Code-choice in bidialectal interaction: the choice between Putonghua and Cantonese in a radio phone-in program in Shenzhen

In this paper we examine the relationship between macrolevel sociolinguistic structures and microlevel conversational structures by studying code-choice between Putonghua (the standard dialect) and Cantonese (a regional dialect) in calls made to a radio phone-in program in a bidialectal city, Shenzhen, in southern China. Our aims are (1) to uncover participants' methods of establishing the code for host-caller interaction episodes, and (2) to find out what reality macrolevel sociolinguistic structures might have for the speakers as manifested in the microlevel procedures in their talk. For these purposes we have analyzed data obtained from naturally occurring bilingual speech interaction using the conversation-analytic method and have collected information on sociolinguistic characteristics of Shenzhen from library materials. We will show that individual acts of speech and interaction at the microlevel allow participants to 'play out' the social structures relevant to the macro-sociolinguistic setting in which particular speech events are situated. The findings from the microanalysis also serve to validate the macrolevel social reality regarding the factors affecting the choice of linguistic code in a bidialectal community, such as the one in Shenzhen. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.