Why do young Singaporeans use foreigner talk when interacting with non-native language

speakers?

Research Project Report

LIN 207 - L01 University at Buffalo

The State University of New York

PREPARED BY:

ANGELA LOH WAN-YUN (50293621)

CHAN JING DAO, LEON (50293624)

KEN LU YI WEI (50292332)

Prepared for Professor Chan Hsiao-Yun

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Introduction

There are many variations as to how one may speak English when communicating with

someone else in Singapore. In Singapore, the predominant variant of the English language is

British English, due to the country’s British colonial background. Colloquial Singaporean

English (CSE), or Singlish, has since emerged as the common tongue of Singaporeans.

According to Fergurson (1971), native speakers of a language may simplify their speech,

modifying features of pronunciation, grammar, and lexicon. He also calls this phenomenon

Foreigner Talk (FT), where a Native Speaker (NS) communicates with a non-fluent Non-Native

Speakers (NNS). Given Singapore’s unique diversity as a multicultural society, many people of

different races and religions interact on a daily basis. With the array of ethnic groups in

Singapore, foreigners who visit the nation may not know if all of them speak one common

language (Noor and Leong, 2013). Within Singapore’s context, code-switching is a phenomenon

where Singaporeans may change their speaking style to suit the individual they are speaking to.

Oftentimes, this phenomenon is more likely to happen when conversing with a foreigner who

speaks a different variation of English or has a poor command in English. For example, a

Singaporean who speaks CSE might engage in FT to accommodate the interlocutor (oftentimes a

foreigner) who might not be familiar with CSE.

Although previous studies have delved into the use of FT and how it can be useful in

adapting to another culture, few studies of FT have been used to simply prevent a

miscommunication or to solve a problem without having to tackle language disparities. Thus, it

has prompted the pursuit of this research question: Why do young Singaporeans use foreigner

talk when interacting with non-native language speakers?

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Literature Review

Subliminal meaning in foreigner talk

Lipski (2005) mentions that Foreigner Talk has carried implicit and explicit forms of

inferiority, likened to “baby talk”. It cites Foreigner Talk stereotypes as a widespread

phenomenon in all societies. In societies where the use of Foreigner Talk is frequent, native

speakers’ use of this reduced language may actually influence the acquisition of their language

by foreigners. FT stereotypes only mimic the most noteworthy phonetic traits of interference

from a given first language, use few baby words, and incline more heavily towards grammatical

distortions.

Accommodating non-fluent speakers

Varonis and Gass (1985) found that an NS used FT as facilitating interaction by pro-

viding speech that is easier for the NNS to comprehend. NSs were found to use simpler and

shorter syntactic units, simpler lexical items, etc. Additionally, researchers have analyzed the

interaction strategies in NS-NNS discourse. The NS is said to take the responsibility for

anticipating and repairing communication problems, using strategies such as rephrasing,

elaboration and confirmation checks. Giles and Smith (1979) have suggested in their theory of

accommodation that all speakers continually adjust their speech to their conversational partner in

order to make it more comprehensible and congenial. Accommodation to nonfluent speakers is

one such example.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Fostering mutual comprehensibility and social divergence

According to Pearson and Giles (1990), both strategies of convergence and divergence

towards a linguistic norm have been observed to either distinguish from a particular speech

community or to maintain ingroup unity. Convergence strategies have been observed to be used

by minority groups attempting to gain approval within a more esteemed speech community by

adopting the community’s speech style. Divergence strategies, on the other hand, have been

observed to be used when a community or an individual’s sense of ethnic identity is threatened.

A divergence strategy is then used to distinguish their ethnic membership from non-native

speakers of the language.

Foreign talk as a gateway to facilitate language acquisition

Engaging in Foreign Talk need not come accompanied with negative connotations.

Verschueren and Blommaert (1991) discussed the possibility of an ‘ideal Foreign Talk’, where

native speakers of a language adapt his/her speech style to accommodate communication with a

non-native speaker of a language. The ideal form of Foreign Talk would encompass a slower

speaking rate, clearer articulation due to the slowed down speaking rate, elementary vocabulary,

and simple syntax. All of these make up the form of Foreign Talk that makes the foreign

language for the non-native speakers significantly easier to process due to factors

aforementioned. In opposition to language acquisition purposes, FT has also been criticized for

facilitating the expression of contempt towards these non-native speakers (Verscheuren &

Blommaert, 1991). As such, Foreigner Talk not only would limit the access of the foreign

language, it might also put a halt to the non-native speaker’s language development, and even

impede his/her penetration to the native speaker’s culture.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Prejudiced Communication in the use of Foreigner Talk

Ruscher (2001) stated that despite the use of FT is designed to aid comprehension

between communicators by imposing more pauses between sentences or the usage of shorter

sentences, speakers tend to over-accommodate or hypercorrect their speech. Being excessively

repetitive or detailed with terms may violate communication rules on parsimony and thus can be

perceived to be inappropriate or insulting by the receiver. Hence, communicators may adapt their

speech in manners that serve no obvious purpose such as varying pitches and stressing on words

to foreigners, basing their manner of delivery on the apparent status and stereotypical

assumptions. As a result, less linguistically sophisticated foreigners in the interaction would infer

that overaccommodation efforts by the native speaker were to assert status and maintain social

dominance. According to Ruscher (2001), the problem regarding the usage of FT is its

application when speech is directed towards less linguistically sophisticated foreigners.

Therefore, Foreigner Talk can further emphasize the social separation between parties and

solidify the power the dominant group holds.

Talking up or talking down

Fedorova (2015) concluded that Charles Ferguson’s (Ferguson, 1981) notion of defining

Foreigner Talk was inadequate in stating that it was only the simplification of messages and

there are instances of “talking up” during interactions with foreigners as well. For instance,

formal settings and communicating parties of high social status call for situations that demand

strict communication rules and avoidance of grammatical errors. Situational parameters such as

social roles and settings can significantly influence communicative strategies employed by
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

individuals when deciding to “talk up” or “talk down” to the foreigner. It was found that the

linguistic means used during communication with foreigners corresponds with historically rooted

cultural models in treating the other individual as a guest or subordinate (Fedorova, 2015).

Status of speech addressee as a source of variance

Snow, Eeden, and Muysken (1981) hypothesized that whether foreigners elicit the

Foreigner Talk phenomenon from their native conversational partners is dependent on the

perceived social standing of the foreigner, and also the foreigner’s second-language abilities. If

the perceived social standing of foreigners are of a higher social status and/or have a higher

intelligence level, these foreigners are less likely to be addressed with speech patterns that

resemble severe foreigner talk. Severe Foreigner Talk is usually reserved for foreigners who

display poor understanding or usage of the native language in order to accommodate mutual

communication. Snow et al. (1981) has also mentioned that Foreigner Talk was hypothesized to

be reserved for ‘lower-status foreigners’.

Methods

Research Design and Instrument

The research process took place in the form of face-to-face interview method. The

interviews were conducted in an empty room as the primary method of data collection and lasted

between 15-20 minutes. The targeted demographic of this study were Singaporean university

students aged 23-26 years old who have experienced communication with foreigners or have

change their way of speaking when engaging with individuals whose primary language is not

standard English. Prior to the start of the interview, all participants were informed that the

interview session would be recorded, and their responses were to be transcribed for the use of the
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

study. The aim of this interview process was to gain a deeper understanding of perspectives of

participants who have engaged in FT within Singapore towards a foreigner or have been on the

receiving end of FT that made them feel inferior when overseas or when in contact with someone

of a different language not native to them. The interview aimed to probe possible reasons as to

why young Singaporeans would engage foreigner talk strategies when communicating with non-

native language speakers. The following are the demographics of the personnel interviewed for

the study:

Participant Name Age Gender Native Language

R1 Tom 23 Male English

R2 Sonia 23 Female English

R3 Cleo 24 Female English

*Names denoted are not fictitious and for illustration purposes only

Interviewees were asked a series of questions (see Appendix A) to elicit responses

regarding the interviewees’ personal experience from encounters with foreigners. These

responses were likely to be anecdotal and were evaluated for any differences in the

communicative strategies when communicating with foreigners of different ethnicities. During

the interview, the purpose of the research question was not made known to the participants so as

to ensure no preconceived notions were brought in, as well as biased or pre-planned answers.

Results

It is to be noted that participants in the interview study did not speak in what is known to

be “standardized English” and spoke or used nuances of CSE in conveying their responses to the

questions posed to them. Despite that, it was observed through their responses that their

perception of “standard English” they spoke was synonymous with what is classified as

colloquial English in past studies. Standard English has been defined as a distinct variety of
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

English with a combination of linguistic features with a particular role to play. It is also the

variety of English with the most prestige. The prestige of standard English was determined by

social class, consequently as a result of social construction (Crystal, 2000).

From the results of the interview studies, there were three recurring themes that came up

throughout the interview process. Namely, the positive or negative attitudes of participants

towards their conversational partner, attempts to solve problems that might surface when

conversing with a foreigner and feelings experienced when conversing with a foreigner.

Attitude

Through the interview study, it was prevailing that the interviewees had both positive and

negative attitudes about their previous experiences interacting with a foreigner. These attitudes

were mainly with regards to the language capabilities of these foreigners that they had spoken to.

Tendencies of positive attitude were prevalent within the interviewees when the foreigners that

they spoke to exhibited good or unexpectedly exceptional language skills for their demographic.

Tendencies of negative attitude were experienced when interviewees felt that their

conversational partner, more often than not a foreigner, signals through his/her speech that they

are incapable of communicating at the same level as our interviewees, due to their incompetence

in the native language as per our interviewee. A statement that reflects a negative attitude

towards their conversational partner would look something like, ‘People from these countries

have little to no understanding of the language.’ as documented by the transcription from the

interview study of interviewee R1. Through our responses, it is also noted interviewees had

experienced instances of positive outlook when speaking to a foreigner. A statement from

interviewee R3 states, ‘... I think their level of competency in English also different mah, I would

assume that Eurasians are generally more well-versed with English…’. The statement from
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

interviewee R3 reflects her positive attitude towards an Eurasian’s language competency. Prior

to this study, FT was commonly associated with simplifying and accommodating of speech

patterns to facilitate communication between the native and non-native speakers, sometimes also

referred to as ‘talking down’. But through our interviewee’s responses, it is derivable that FT

happens not only to ‘talk down’ to the other party, but also possibly notions of ‘talking up’ as

well. Interviewee’s responses that were interpreted to have shown a ‘positive attitude’ showed

that they had reverence for the foreigner’s ethnic background and an assumption that their ethnic

background was a reference to how well they could speak the native language. Therefore,

whether an interviewee had a positive or negative attitude towards the foreigners they were

speaking to was highly reliant on the foreigner’s ethnic background and their preconceived

notions of that particular ethnic background.

Problem Solving

Another theme that persisted throughout the three interviews was the attempt to problem

solve. More often than not, the inability to communicate effectively happens when there is a

discrepancy in the knowledge of the native language of the interviewees. Therefore, it appeared

repeatedly that whenever the interviewees encountered difficulty interacting with a foreigner,

they engage in problem solving strategies that would facilitate the communication process. Three

elements of problem solving strategies were utilized by the interviewees of this study,

compromising, accommodating, and understanding. The element of compromising can be

observed in a statement like this, ‘I think it depends on the context and the people that I’m

speaking to, if after a conversation with them I realise that they are not really capable of holding

a conversation in the same way that I speak, then I’ll consider simplifying myself. If not, then I’ll
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

just speak the same way that I do.’ as mentioned by interviewee R2. There were instances where

the foreigners were unable to understand the interviewee’s native tongue, and this is where the

interviewees compromised and spoke a simplified version of their native language. Such

instances can be observed from responses like this one from interviewee R1 when asked whether

he would change his speech pattern when speaking to a foreigner, ‘Yes, I would so that I can

make sure that the workers have a better understanding of what is expected of them.’ Interviewee

R3 mentioned that when the foreigners she encountered were not able to speak her native tongue,

she was understanding of the situation and they were still able to communicate. Her response to

the difficulty of speaking to Icelandic locals was, ‘They tried (to speak English) la, it wasn’t

good, but it was sufficient lor at that time.’ Thus, it is conclusive that the interviewees of this

study engaged in problem solving strategies in order to facilitate communication between

themselves and the foreigners.

Feelings

The interview study also examined feelings of the participants throughout the process,

examining how they felt when recollecting encounters with foreigners. A spectrum of emotions

was observed from the interviewees, notably, fear, embarrassment, and contempt. Interviewees

experienced fear and embarrassment when they faced foreigners who predominantly spoke

standardized English. This can be observed from R2’s responses, ‘Okay my partner he’s umm

(...) Mediterranean and he’s a teacher so he has very high expectations of how umm I speak

English.’ When speaking to foreigners who stereotypically have a superior command of English,

interviewees have the preconceived notion that they have a better language proficiency and

experienced embarrassment or fear when such situations. Through the interviews, it was also
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

noted that there were indicators of contempt. In a response from R3, it can be inferential that the

interviewee R3 felt a sense of superiority when speaking about her interactions with foreigners of

a specific ethnic background, ‘Er… Ya I think so, why not leh? If I talk to China Chinese then

there is no choice but to accommodate to how they talk ma, if not end up talking to them for half

an hour leh.’ In this statement, it is clear that interviewee R3 is belittling and stereotyping a

particular ethnic group and their ‘inability’ to speak the interviewee’s native language. The

feelings identified in the interview study are able to substantiate the attitudes of our interviewees

when communicating with foreigners.

Discussion

From the research conducted, it was observed from our interviewees that they perceived

themselves to be speaking what is known as “standard English” rather than colloquial english. In

past studies, this phenomenon of “standard English” would be classified as Non- Standard

English. As mentioned by Hickey (2012), it is widely spread that the common idea of Standard

English is the only form of correct English. However, countless varieties developed from

English: not only pidgins and creoles (varieties developed due to language contact), but also

koinés (dialects or sociolects), varieties of English as a Second Language and as a Foreign

Language (Schreier et al., 2010). That being said, one variant of the English language is Singlish;

Singaporeans mostly converse in CSE and it is a grey area that proves that the English spoken in

Singapore is not simply divided into standard and non-standard English.

The results gathered from the study discovered a common consensus from all

interviewees that their intention was to try to get their message across in the most efficient
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NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

manner. This is exemplified below with all three interviewees indicated their responses denoted

with R1, R2 and R3:

If I were to disregard their understanding of the language and talk normally it could be

fatal if the workers do the wrong things at a construction site. (R1)

I think it depends on the context and the people that I’m speaking to, if after a

conversation with them I realise that they are not like really capable of holding a

conversation in the same way that I speak, then I’ll consider simplifying myself. If not,

then I’ll just speak the same way that I do. (R2)

Er… Ya I think so, why not leh? If I talk to China Chinese then there is no choice but to

accommodate to how they talk ma, if not end up talking to them for half an hour leh.

(R3)

It appears evident that foreigner talk is used in order to get the non-native speaker to

understand the message the native speaker is trying to deliver. Overall the results established are

generally similar to what past studies have concluded about native speakers accomodating to

non-native speakers by adapting their speech using simpler lexical terms and shorter sentence

structure to get his or her point across to the interlocutor. Similar to the study by Varonis and

Gass (1985), the usage of Foreigner Talk was to help facilitate interaction between

communicators as it makes it easier for the non-native speaker to comprehend the message.
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Additionally, it is noted that interviewees portrayed tendencies in “talking down” to non-

native speakers, however this was done subliminally and without cogent thought. Upon further

elaboration from interviewees, their main goal was primarily to get their message across and to

prevent or minimize communication breakdowns and had no actual intention to show contempt

to the non-native speaker. With regards to instances of talking down, there is evidence found in

the interviews which is illustrated from the responses of R1, R2 and R3:

Filipinos and Eurasians have a better comprehension of the English language

compared to people from India, Bangladesh and China. (R1)

People from these countries have little to no understanding of the language.(R1)

I think I talk differently to the Asian side of people because when they speak to me,

I hear their accent and then I’m like “okay they may not understand me if I speak

this way”, so I try to simplify my sentences and kind of dumb myself down a little

so they will understand. (R2)

But with the Caucasian side right, uh I see how they speak to me and if they can

speak decently well in the conversation, they can hold themselves well in the

conversation then I just continue speaking the way I do. (R2)

Ya la because China people we would assume that they aren’t good at English what,

so we tend to ‘dumb’ it down mah. (R3)

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

(...) Eh I don’t really remember but I think when I was in Iceland a few years back,

the locals tried to speak English with me even though they weren’t all that great

with the language. (R3) .

However, not all responses were seen to be “talking down” but instead, was

“talking up” to the non-native speaker. To illustrate, instances of interviewees

“talking up” are shown below in the responses of R2 and R3:

But with the Caucasian side right, uh i see how they speak to me and if they can

speak decently well in the conversation, they can hold themselves well in the

conversation then I just continue speaking the way I do. (R2)

I think Eurasians (...) I tend to speak the most ‘proper’ form of English unless I find

out that they aren’t familiar with English lor. (R3)

It is evident that interviewees are aware of certain situations where he or she needs to pay

close attention to strict communication rules and avoid making grammatical mistakes during

interactions with non-native speakers. These results are congruent to the findings by Fedorova

(2015) where native speakers would adapt their speech in ways that are closer to what is

perceived to be “proper” Standard English, tending to use more formal and grammatically

correct forms of speech.

An interesting insight to the results were how certain ethnic backgrounds might have

influenced the Foreigner Talk strategies employed by native speakers in accommodating to

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

interactions with the non-native speaker. From the interview, it was implied that for non-native

speakers hailing from a Eurasian or Caucasian descent for “talking up” when communicating

with the speaker, while if the non-native speaker hailed from Chinese or Indian descent, the

tendency was to “talk down”, with the assumption that the speaker is unlikely to be able to

converse properly in English. According to Fedorova (2015), it can be assumed that the different

linguistic means in which native speakers use during interactions with non-native speakers

corresponds with historically rooted cultural perceptions in treating the interlocutor as a “guest”

or “subordinate”. Hence, it can be presumed that interviewees hold a perception that non-native

speakers hailing from third world countries are less linguistically sophisticated and treats them as

a “subordinate”, requiring linguistic accommodating strategies in order to facilitate

communication. It is also predicted that if the non-native speaker comes from a ethnic or racial

background known to have a strong command of the English language, they are then seen to be

more linguistically superior and treated as a “guest”. Thus native speakers need to invest extra

effort into ensuring they have grammatically correct or formal speech patterns when interacting

with these non-native speakers.

Following the compilation of the interview, it was evident that their responses did at

times elicit talking down tendencies though it was not known to them when they were

responding to the queries. It can be noted that most of them unknowingly displayed both positive

and negative attitudes towards their speakers but saw it as a normality, either with the intention

to solve problems in communication or had preconceived notions about the standards of English

their opposing speaker possessed, with reasons based on ethinic background or past encounters.

This was also consistent with the past research seen in the literature review. On top of the
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

literature review, Wooldridge (2001) mentioned that NS engages in speech pattern alteration

mainly to improve the condition of the communication quality between the NS and NNS.

Therefore, our study supports the claim that people engage in foreigner talk sub-

consciously and negative or positive connotations that surfaced were unknown to the

interviewees. Foreign talk has been derived as a strategy to facilitate communication when

interacting with a foreigner who has a poor grasp of the native tongue. Elements of foreigner

talk; reduced lexicalization, slowed down speaking rate, and the usage of simpler syntax were

useful in bridging communication between NS and NNS of the English as denoted by our

interviewees. The usage of foreigner talk was deemed necessary to bridge communication gaps

that were present due to the discrepancy of understanding of the native tongue between our

interviewees and their non-native counterparts.

Limitations

Due to the constraint of time for this research, the qualitative study was conducted with a

small sample size of just 3 individuals. As a result, this research will not be a complete or

accurate representation of Singaporeans’ attitudes and possible reasons as to why they engage in

foreigner talk when speaking with non-native language speakers. Another limitation was our

approach of concealing the research question, which may also have hindered the accurate

representation of what the research is attempting to achieve due to misinterpretation or

misunderstanding of what the research may be trying to achieve. To overcome this, the

interviews were recorded and transcribed. Their responses were also be clarified after the

conclusion of the interview to ensure the speaker did indeed make those responses.

Future Research and Replication

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Future research can target a different demographic of Singaporeans to observe if such a

trend is common not only in young Singaporeans, mainly between ages 23-26 but if this trend is

pervasive with other age groups. Through future research, it can be researched if such a

phenomenon can be observed with older groups or even more specific sub-groups of people. In

this research, it was observed that our participants perceived their way of speaking was

synonymous with what is classified as colloquial English in past studies. This is despite using

Singlish, or Colloquial English when conversing. The research was also conducted with the

intention of identifying a specific “type” of person to be researched rather than random

interviews of people. A focus group comprising of individuals from different age groups and

sub-groups such as people of different races or ethnicities can be brought together and a

discussion can be done. Additionally, a quantitative, longitudinal study can also be conducted

concurrently with a qualitative study to have more accurate representations of the population. It

can be done using a random sample, with the intention of getting more data to observe if such a

phenomenon happens amongst the general population rather than specific groups of people.

Conclusion

The purpose of the study was the understand why young Singaporeans use foreigner talk when

interacting with non-native language speakers. It questioned if Singaporeans do indeed engage in

foreigner talk, primarily if they do engage in “talking up” or “talking down’ tendencies. Despite

conducting our research with a small sample size, it presented us with a better understanding of

the thoughts and opinions regarding a person’s usage of swear words.

Hence, this data allowed us to delve deeper into the occurrence and conduct further research to

understand the younger population’s reasons for engaging in foreigner talk when conversing with

non-native speakers.
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NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

References

Crystal, D. (2000). The Cambridge encyclopedia. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University

Press.

Fedorova, K. (2015). Foreigner Talk. Registers of Communications, 138–149.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

doi: 10.2307/j.ctvggx2qk.11

Ferguson, C. A. (1981). ‘Foreigner Talk’ as the Name of a Simplified Register. International

Journal of the Sociology of Language, 1981(28). doi: 10.1515/ijsl.1981.28.9

Giles, H., & Smith, P. (1979). Accommodation theory: optimal levels of convergence.

Hickey, R. (2012). Standards of English: Codified Varieties around the World. USA:

Cambridge University Press.

Lipski, J. M (2005). “Me want cookie”: foreigner talk as monster talk. Invited lecture.

Shippensburg University.

Noor, N., & Leong, C. (2013). Multiculturalism in Malaysia and Singapore: Contesting

models. International Journal Of Intercultural Relations, 37(6), 714-726. doi:

10.1016/j.ijintrel.2013.09.009

Pearson, G. and Giles, H. (1990). Journal of Asian Pacific communication. 1st ed.

Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters, p.136.

Ruscher, J. B. (2001). Prejudiced communication: a social psychological perspective.

New York: Guilford Press.

Snow, C., Eeden, R. and Muysken, P. (1981). The Interactional Origins of Foreigner

Talk: Municipal Employees and Foreign Workers. International Journal of the

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Sociology of Language, 1981(28).

Varonis, E. M., & Gass, S. M. (1985). Non-native/non-native conversation: A model for

negotiation of meaning. Applied Linguistics, 6, 71-90. doi:10.1093/applin/6.1.71

Verschueren, J. and Blommaert, J. (1991). Selected papers of the International

Pragmatics Conference, Antwerp, August 17-22, 1987. 3rd ed. Amsterdam: J.

Benjamins Pub. Co.

Wooldridge, B. (2001). ‘Foreigner Talk’: An Important Element in Cross-Cultural Management

Education and Training. International Review Of Administrative Sciences, 67(4),

621-634. doi: 10.1177/0020852301674002

Appendix A

Interview Questions

● (When conversing with a foreigner in Singapore) have you been in a situation where you

needed to simplify your use of a language to get your message across? E.g. the omitting
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NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

of Singlish phrases (la, lor, leh etc.), modifying your pronunciation of words etc. In what

ways?

● When conversing with foreigners, what prompted you to change the way you speak?

● Would you say that you use a simplified version of English when conversing with

foreigners of different ethnic diversity? E.g. mainland Chinese, Filipinos, Eurasians etc.

● If there is a difference, how would you describe the differences when talking to each

ethnic group? Why do you think you talk differently between each ethnic group?

● Were there instances where you feel you have been spoken to with a simplified form of a

language? E.g. simplified American English when you were in the states etc.

● Did you feel like they were intentionally changing how they speak to accommodate to the

conversation?

● Did you feel like they were being condescending towards you/ talking down to you in

their tone or usage of words?

● Would you continue to use simplified language in the future when conversing with

foreigners? (if interviewee says ‘no’, it could suggest that he/she has been using a FT

with a negative/condescending connotation which supports the purpose of this research)

Appendix B

Interview Transcript

Transcript #1 Tom
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

I – Interviewer

R1 – Respondent

I: When conversing with a foreigner in Singapore) have you been in a situation where you

needed to simplify your use of a language to get your message across? For example, the omitting

of Singlish phrases (la, lor, leh etc.), modifying your pronunciation of words etc and if so, in

what ways?

R1: Yes I have excluded certain Singlish phrases but some experienced workers who have

worked in Singapore know Singlish hence I can converse with them normally when I have to

convey an instruction.

I: When conversing with foreigners, what prompted you to change the way you speak?

R1: I had to change the way I speak as some new workers do not understand much English.

I: Would you say that you use a simplified version of English when conversing with foreigners

of different ethnic diversity? Like people who are mainland Chinese, Filipinos, Eurasians etc.

R1: Yes I do.

I: If there is a difference, how would you describe the differences when talking to each ethnic

group? Why do you think you talk differently between each ethnic group?

Appendix C
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

R1: Filipinos and Eurasians have a better comprehension of the English language compared to

people from India, Bangladesh and China. People from these countries have little to no

understanding of the language.

I: Were there instances where you feel you have been spoken to with a simplified form of a

language? E.g. simplified American English when you were in the states etc.

R1: No, I have not been spoken to in a simplified form of a language.

I: Did you feel like they were intentionally changing how they speak to accommodate to the

conversation?

R1: NIL

I: Did you feel like they were being condescended towards you/ talking down to you in their tone

or usage of words?

R1: NIL

I: Would you continue to use simplified language in the future when conversing with foreigners?

R1: Yes, I would so that I can make sure that the workers have a better understanding of what is

expected of them. If I were to disregard their understanding of the language and talk normally it

could be fatal if the workers do the wrong things at a construction site.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Appendix D

Transcript #2 Sonia

I – Interviewer

R2 – Respondent

I: When conversing with a foreigner in Singapore have you ever been in a situation where you

needed to simplify your use of a language to get your message across? For example, the omitting

of Singlish phrases (la, lor, leh etc.), modifying your pronunciation of words and if so, in what

ways?

R2: Um.. okay so when I speak to—okay my partner he’s umm mediterranean and he’s a teacher

so he has very high expectations of how umm I speak English. But when I get comfortable right,

I tend to speak in Singlish a lot so I had to (pause) I wouldn’t say simplify singlish but I had to

speak like proper english so that he would understand me better. Umm I have q-quirky ways of

pronouncing things so actually umm people correct me when I pronounce them wrongly (laughs)

so yeah. You know like, tomatoes and tomatoes, that kind of thing, like yeah? This is

embarrassing (nervous laughter).

I: So when conversing with foreigners, what prompted you to change the way you speak?

R2: Umm, I was actually quite (pause) umm I didn’t want to be judged by them for speaking like

shit english, so I wanted to sound as intellectual as I can (laughs) so I try to you know, sound a

lot smarter than I actually am, that’s why. Face issue.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Appendix E

I: Would you say that you use a simplified version of English when conversing with foreigners

of different ethnic diversity? E.g. mainland Chinese, Filipinos, Eurasians etc.

R2: I think with like, the Caucasian side of it, I don’t really simplify my- the way I speak. But

with like the Asian side of it, I just make it as simple as I can, in short sentences so they don’t get

confused and I don’t get frustrated that they don’t understand me.

I: If there is a difference, how would you describe the differences when talking to each ethnic

group? Why do you think you talk differently between each ethnic group?

R2: I think I talk differently to the Asian side of people because, when they speak to me I hear

their accent and them I’m like “okay they may not understand me if I speak this way”, so I try to

simplify my sentences and kind of dumb myself down a little so they will understand. But with

the Caucasian side right, uh i see how they speak to me and if they can speak decently well in the

conversation, they can hold themselves well in the conversation then I just continue speaking the

way I do.

I: Were there instances where you feel you have been spoken to with a simplified form of a

language? For example an American trying to dice English words when speaking to you?

R2: Uh I’ve had my mother tongue (tamil), being simplified for me because I can’t speak Tamil

really well so it’s not really English, I usually don’t really face much problems with English

simplified, but more of Tamil.

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Appendix F

I: Did you feel like they were intentionally changing how they speak to accommodate to the

conversation?

R2: Yes, so for example I actually went to Malaysia there’s this like Indian shop that I went to

follow my friend to get some stuff. It’s a predominantly like tamil-speaking shop so I went in

there like “hey man do you have this item”, and they started laughing at me and started like

gossiping about me in like Tamil saying that “why is this girl coming into this Indian shop and

speaking in English, like who is she”. Yeah so I was quite like hurt, but then I realise that maybe

that’s just their way of trying to I don't know, minimise the differences between us.

I: Did you feel like they were being condescending towards you/ talking down to you in their

tone or usage of words?

R2: I think they were being umm - I don’t think they realise what they were doing, they were just

trying to like decipher what the hell was going on. Cuz I look completely Asian, for them to hear

an Asian to speak this way, that may have (pause) taken them aback.

I: Would you continue to use simplified language in the future when conversing with foreigners?

R2: I think it depends on the context and the people that I’m speaking to, if after a conversation

with them I realise that they are not like really capable of holding a conversation in the same way

that I speak, then I’ll consider simplifying myself. If not, then I’ll just speak the same way that I

do.
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

Appendix G

Transcript #3 Cleo

I – Interviewer

R3 – Respondent

I: When you converse with a foreigner in Singapore ah, have you ever been in a situation where

you needed to simplify your use of language, assuming that you are a frequent singlish speaker.

Example like Singlish phrases (la, lor, leh etc.) and if you do, in what ways?

R3: I don’t think I simplify (leh) but more of speaking a more standardized version just so they

can understand us. (...) Ya I don’t think I simplify per se but I consciously stop using Singlish

lor, if not I think quite hard for them to understand me. I think it's because of our accent, even

though we might be speaking proper English, our accent makes it hard for them to understand.

I: So you do modify your pronunciation at least la

R3: Ya I do la, but I try not to do it until it sounds pretentious la.

I: Okay since you mentioned that it could be hard for them to understand, does it mean that you

change the way you speak for them to better understand you?

R3: Ya lor, no other reason

WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

I: Would you say that you use a simplified version of English when conversing with foreigners

of different ethnic diversity? Do you speak differently say when you talk to people from say

China, Filipinos, or even Eurasians?

Appendix H

R3: Definitely ah (...) I think their level of competency in English also different mah, I would

assume that Eurasians are generally more well-versed with English, although to come and think

of it, Eurasians are also not full-on ang mohs and Europeans aren’t all that fantastic with English

anyway. But ya, I do, especially with China people.

I: So there’s a difference la, depending on the ethnic group you talk to, you vary your linguistic

abilities?

R3: What do you mean by linguistic abilities?

I: Like what you said just now, basically how you change your command of English to suit the

types of foreigners that you meet

R3: Ya la because China people we would assume that they aren’t good at English what, so we

tend to ‘dumb’ it down mah. Same goes for Filipinos, but I think not as much. I would still try

my very best to speak Chinese with China people. I think Eurasians (...) I tend to speak the most

‘proper’ form of English unless I find out that they aren’t familiar with English lor.
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

I: Okay okay, Were there instances where you feel you have been spoken to with a simplified

form of a language? Like maybe when you were in Aussie last year, did you feel like they were

using a simplified form of English just because you were Asian?

R3: Actually, no leh. At first I was quite scared of that (be)cause I heard people can be quite

racist in Sydney but no leh. It seemed normal to me.

Appendix I

I: Oh then which other westernized countries have you been to and have you had experiences

where you felt like the natives purposely changed the way they speak to talk to you?

R3: (...) Eh I don’t really remember but I think when I was in Iceland a few years back, the locals

tried to speak English with me even though they weren’t all that great with the language. They

tried la, it wasn’t good but it was sufficient lor at that time. Does that count?

I: I think can la I will take a look when I get back. Oh ya, then since you brought that up, I know

its a bit of a stretch from your trip but, did you feel like they were being condescending or maybe

rude towards you in their tone or usage of words?

R3: Wa, this is really a bit of a stretch (...) but I don’t think so. I don’t remember any unpleasant

experiences from the trip leh, so no.

I: Okay then, would you continue to use simplified language in the future when conversing with

foreigners?
WHY DO YOUNG SINGAPOREANS USE FOREIGNER TALK WHEN INTERACTING WITH NON-

NATIVE LANGUAGE SPEAKERS?

R3: Er... Ya I think so, why not leh? If I talk to China Chinese then there is no choice but to

accommodate to how they talk ma, if not end up talking to them for half an hour leh.