As sociolinguistics is such a vast, broad topic, it attracts a myriad of interest from researchers of all disciplines. As we mentioned in the What does Sociolinguistics study? section, different researchers often take on opposing views – for example, varationists and interactionalists…
Variationist Sociolinguistics – Strand of Sociolinguistics which is interested in looking at social variation within dialects and examine how variation is rule-governed.
Interactional Sociolinguistics – Strand of Sociolinguistics which looks at different styles of interaction by speech communities.
Below is an example diagram featuring some well-known researchers in the field of sociolinguistics:
Develop your understanding of the researchers cited above via their profiles below:
Penelope Eckert – High School Ethnography
Jenny Cheshire – Linguistic Variation and Function in Adolescents
Don H. Zimmerman & Candace West – Language and Sex/Gender
William Labov – Martha’s Vineyard