This study contributes to a deeper understanding of ethnic labelling practices by examining the interactional functions of the label “foreigner” found in Korean youth ELF interactions. Building on membership categorization analysis (MCA) and conversation analysis (CA), the study analyzes how students’ use of the label “foreigner” evoked an expert role by highlighting the foreigner’s use of English, at the same time excluding the people who belong to this label by employing various metaphors of otherness. Students employed the label in various interactional sequences that displayed an orientation to linguistic capital and social positioning. The study highlights that the ethnic label “foreigner” can be understood not only as identity construction, but also as performing the interactional work of distancing and othering. Finally, the students’ use of the label reflected wider-spread systems of categorization and marginalization of people who were not Korean nationals in the study’s context. The findings may have implications for an in-depth understanding of social functions of labelling practices and ethnic homogeneity in the Korean context.
This study contributes to a deeper understanding of ethnic labelling practices by examining the interactional functions of the label “foreigner” found in Korean youth ELF interactions. Building on membership categorization analysis (MCA) and conversation analysis (CA), the study analyzes how students’ use of the label “foreigner” evoked an expert role by highlighting the foreigner’s use of English, at the same time excluding the people who belong to this label by employing various metaphors of otherness. Students employed the label in various interactional sequences that displayed an orientation to linguistic capital and social positioning. The study highlights that the ethnic label “foreigner” can be understood not only as identity construction, but also as performing the interactional work of distancing and othering. Finally, the students’ use of the label reflected wider-spread systems of categorization and marginalization of people who were not Korean nationals in the study’s context. The findings may have implications for an in-depth understanding of social functions of labelling practices and ethnic homogeneity in the Korean context.
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