akeed (because there is not enough
time for practice, you will be apprehensive for sure)
540 Jafar Don’t you feel that communicating makes you feel apprehensive
541 because you don’t have enough vocabulary?
542 Ali Yea sure (.) if I have enough vocabulary I feel better as much as
543 you have
Vocabulary (.) you feel less apprehensive inverse proportion if you
544 have much vocabulary you feel less apprehensive
545 Jafar Yea if you have less vocabulary you feel more anxious and if you
546 have
 129

more vocabulary you feel less anxious

547 Ali Yea

The end (E) of the interview was to collect data for Jafar's research. Jafar asked

Ali a series of questions and then Ali responded and clarified his answers. It was

observed that Ali, on Line 538 to 539 code switched from English to Arabic to explain

and clarify his point. This is in line with Alenezi's (2010) argument that Arab students

at a Kuwait University code switched from English to Arabic to further explain their

points.

Excerpt M: (Formal communicative event) Interview with bilingual Jordanian

speakers -Jafar collects data for his research.

Jafar How you feel if you don’t understand what the teacher is
168 correcting?
169 Mohammad No problem
170 Jafar Will you feel frustrated y'anilmats'aorbalahbat (that means
171 when you feel frustrated) if you don’t understand what is the
172 teacher is saying in BM? Mohammad
173 Mohammad Actually no, because I told you before I realized that they judge
174 us as Beginners y'ani mo fahmin shi (that means we are
175 struggling to understand) ok? So for me as a teacher when I
176 deal with someone who Consider as a beginner, so I’ll know
that he will not feel any frustrated. So for me at that time I have
177 enough level of confident to deal with my teacher or classmates
178 Jafar Thank you. What about you?
179 Amer I think it’s not a problem because at that time it’s natural to
180 misunderstand, to not understand what the teacher is saying,
we have to ask our classmates if didn’t get the answer we have
181 to ask the teacher
 130

The end (E) of the interview was to collect data for Jafar's research. Thus, the

interview questions need to be understood. It was observed that Jafar on Line 170 code

switched from English to Arabic to further explain his question. Sometimes speakers

switch from one language to other when they do not want to create confusion and

misunderstanding for listeners so they code switch from one language to the other to

clarify their message immediately (Alenezi, A. 2010; Baker, C. 2006; Maratab A. et al.

2015; Reyes, I. 2004; Tabaku, E. 2014). This is a strategy that bilinguals naturally resort

to avoid ambiguity during an interaction.

5.1.7 Code Switching to Change Topics

The participants also code switched when they change topic during the course

of a conversation. Excerpt N and O demonstrate how the bilingual Jordanian speakers

code switched to change the topic of conversation. When interviewed, Ayman (Excerpt

N) said that “I code switch when I go through different topics".

[Ayman.Home.26.7.2014], and Mohammad (Excerpt O) in an interview explained that

"when I change the topic I code switch." [Mohammad. X library. 1.8.2014].

Excerpt N: (Informal communicative event) Information sharing via telephone with a

bilingual friend at home such as when Ayman tells his friend, Maher that he passed his
PhD viva.

8 Maher Keef Kant frhetak w keef ahlak? (How happy are you and how
is your
family?)
9 Ayman Wallah frha ma b'adha frha artih mesh 'aadi (It is fantastic and
unbelievable!)
 131

10 Maher Btstahel kol khair, mtaraj'allardon? (You deserve it, when will
you come back Jordan?)
11 Ayman Mo mtaked momkn atakhar shoi. (I am not sure, maybe I will
be late)
12 Maher Leish? (Why?)
13 Ayman I have my business in Malaysia, so I prefer to stay here.
14 Maher T'al hon ahsanlk. (It's better to come back).
15 Ayman La hon ahsan. (No, here is better).
16 Maher 'Arahtak (As you like).
17 Ayman Bas (but) I miss Jordan so much!
18 Maher Jordan misses you too!
19 Ayman Forget this matter. Sho akhbarek? (How are you doing?)
20 Maher Tamam, drasa wshoghl (perfect, working and studying)
21 Ayman Listen up! Sho raik aghdmlk llPhd hon? (You think of
completing PhD here?)
22 Maher Khlini akhles wb'aden bser khair (Let me finish my study,
then we will see).
23 Ayman Inshallah (Allah wills).

Ayman, on lines 19 and 21, quickly switched from Arabic to English to change

the topic of conversation. This code switch served as a signal to move from the previous

topic to the next topic of conversation (Abdul-Zahra, 2010; Reyes, 2004; Shin &

Milroy, 2000).

Excerpt O: (Informal communicative event) Information sharing with bilingual

speakers in a bus - Mohammad invites Mohammad and Rami to hang out with him the
next day.

27 Mohammad ......Rami(.)If you are free tomorrow, we can go out

28 somewhere with my friends.
29 Rami Who are they?
30 Mohammad Abdullah, Mohammad and one Chinese guy. Maybe you
31 haven't met
 132

him yet.
32 Rami Okay, I’ll try to come
33 Mohammad I think at 7 evening.
34 Mohammad ((looks at Wisam)) You join us if u like?
35 Wisam I hope so [
36 Rami ] I have a lot of works to do assignments and quiz with my
courses
37 Mohammad Take it easy!
38 Wisam He got the best mark last exam
39 Rami Math is too easy.
40 Mohammad Ansa almodo'a (Forget this matter) have you seen Messi
last match?
41 Wisam Brilliant!
42 Rami Unbelievable!

This interaction was more of an information sharing session between bilingual

friends that occurred in a Rapid bus (S) between Mohammad and two bilingual

speakers. Mohammad asked Rami if he is free to go out tomorrow with him and his

friends. Then, Rami explained that he has a lot of work to do. It was observed that

Mohammad, on Line 40, code switched from English to Arabic to change the topic so

as to get his friend’s attention. Here code switching was a strategy to direct the bilingual

speakers to talk about something else (Al-Hourani and Zainal Ariff, 2013).

5.1.8 Code Switching to Maintain Technical and Religious Terms

and Expressions

Many bilingual Jordanian speakers code switch to maintain technical and

Islamic expressions and terms.

 133

5.1.8.1 English technical terms

Excerpts P and Q show how bilingual Jordanian speakers code switched to

certain scientific and Islamic terms and expressions. When the researcher interviewed

Amer (Excerpt P) he explained "I code switch to English with scientific terms. Also I

code switch to Arabic when I say Islamic words." [Amer. Home. 27.7.2014], and

Ayman (Excerpt Q) said "I switch with technical and Islamic terms because I used to

switch to English with technical terms and switch to Arabic with Islamic words to prove

my religion." [Ayman.Home.26.7.2014].

Excerpt P: (Informal communicative event) Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at

home -Amer shared his research problems with Arkan.

6 Arkan Sho hia moshkltk? (What is your problem?)

7 Amer Astkhdmet shi asmo casualty test whada l casulaty test b'atek
8 'alagha variable w variable bas ma b'atik significant negative
wla positive. (I have used causality test that gives the
relationship between two variables but it doesn't show the
positive or negative significance)
9 Arkan Ma bbinesh negative wla positive(It does not show the
significance of the relationship)
10 Amer Ah bas boghlak ano had variables wal variables fi 'alagha bas
11 ma bbein Anha positive wla negative y'ni bghder agho lano
12 positive kol ma artf' wahad brtfe'a aw bgholanha positive kol
ma artf'a had bnghos (it just shows the relationship between the
variables but it doesn't show the type of the relationship)
13 Arkan Okay

The end (E) of the interaction was to consult a friend about a research problem.

When explaining his research problem to Arkan, Amer on Lines 7,8,10, and11,
 134

switched from Arabic to English when he used the words 'causality test', 'variables',

'negative,' and 'positive'. Amer and Arkan (P) have similar educational backgrounds

and thus, they are familiar with the common terms used when conducting a quantitative

study. In order to explain his problem clearly, the English terms were maintained in an

Arabic dominant conversation (Ariffin &Husin 2011; Reem, 2003).

Excerpt Q: (Informal communicative event) Experience sharing at a university-Ayman

shares his PhD's viva experience with his friends.

5 Salem Keef kano examiners? (How were the examiners?)

6 Ayman Ma shaa Allah ’alihom (Allah willed them), they were so
kind!
7 Mohammad 'Ala sho aktr shi salok? (What did they concentrate on?)
8 Ayman Methodology w result mtlan bhkili wahad mnhom (one of
9 them asked me) “how did you choose your sample?”
10 Mohammad Sho hakitlo? (What was your answer?)
11 Ayman “I chose them purposively it depends on their criteria.”
12 Salem Sho btnsahna y'ani 'ala sho nrkez? (What is your advice to
us?)
13 Ayman The most important thing is the theory.
14 Salem Had hewa ele mo fahmo theory ((smiles)) (I don't even
understand the theory I use in my research.))
15 Ayman Enshallah btmshi alamor (If Allah wills, all will go well)
16 Salem Keefkan doctor Hussain m'ak? (How was Dr.Hussain with
you?)
17 Ayman Hewa alwhed ale a'atani major whdlak a'3toni minor wrakz
18 'ala literature review, dal ysal 'an gap w theory (He is the
only one who gave me major correction and the rest gave me
minor and his was concerned about the literature review and
he kept asking about the theory and the gap)
 135

Ayman, Salem, and Mohammad (P) not only share a similar mother tongue, but

they also PhD students. At the time this conversation took place, Ayman had just

completed his Viva while Ayman and Salem were still studying. Ayman on Lines 8, 17

and 18 (Excerpt Q) switched from Arabic to English language to maintain the English

terms that were familiar to both Salem and Mohammad. This is in line with the findings

in a study conducted by Reem (2003) where she stated that bilingual adult speakers

with similar mother tongues and educational backgrounds, switch to English to

maintain scientific and technological terms. For instance, Arabic bilingual adult

speakers in her study code switched to English during Arabic conversations when

discussing certain aspects of their research.

5.1.8.2 Islamic expressions in Arabic to demonstrate faith

Excerpts R shows how bilingual Jordanian speakers code switched to maintain

Islamic terms and expressions. When the researcher interviewed Mohammad (Excerpt

R) he stated that "I switch to Arabic when I say Islamic words such as InshAllah,

Alsalam Alikom and Alhamdullah because I am Muslim."[Mohammad. X library.

1.8.2014]. Amer (Excerpt S) explained that “I code switch to English for scientific

terms. Also I code switch to Arabic when I say Islamic words." [Amer. Home.

27.7.2014].

Excerpt R: (Formal communicative event) Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian

researcher) - Mohammad's responses to Jafar's questions

305 Jafar (.) are you worried about failing the Exam Muhammad? And
306 how
 136

do you prepare for the exam?

307 Mohammad For me I don’t feel worried about failing in the exam,
308 because I have already passed, you maybe got good
309 marks before doing the final exam if you do well
310 during your first and mid exams. You agree?
311 Jafar Sometimes
312 Mohammad No, not always but depend on yourself if you were very good
313 in the
course you prepared for the presentations, and you maybe
314 got a good mark Inshallah (Allah wills).
Jafar Are you worried about failing the course at all? And take it
315 again?
316 Mohammad No
317 Jafar Why?
318 Mohammad Because I was so good, and also how do prepare for the exam
319 I actually read the whole book and prepare myself to do the
320 exercises many times yea, sometimes come to read the letter
321 to memorize it, to memorize the exercise

The aim of the excerpt was to collect data for Jafar's research (E) thus the

interview was conducted for research purposes. Jafar switched from English to Arabic

to maintain Islamic expressions to demonstrate his faith (Reem, 2003; ZainalAriff,

2012). Reem (2003) argued that adult Arabic speakers tend to code switch from English

to Arabic when using some Islamic expressions such as InshaAllah and Alhamdullah,

which are commonly used by Muslims. Zainal Ariff (2012) who conducted an

ethnographic discourse analysis on the spoken discourse of daees/propagators of Islam

found that the daees/propagators of Islam code switched from English to Arabic when

using common Islamic expressions such as Alhamdulillah and InshaAllah to

demonstrate faith in Allah.

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Excerpt S: Information inquiry at Post Graduate Center, Amer asks about the result of
his appeal to stay in Malaysia for another three months

3 Amer ((in anxious tone)) What happened with my case?

4 Mustafa Which case?
5 Amer Overstay
6 Mustafa It's under process
7 Amer ((in anxious tone)) I have a big problem, the immigration
8 unit told me that I have to leave Malaysia within fourteen
days
9 Mustafa We are waiting for their response to the appeal letter.
10 Amer I am worried if it will be rejected, then what shall I do?
11 Mustafa ((smiles)) Pray to be accepted
12 Amer I need just three months I will leave Malaysia forever.
13 Mustafa How come?
14 Amer I am going to finish my study within 3 months InshAllah
(If Allah wills)
15 Mustafa I see
16 Amer If I go to the vice president can he do anything for me?
17 Mustafa No, you have to follow the procedures.
18 Amer (( in a frustrated tone)) Allah Akbar 'alikom(Allah is the
greatest)
The participants (P) of the interaction were Muslims. Amer asked Mustafa (the

officer at the centre) about his overstay case. Mustafa responded by saying that it was

still being processed. Amer in a nervous tone, informed Mustafa that he was told by the

Immigration Unit to leave Malaysia within fourteen days but he does not want to leave

because he wants to be in Malaysia until he finishes his viva. Amer on Lines 14 and 18

code switched from English to Arabic to demonstrate his hope and faith in Allah. To

express hope and faith in Allah, it is common for Muslims to utter common phrases that
 138

are found in the Quran in their daily conversations (Zainal Ariff, 2012). These

expressions reflect the dependence of Muslims on Allah and they reference Allah many

circumstances (Zainal Ariff, 2012).

5.2 PATTERNS OF CODE SWITCHING USED IN THE INTERACTIONS

The third research question of the study was 'What are the patterns of code

switching used by the bilingual Jordanian speakers?'

The objective of this question was to investigate the patterns of code switching

that occurred in their interactions. The researcher adopted the two patterns of code

switching proposed by Myers-Scotton (1993b) for the purpose of this investigation

(Section 2.3).

It was found that the two patterns of code-switching were used by all five

bilingual Jordanian speakers in their interactions. The analysis showed 288 instances of

code switching including intra-sentential and inter-sentential switches. An analysis of

the transcript of the interaction collected showed that intra-sentential code switching

was used more frequently (66%) than inter-sentential code switching (34%) (See Table

5.1 below).These results were consistent with the argument that intra-sentential code

switching requires an adult to be proficient in both languages (Hammink, 2000; Kenya,

2013; Lipski, 2014; Poplack, 1980; Romaine 1995). Thus, the participants in this study

were proficient in both languages as they used intra-sentential code switching more than

inter-sentential code switching during their interactions.

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Table 5.1: Percentage of occurrences of patterns of code switching

Patterns of code The number of Total
switching occurrences Percentage
Intra-sentential code
190 66%
switching
Inter-sentential code
98 34%
switching
Total number of code
288 100%
switching found in the data
Source: The results were obtained using SPSS statistical package (19)

Analysis also revealed that a particular pattern of code switching does not

indicate its function. Intra-sentential and inter-sentential code switching are used for

various functions (see Section 5.1 and 5.2.1 and 5.2.2). Examples of intra sentential and

inter sentential code switching during the observation time in this study are

demonstrated in 5.2.1. and 5.2.2.

5.2.1 Intra-Sentential Code Switching

Excerpt 1 was taken from the information inquiry conversation at the Time

Square Hotel between Ali, Amer, and the receptionist who was a non-Arabic speaker.

Intra-sentential code switching occurred on Line 4 and 5. Amer and Ali code switched

from English to Arabic to exclude the receptionist from the conversation.

Excerpt 1
1 Ali ((smiles)) Hello
2 Receptionist Hello, Sir
3 Ali ((in a calm tone)) Do you have a room for two people? [
4 Amer [I think wahada btkfi (one is enough)
5 Ali ((looks at Amer)) I don't think so ma btshaor balraha (you
will not feel comfortable) [
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6 Receptionist [Yes, sir. For how many nights?

7 Ali For about three days.

The next excerpt (Excerpt 2) was taken from a formal interview. Intra-sentential

switching occurred on Line 37. Ayman code switched from English to Arabic to explain

a point.

Excerpt 2
33 Ayman Actually I was afraid of making some mistakes
34 in BM, maybe because of
lack of vocabulary, because I could read but I
35 ((smiles)) I couldn’t know what I read.
36 Jafar Means you couldn’t understand what you read?
Ayman Yes, I couldn’t understand what I read lanha
37 kant (because it was) new
38 Language wma b'arafha (And I do not have any
idea about it).

5.2.2 Inter-Sentential Code Switching

Excerpt 3 was taken from formal conversation between Ali, Wleed, and Ali's

ex-lecturer/supervisor, who was a non-Arabic speaker. The excerpt shows how inter-

sentential switching is employed between turns when Ali switched from English to

Arabic language to exclude the lecturer from the conversation. The inter-sentential

switching occurred at sentence boundary as shown on Line 22.

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Excerpt 3
13 Lecturer The certificate will be in English Language. It depends on
14 your
final project.
15 Wleed I am worried if it will be in TESOL
16 Ali ((smiles)) Don't worry, all Jordanian students did their master
17 in this faculty y'ani klo makhed shadto mn hai alkolia. (all of
them got their certificated from this college)
18 Lecturer Yes yes I supervised more than ten Jordanian students.
19 Ali Ma shaa Allah (Glory be to Allah); I was the last one
20 Lecturer I have two more this semester
21 Wleed ((in joking tone)) Maybe I will be the third one!
22 Ali Aza bedak bahkilo (if you like I can tell him)
23 Wleed B'aden (later)
24 Ali Thank you dr.

The next excerpt (Excerpt 4) was taken from an informal telephone conversation

between Jafar and Othman. The main purpose of calling Othman was to ask for help to

find a job as an English teacher, thus Jafar code switched from Arabic to English. This

event included an inter-sentential switch where Jafar switched from Arabic to English

language at the sentence boundary on Line 31. Jafar switched from Arabic to English

to further explain a point.

Excerpt 4
26 Othman Anta ai semester? (Which semester are you?)
27 Jafar Fifth semester
28 Othman Wb'adak mesh 'amel defense? (Have you done your defence?)
29 Jafar Not yet
30 Othman Walllah kteer (Swearing that it is a long time)
31 Jafar It means I missed my turn because of my job.
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32 Othman Khlini ashoflk alwd'a wardlk khbar (Let me check, then I will
contact you).

5.3 COMMUNICATIVE EVENTS AND PATTERNS OF CODE

SWITCHING

The fourth research question in this study was 'Does the communicative events

and patterns of code switching influence each other?'

Further analysis was conducted to find out if there was a relationship between

the communicative events and the patterns of code switching. While it was found that

Jordanian speakers, in general, performed more intra-sentential code switching (66%)

rather than inter-sentential (34%) as illustrated in Table 1, further analysis showed that

the inter-sentential and intra-sentential patterns of code switching were not influenced

by the communicative events as shown in Table 2 below. As reflected in Table 2, there

was no correlation between the communicative events and the patterns of code

switching as they were not statistically significant (r = -1.00, n = 288, p < .05).

Table 5.2: The correlation between the communicative events and the patterns of code
switching
Correlations
What are What are the
the patterns communicative
of CS? events in which
Jordanian code
switch?
What are the patterns of Pearson Correlation 1 -.1000
CS? Sig. (2-tailed) .089
N 288 288
What are the Pearson Correlation -.1000 1
communicative events in Sig. (2-tailed) .089
which Jordanian code N 288 288
switch?
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5.4 SUMMARY

In a bilingual community, people often switch from one language to another in

their conversations. A number of code-switching researchers (Abdul-Zahra, 2010; Abu

Mathkour, 2004; Li & Milroy, 1995; Shin & Milroy, 2000) argue that code switching

is used as an additional resource to achieve particular interactional goals with other

speakers. Nilep (2006) and Zainal Ariff (2012) argued that code-switching in

multilingual and bilingual societies has emerged as a communicative strategy used by

multilingual or even bilingual speakers whenever these speakers face various needs. In

this study, the five bilingual Jordanian speakers code switched from English to Arabic

and Arabic to English for different communicative functions with reference to the wider

context of code switching (the communicative events) such as to bridge a lexical gap,

to quote someone, to demonstrate capability, to exclude someone from a conversation,

to express feelings, to further explain a point, to change topics, and to maintain technical

and religious terms and expressions. It can be argued that the functions of code

switching, in the case of this study, depended on the details of the communicative

events, especially the participants (P) and the end (E) of the communicative event. The

Jordanian bilingual speakers' code switching (for the purpose of bridging the lexical

gap, quoting someone's speech, demonstrating capability, excluding someone out of the

conversation, expressing feelings, further explaining a point, changing a topic and

maintaining the technical/religious terms/expressions) depended on who was involved

in the interaction (the participant (P)) and the purpose of the interaction (the end (E)).

The results of this study showed that intra-sentential code switching was used

more frequently (66%) than inter-sentential code switching (34%). These results were
 144

consistent with the studies that found bilinguals who were competent in both languages,

tend use more intra-sentential code switching rather than they do inter-sentential code

switching in their interactions (Hammink, 2000; Kenya, 2013; Lipski, 2014; Poplack,

1980; Romaine 1995). Further analysis also revealed that there was no relationship

between the patterns and function of code switching. It was also found that there was

no relationship between the communicative events (context of interactions) and the

patterns of English-Arabic and Arabic-English code switching. In other words, the

context of the interaction did not influence the patterns of code switching and vice

versa.
 CHAPTER VI

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS

6.0 INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of code switching by

bilingual Jordanian speakers in their daily oral interactions including both formal and

informal communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective. This study was

conducted to identify the contexts (communicative events) in which Arabic-English

code switching occurred, to investigate and understand the functions of Arabic-English

code switching among bilingual Jordanian speakers in Selangor, Malaysia from a

sociolinguistic perspective, to investigate the patterns of code switching and to

investigate if the communicative events and the patterns of code switching influence

each other. Five bilingual Jordanian speakers who were studying and living in Selangor,

Malaysia were chosen. The researcher observed the participants over a period of six

months in different communicative events. The researcher also interviewed the

participants after observing them for triangulation purposes.

This chapter consists of a summary and discussion of the major findings,

implications, limitations of the study and suggestions for further research. It ends with

a summary of the chapter.

The research questions guiding this study were as follows:

1. What are the communicative events in which the Jordanian bilingual speakers

code switch?
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2. How are the sociolinguistic functions of the code switching used by the bilingual

Jordanian speakers?

3. What are the patterns of code switching used by the bilingual Jordanian

speakers?

4. Do the communicative events and patterns of code-switching influence each

other?

6.1 SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION OF MAJOR FINDINGS

6.1.1 The Communicative Events in Which English-Arabic/ Arabic-

English Code Switching were Clearly Noticeable

Results showed that Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched in different

formal and informal communicative event including formal information inquiries,

research interviews, and formal meetings between bilingual friends as well as informal

discussions, friendly conversations, problem sharing, suggestion giving, information

and experience sharing, friendly telephone conversations and informal information

inquiries between bilingual friends.

This study was one of the very few studies that examined code-switching

phenomenon in different formal and formal communicative events experienced by

bilingual speakers in their daily interactions. The researcher employed Hymes’

SPEAKING grid as a tool to identify, describe and analyse the communicative events

in which Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched. This in turn, broadened the scope

of exploration for code switching since several code switching occurrences were

spotted and analysed in different formal and informal communicative events. Other

studies (e.g. Alshehab, 2014; Mustafa, 2011; Alkhresheh, 2015; Alkhatib, 1994)

investigated the phenomenon of code switching in pre-identified single communicative

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events that in turn, limited the exploration of the phenomenon under discussion due to

limited amount of data collected from these single communicative events. For example,

Mustafa (2011) examined the phenomenon of SMS code-switching among Jordanian

teenagers to investigate the phrases most frequently used when teenagers code-switched

SMS and the reasons behind switching either to English or Arabic while texting.

Alshehab (2014) examined the universal English Code Switches (CSs) used by

translation students at Jadara University (JU) in Jordan with to analyse the types and

functions of CSs employed by students at the same university.

6.1.2 The Functions of English-Arabic and Arabic-English Code

Switching

Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched from English-Arabic and Arabic-

English for various sociolinguistic functions such as to bridge a lexical gap, to quote

someone, to demonstrate capability, to exclude someone out of the conversation, to

express feelings, to further explain a point, to change topics, and to maintain technical

and religious terms and expressions.

Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched to bridge lexical gaps. This is in line

with the findings from studies conducted by Pena et. al (2012) and Green et. al (2012)

who argued that bilinguals code switched spontaneously when they cannot find, or

when it is difficult to find equivalent words or phrases, or when there are no readily

available words or phrases in their mother tongue. Moreover, Jordanian bilingual

speakers code switched to quote someone else as shown in the data analysis section (see

Section 5.1.2 for further explanation). Jordanian bilingual speakers also code switched

to demonstrate capability. That is, participants would code switch from Arabic to

English for the purpose of demonstrating their English language skills. This is in line
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with Cerqua (2000) and Harmer (2007). Cerqua (2000) in his study found that the North

American bilinguals who spoke Spanish and English code switched from Spanish to

English when they needed to demonstrate their ability to speak more than one language

in their classes (i.e. studying abroad in Mexico). Similarly, bilingual Swedish speakers

in Nalunga (2013) switched abruptly to English in their classrooms to show that they

could speak English.

Jordanian bilingual speakers also code switched to exclude someone out of the

conversation. The exclusion is seen as positive in nature as the reason to exclude was

not for the purpose of hurting the receptionist's feelings or to ignore or ostracize her. In

this case the code switching was done to promptly confirm or make a decision.

Jordanian bilingual speakers also code switched to express their feelings in English.

This is in line with Al-Khatib (2003) who argued that Jordanian speakers code switched

to express certain feelings such as happiness, excitement, anger, sadness, and

overwhelming emotion. Other studies found that EFL speakers were more inclined to

express their feelings in their mother tongue rather than in English (Fotos, 1990). This

study agreed with the results of a study by Warschauer, El-Said and Zohyr (2002). In

their study, bilingual Egyptian speakers code switched from Arabic to English to

express their positive and negative feelings. In addition, the current study was also in

line with studies conducted by Muthusamy (2010), Rios (2013), Maratab et al. (2015),

Chowdhury (2013), Goldbarg (2009) and Ahlberg (2010) that revealed that bilingual

speakers would code switch to English when they expressed their feelings. One

explanation is that the speakers felt that their feelings were more economically

expressed in English than in their mother tongues (Ahlberg, 2010; Chowdhury, 2013;

Maratab et al., 2015; Muthusamy, 2010; Rios, 2013).

 149

Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched to explain a point. This is in line

with many researchers (Alenezi, A. 2010; Baker, C. 2006; Maratab A. et al. 2015;

Reyes, I. 2004; Tabaku, E. 2014) who found that bilingual speakers employed code

switching to avoid ambiguity during their interactions. Also, Jordanian bilingual

speakers code switched to change topics. This is in line with other scholars who found

that code switching in conversation serves as a signal to move to the topic of

conversation (e.g. Abdul-Zahra, 2010; Reyes, 2004; Shin & Milroy, 2000). Finally,

Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched to maintain technical and religious terms

and expressions.

6.1.3 The patterns of English-Arabic and Arabic-English code switching

The study referred to Myers-Scotton (1993) classification of patterns for inter

and intra sentential code switching. In this study the analysis of the data revealed that

288 instances of intra-sentential and inter-sentential switching. Further analysis showed

that intra-sentential code switching was used more frequent (66%) than inter-sentential

code switching (34%). The results were consistent with the argument that intra-

sentential code switching requires an adult to be proficient in both languages

(Hammink, 2000; Kenya, 2013; Lipski, 2014; Poplack, 1980; Romaine 1995), which

applied to the participants of this study as they were all bilingual Jordanian adults who

were proficient in Arabic and English. Thus, with reference to the participants of the

study, it was expected that they would use intra-sentential code switching more than

inter-sentential code switching in their interactions.

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6.1.4 The Relationship between the Communicative Events, and the

Patterns of English-Arabic and Arabic-English Code Switching

This research question was an extended exploration of the first and third

research questions asked in this study. It investigated the relationship between the

communicative events in which Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched and the

patterns of code switching generated by their interactions. As far as the researcher is

aware, none of the studies found in the literature examines the relationship between the

communicative events and the patterns of code switching. This examination was

necessary since this study examined the code-switching strategies of Jordanian

bilingual speakers from a sociolinguistic perspective.

The researcher used a Pearson correlation coefficient measurement test to

determine if there was a positive or negative correlation between the two variables of

the communicative event and the patterns of code switching. The results showed that

there was no correlation between the communicative events and the patterns of code

switching as they were not statistically significant (r = -1.00, n = 288, p < .05).

6.2 IMPLICATIONS OF THE RESEARCH

Some researchers argue that code switching occurs because the speaker is not

sufficiently proficiency in either language (e.g. Martin-Jones & Romaine, 1986).

However, different scholars argued that code switching plays an important role in

bilingualism and it is not a random, stigmatized phenomenon (e.g. MacSwan,

2000; ZainalAriff, 2012). MacSwan (2000) argued that code switching can be

regarded as a prestigious display of linguistic talent in many cultures. The findings

from this study support the argument that code switching is not a sign of inadequacy on

the part of a speaker. Rather it is an ability and important discourse strategy. That is
 151

Jordanian bilingual speakers employed code switching in their daily conversation as a

valuable strategy to achieve certain communicative goals. This in turn illustrates that

code switching is far from being a language deficit as argued by many researchers (e.g.

Martin-Jones & Romaine, 1986).

Several studies including our study referred to Gumperz’s (1982) theory of code

switching in order to identify and understand the functions of code switching in

different communicative events. This study further validated the appropriateness of

Gumperz’s (1982) list of code switching functions for researchers interested in

identifying and understanding the functions of code switching in different languages

and in different communicative events.

Previous studies that pre-identified communicative events are limited. This

study widened the scope of communicative events. Thus, the finding helped further

define and understand the existing functions of code switching. Some of the functions

in this study were similar to those found in pre-identified communicative events

indicating that similar functions of code switching can be found in various

communicative events.

This study was conducted in Malaysia where English is a second language. A

few previous studies have been conducted in contexts where English is the foreign

language i.e. Jordan. The results of this study revealed that code switching functions in

similar ways in both contexts although additional functions were found in environments

where English is the second language.

Being in a country where English is spoken as a second language provided the

Jordanian participants with additional practice and the proper context to enhance their

second language acquisition (SLA) processes through the use of code switching

strategies. Many researchers have argued that code-switching enhances the second
 152

language acquisition (SLA) process and verbal language development due to the

extensive switching from a mother language to a target language (e.g. Svendsen, 2014;

Macaro, 2005; Ahmad, 2009). For example, Svendson (2014) examined the

phenomenon of code switching among Swedish pupils in English language classrooms

to determine if code switching supported verbal language development among those

pupils. The results from this study showed that learners who were not proficient

benefited from first language usage through code switching as it eventually helped them

develop their spoken English language skill by the end of the course.

The findings further supported the claim that the Jordanian bilingual speakers

were proficient in both Arabic and English because they used intra-sentential code

switching more than inter-sentential code switching. The findings of this study

validated the argument that bilingual speakers who are fluent in both languages prefer

to use intra-sentential code switching rather than inter-sentential code switching (Van

Dulm, 2007).

The study also found that there was no relationship between the communicative

events and the patterns of code switching. Inter-sentential and intra-sentential switching

occurred regardless of the specific communicative event. Thus, the study supported the

view that communicative events do not determine the patterns of code switching and

vice versa.

Previous studies that investigated the use of code switching from a

sociolinguistic perspective did not refer to any particular grid when collecting and

analysing their observation data. This study had utilized Hymes’ (1978) SPEAKING

grid, which is a useful and helpful tool for conducting a more systematic approach to

identifying and describing the context of code switching and assist in identifying the

function of code switching with reference to context. In other words, utilizing Hymes’
 153

(1978) SPEAKING grid to identify and describe the context of code switching was

valuable for developing code-switching studies from the sociolinguistic perspective.

This study had examined the phenomenon of code switching among Jordanian

bilingual speakers from sociolinguistic perspectives since more studies were needed to

gain a clearly defined sociolinguistic explanation of code switching (Alenezi, 2010;

Alrowais, 2012). Jordanian bilingual speakers in the context of this research employed

code switching in different formal and informal communicative events to serve several

sociolinguistic functions such as bridging lexical gaps, to quoting someone, explaining

a point, and excluding someone from a conversation (See Chapter 5 for a list of code

switching functions). Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched from Arabic-English

or English-Arabic in different communicative events to express their social needs,

cultural norms, and expectations through language. Most of the studies conducted on

the phenomenon of code switching examined pre-identified communicative events such

as telephone conversations, mobile text messages, and interviews (e.g. Abu Mathkour,

2004; Sabbah and Al-Khatib, 2008; Btoosh and Taweel, 2012).

This study widened the scope of communicative events and employed Hymes’

SPEAKING grid in order to identify, describe, and analyse the communicative events

in which Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched. The researcher made use of

Hymes’ (1972) SPEAKING gird as a tool for describing the physical circumstance in

which communicative events took place (setting), the addressor and addressee of this

communicative event (participants), the purpose of the communicative events (ends),

the form and order of the communicative events (act), the overall tone, manner, or spirit

of the communicative event (key), the form and styles of the speech (instrument), the

rules that guided the communicative events (norms), and the kind of conversation

associated with the communicative events (genre). The results of this study showed that
 154

Jordanian bilingual speakers code switched in different formal and informal

communicative events including a formal information inquiry, research interview, and

meeting between bilingual speakers as well as informal discussions and friendly

conversations between bilingual friends (refer to Chapter 4for a description of the

communicative events). Using the grid in this study was successful as it made the

collection of ethnographic data and the qualitative analysis of data more systematic.

While most studies that investigated the code switching used by Jordanian

bilingual speakers were conducted in contexts where English is the first language, such

as the United States (e.g. Elsaadaby, 2013), very few studies have investigated the

phenomenon of code switching in a country where English is a second language, such

as Malaysia (e.g. Jdetawy, 2011). It is hope that the findings from this study shed light

on the phenomenon of code switching in contexts where English is a second language.

6.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE CURRENT STUDY AND

SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

This research acknowledged several limitations. Firstly, since this study employed a

qualitative research design, generalizing the findings was not appropriate because

there only a few participants (five Jordanian speakers) participated in this study.

Moreover, all the participants in this study were males as the researcher was unable to

recruit any female participants due to cultural and religion reasons. In the future, a

more comprehensive study on code switching phenomenon among Jordanian bilingual

speakers should be conducted that not only includes more participants but also female

participants to determine if gender plays a role in the functions and pattern of code

switching among Jordanian bilingual speakers in different communicative events.

 155

The second limitation faced by this study was the observation period. The

researcher observed Jordanian speakers for a period of six months and audio-recorded

their communicative events to investigate the functions and patterns of code switching.

Six months was enough time for recording the communicative events that involved the

Jordanian speakers; however, it would be more valuable if these samples were collected

over a year or two to enhance the credibility of the research results (Creswell, 2012).

Since the main purpose of this study was to investigate the use of code switching

by bilingual Jordanian speakers in their daily spoken interactions, non-linguistic

interactions were excluded because it was not the focus of the research. Non-linguistic

aspects such as body language and gestures were not discussed in this study at all, let

alone at a sociocultural perspective because culture can determine the meanings behind

body language or gesture (Sanderson, 2010).

Finally, this study identified the communicative events in which Jordanian

bilingual speakers code switched and investigated the functions of code switching in

these communicative events. The results indicated that Jordanian bilingual speakers

code switched in different formal and informal communicative events for several

sociolinguistic functions. No attempt was done to determine if there was any

relationship between the functions of code switching and the formality of the

communicative events. It is suggested that future research should address this

relationship to determine if the functions of code switching change in different formal

or informal communicative events.

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6.4 SUMMARY

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the use of code switching by

bilingual Jordanian speakers in their daily verbal interactions including formal and

informal communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective. The data was

collected from the interactions between bilingual Jordanians during different

communicative events. For the purpose of this study, a SPEAKING grid (Hymes,

1974) was employed in order to identify, describe, and assist in understanding the use

of code switching by the bilingual Jordanian speakers in context. The functions and

patterns of code switching and possibility that the communicative events and the

patterns of code switching influence each other was also investigated. Based on the

analysis, it was found that the phenomenon of code switching occurs in the both formal

and informal communicative events. In a functional sense, Jordanian speakers

switched from English to Arabic and vice-versa for various communicative purposes

such as to bridge lexical gaps, quote someone, demonstrate their ability, explain a

point, and to exclude someone from a conversation. The findings also revealed that the

communicative events and the inter-sentential and intra-sentential patterns of code

switching did not influence each other.

 157

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Appendix A
Letter of Consent

Salam,
I am doing my PhD in USIM, my thesis investigates the phenomenon of code

switching among bilingual speakers. The purpose of the study is to investigate the

bilingual Jordanian speakers’ use of code switching in their daily oral interactions i.e.

in formal and informal communicative events, from a sociolinguistic perspective.

I would like to ask you to be part of my study to be observed and interviewed.

If you agree to take part in this study, you should know that:

• All data that I obtain will be kept confidential and anonymous.

• You may stop participating in this study at any time.

• You shall receive information about the nature of the study.

The collection of data will take around 6 months.

I, _______________________________________, understand the nature of

this study and I agree to participate voluntarily. I give the researcher permission to use

my data as part of his study.

Signature: _________________________________________________
 174

Appendix B
Interview Parameters

Pre-observation
1. Personal background

• Family background

• Education background

• Exposure to English language i.e. formal and informal learning

• Usage of English language and Arabic in communication

Post observation

1. Arising matters/ issues based on observations i.e. to seek clarification

concerning the code switching that occurred during the interaction.

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Appendix C
A SAMPLE OF INTERACTION
(Informal communicative event) Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at
home i.e. Amer consults a friend about a problem.
18 Amer Ana 'andi alshrkat atnin wsb'aen, tl'a
19 'andistaw'ashreenshrekafihen
20 'alagha been voluntary disclosure w corporate
performance w arb'awarb'aenshreka ma fi 'alagha.
Mashi?
(I have 72 companies; 26 of them have
relationships between voluntary disclosure and
corporate performance and 44 companies have no
relationship. Okay?)
21 Arkan Ah, b'aden? (Yes, then?)
22 Amer Hlashobhkilialmoshref (Nowadays, my
23 supervisor tells me) “we have to find justification for
all 44companies that have no relationship.”
24 Arkan Traklhombtlkhshombwahdeay'animoshrettshrah
'anhom(You can give a general justification. So, it is not
compulsory to explain them) one by one.

25 Amer Ah! (Yes!)

26 Arkan Lazemthkim'aalardoni. (You have to ask the
Jordanian guy.)
27 Amer Nzel 'alardon (He went back to Jordan).
28 Arkan Ahkim'ao (Call him)
29 Amer Bshtghel 'alamodo'atani (His area of research is
different)
30 Arkan Meenbshtghelbmodo'ak? (Who is in your
research area?)
31 Amer Mohammad and Raed
32 Arkan
 176

33 Bdaknas expert hdolalshbabmokteer (You need

an expert, they are not
expert enough to help you)
34 Amer Hkitlldktoranoa'ala afsah jabshrkat glass
35 kanalafsahfihom 'aliwagal
Alshrekatafsahkantaldokhan. (I told the doctor
that the high disclosure
is in glass company and the low disclosure is in
cigarette company)
36 Arkan Shohaka (What did he say?)
37 Amer Aja salni (He asked me)"what are the reasons
behind your result?"
38 Arkan Showadhtlo? (What is your justification?)
39 Amer
40

(Informal communicative event) Friendly conversation with bilingual friends at

Starbucks Cafe i.e. catching up with a friendi.e. Amer and Mohammad discuss about
Amer's life.

49 Mohammad Ana bnshaktghirwtshoflkghorfa

'alshantdlohabaib.
(I advise you to shift and find new room to
keep your friendship with
them (your housemates)).
50 Amer Ma ana hakitlk mesh
51 mlaghishklibdiarohadwerb (I told you that I
haven't found a new room, I will go to check in)
Sepakat One.
52 Mohammad Serdangahsanlk (Serdang is better).
 177

53 Amer Ana mesh mlaghi (I have not found any

room there).
54 Mohammad Shof 'alaMudahbtlaghi (You can check
Mudah. You will find one).
55 Amer Mlityarejal (I got bored).
56 Mohammad
57

(Informal communicative event) Information sharing via telephone with a

bilingual friend at home i.e. Ayman shares with his friend, Maher, about the passing of
his PhD viva.
1 Ayman Alsalam 'alikom (Peace be upon you).
2 Maher WalikomAlsalam (And peace be upon you).
3 Ayman DretAnikhlsetaldktora (You know, I have
finished my PhD)
4 Maher Wallah! Jad? (Oh my god! Really?)
5 Ayman Eh wallahkhlset (Yes, I swear that I have
finished). ((in a jovial yet proud tone)) You can call me
doctor!
6 Maher Reito alefmbrokyaahla doctor! (Congratulations
handsome doctor!)
7 Ayman 'Alarasiwallah. (Appreciate it).
8 Maher Keefkantfrhetak w keefahlak?(How happy are
you and how is your
family?)
9 Ayman
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(Informal communicative event) Information inquiry via telephone with

bilingual friend i.e. Jafar calls Othman to ask for help
14 Jafar Meen bdres 'andkom enjlizi? (Who is teaching
English language at the
school?)
15 Othman Mohammad and Yaseein
16 Jafar Ma bdhomwahedtalet? (Doesthe school need
one more?)
17 Othman Elak? (For you?)
18 Jafar Ah eza fi mjal lano mesh ghader astmer hon
19 lano sart mosthel twafeq bein drasa wlashghol (Yes, I
cannot work at my existing place and study at the same
time).
20 Othman Khliniashoflk! (Let me check!)
21 Jafar ((in a jovial yet proud tone)) As you know I
am a good teacher.
22 Othman Aha, akeed! (Yes, sure!)
23 Jafar Thank you my dear.

(Formal communicative event) Information inquiry at Time Square Hotel i.e.

Ali and Amer reserving a room
1 Ali ((smiles)) Hello
2 Receptionist Hello, Sir
3 Ali ((in a calm tone)) Do you have a room for
two people? [
4 Amer [I think wahada btkfi!(one is
enough!)
5 Ali ((looks at Amer)) I don't think so ma
btshaor balraha (you will not feel comfortable) [
6 Receptionist [Yes, sir. For how many nights?
7 Ali For about three days.
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(Formal communicative event) Formal meeting with lecturer at Universiti

Kebangsaan Malaysiai.e. Ali and Maher discuss the Master of English Language
Studies program with a lecturer.
13 Lecturer The certificate will be in English Language. It
14 depends on your
final project.
15 Wleed I am worried if it will be in TESOL
16 Ali ((smiles)) Don't worry, all Jordanian students
17 did their master in this faculty y'ani klo makhed shadto
mn hai alkolia.(all of them got their certificated from
this college)
18 Lecturer Yes yes I supervised more than ten Jordanian
students.
19 Ali Ma shaa Allah (God willed it), I was the last
one
20 Lecturer I have two more this semester
21 Wleed ((in joking tone)) Maybe I will be the third
one! [
22 Ali ]za bedak bahkilo (if you like I can tell him)
23 Wleed B'aden (later)
24 Ali Thank you dr.

(Formal communicative event) Conversation between Mohammad and the

nurse at Kajang Specialist Hospital
21 Nurse Excuse me we would like to check his
pressure and temperature
22 Mohammad Okay, how is Abdullah?
23 Nurse He is good
24 Mohammad When is he going to leave?
25 Nurse I am not sure you can ask the doctor
 180

26 Mohammad (( looks at Abdullah))Shklha z'alat?(She

got angry?)
27 Abdullah No, she is the best
28 Mohammad ((looks at the nurse)) Where can I see the
doctor?
29 Nurse He is not around,after 11 he will come.
30 Mohammad Thank you , how is his temperature?
31 Nurse Normal
32 Mohammad Alhamdullah (Praise and thanks be to
Allah)
33 Abdullah Thank you sister

(Informal communicative event) conversation with a bilingual friend at Kajang

Specialist Hospital i.e. Mohammed asks about Abdulla's health.

1 Mohammad Alhamdullah 'ala slamtk wallah ma tshof

shar( praiseand thanks be to Allah that you are
good)
2 Abdulla Allah yslmk (thank you)
3 Mohammad Wallah (I swear)I shocked!lma hkoli ano
(when they told me)Dengue fever.
4 Abdulla Rohet ma amot! (I was going to die)
5 Mohammad Slamtk, khbret ahlak (Have you told your
parents?)
6 Abdulla La ma b'arfo.Alyoum aja doctor whkali (No,
they don't know. The doctor told me) you will leave
tomorrow morning.
7 Mohammad Momtaz w keef sar wd'ak (Great, how do
you feel?)

(Formal communicative event)Interview with Jafar (a bilingual Jordanian

researcher) i.e. Ali's responses to Jafar's questions
 181

Jafar Ok what makes you apprehensive in BM class in

537 general?
538 Ali In general …two times weekly makes me
539 frustrated la2no ma fi waqet rah tkon apprehensive
akeed(because there is not enough time for practice, you
will be apprehensive for sure)
540 Jafar Don’t you feel that communicating makes you
feel apprehensive because You don’t have enough
541 vocabulary?
542 Ali Yea sure (.) if I have enough vocabulary I feel
543 better as much as you have Vocabulary (.) you feel less
apprehensive inverse proportion if you have much
544 vocabulary you feel less apprehensive
545 Jafar Yea if you have less vocabulary you feel more
anxious and if you have more vocabulary you feel less
546 anxious
547 Ali Yea

(Formal communicative event)Interview with bilingual Jordanian speakers i.e.

Jafar collects data for his research.

Jafar How you feel if you don’t understand what

168 the teacher is correcting?
169 Mohammad No problem
170 Jafar Will you feel frustrated y'ani lma ts'aor
171 balahbat(that means when you feel frustrated)if
172 you don’t understand what is the teacher is saying
in BM? Mohammad
173 Mohammad Actually no, because I told you before I
174 realized that they judge us as Beginnersy'ani mo
175 fahmin shi(that means we are struggling to
176 understand) ok? So for me as a teacher when I deal
177 with someone who Consider as a beginner, so I’ll
 182

know that he will not feel any frustrated So for me

at that time I have enough level of confident to deal
with my teacher or classmates
178 Jafar Thank you. What about you?
179 Amer I think it’s not a problem because at that
180 time it’s natural to misunderstand, to not
understand what the teacher is saying, we have to
ask our classmates if didn’t get the answer we have
181 to ask the teacher

(Informal communicative event) Information sharing with bilingual speakers in

a busi.e. Mohammad invites Mohammad and Rami to hang out with him the next day.
27 Mohammad ...... Rami(.)If you are free tomorrow, we
28 can go out somewhere with my friends.
29 Rami Who are they?
30 Mohammad Abdullah, Mohammad and one Chinese
31 guy. Maybe you haven't met him yet.
32 Rami Okay, I’ll try to come
33 Mohammad I think at 7 evening.
34 Mohammad ((looksat Wisam)) Can you join us if u
like?
35 Wisam I hope so[
36 Rami ]I have a lot of works to do assignments
and quiz with my courses
37 Mohammad Take it easy
38 Wisam He got the best mark last exam
39 Rami Math is too easy.
40 Mohammad Ansaalmodo'a (Forget this matter) have
you seen Messi last match?
41 Wisam Brilliant!
42 Rami Unbelievable!
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(Informal communicative event) Problem sharing with a bilingual friend at

home i.e. Amer shared his research problems with Arkan.
6 Arkan Shohiamoshkltk? (What is your problem?)
7 Amer Astkhdmetshiasmocasualty testwhadalcasulaty
8 test b'atek 'alaghavariable w variable bas ma
b'atiksignificantnegativewlapositive. (I have used
causality test that gives the relationship between two
variables but it doesn't show the positive or negative
significance)
9 Arkan Ma bbineshnegativewlapositive(It does not show
the significance of the relationship)
10 Amer Ah bas boghlakano had variableswalvariables fi
11 'alagha bas ma bbein
12 Anhapositivewlanegativey'nibghderagholano
positive kol ma artf'a had brtfe'a aw bgholanha positive
kol ma artf'a had bnghos (it just shows the relationship
between the variables but it doesn't show the type of the
relationship)
13 Arkan Okay

Experience sharing at Universiti Tenaga Nasional i.e. Ayman shared his PhD's
viva experience with his friends.
5 Salem Keefkano examiners? (How were the
examiners?)
6 Ayman Ma shaa Allah'alihom(Allah willed them),
they were so kind
7 Mohammad 'Ala shoaktrshisalok? (where was their
concentrations?)
8 Ayman Methodology w result mtlan bhkili wahad
9 mnhom (one of them asked me) how did you
choose your sample?
10 Mohammad Shohakitlo? (What was your answer?)
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11 Ayman I choose them purposively it depends on

their criteria.
12 Salem Shobtnsahnay'ani 'ala shonrkez? (What is
your advice for us?)
13 Ayman The most important thing is the theory.
14 Salem Had hewa ele mo fahmo theory!((smiles))
(I don't even understand the theory I use in my
research.))
15 Ayman Enshallah btmshi alamor (If Allah wills, all
will go well)
16 Salem Keefkan doctor hussainm'ak?( How was
Dr. Hussain's with you?)
17 Ayman Hewaalwhed ale a'atanimajorwhdlak
18 a'3toni minorwrakz 'ala literature review, dal
ysal 'an gap w theory(He is the only one who gave
me major correction and the rest gave me minor)

Information inquiry at Post Graduate Center, Universiti Tenaga Nasional i.e.

Amer asks about the result of his appeal to stay in Malaysia for another three months
3 Amer ((in anxious tone))What happened with my case?
4 Mustafa Which case?
5 Amer Overstay
6 Mustafa It's under process
7 Amer ((in anxious tone)) I have a big problem, the immigration unit
8 told me that I have to leave Malaysia within fourteen days
9 Mustafa We are waiting for their response to the appeal letter.
10 Amer I am worried if it will be rejected, then what shall I do?
11 Mustafa ((smiles)) Pray to be accepted
12 Amer I need just three months I will leave Malaysia forever.
13 Mustafa How come?
14 Amer I am going to finish my study within 3 months InshAllah (If
Allah wills)
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15 Mustafa I see
16 Amer If I go to the vice president can he do anything for me?
17 Mustafa No, you have to follow the procedures.
18 Amer (( in a frustrated tone)) Allah Akbar 'alikom (Allah is the
greatest)
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Appendix D
Transcription Notation
(from Gumperz & Berenz, 1993)

[ ] Interjection
{[ Non-lexical phenomena which overlays the lexical stretch
]} (e.g., {[laugh] text/} text/)
= To indicate overlap and latching of speakers’ utterances
(e.g. L: so you understand = the
requirements =G: = yeah, I under = stand them/)
# Use hatch marks when extra textual information needs to be
#
included within the text (e.g., R: did you ask E #surname# to come?)
(e.g., text[laugh] text/ )
(“ Regularization (e.g., i’m gonna (“going to”) come soon/)
“)
(they) A good guess at an unclear word
( ) Translation
... Pauses greater than .5 second (unless precisely timed)
- Truncation (e.g., what ti- what time is it/)
// Turn-final intonation
/ Falling intonation at end of intonation contour
? Rising intonation at end of intonation contour
~ Fluctuating intonation over one word
** Extra prominence
* Accent; normal prominence
 187

Appendix E

Observation sheets

Name:______________________ Date: __________________

Communicative event: ________________ Time: ____________

Observation

Speaking Reflective field

Descriptive field notes
Grid notes