全球化时代台湾的语言使用模式

Abstract

本研究主要探讨在全球化时代台湾人的语言使用模式。从二十一世纪开始，台湾在社会教育环境方面受到全球化的冲击。为了培养国人的全球化能力，台湾除了原有的国语政策之外，首次自国小开始实施英语教育及母语教育。到底这些语言教育政策改变台湾人的语言使用模式为何，至今仍缺少相关研究，因此本研究将探讨台湾各语言在语言使用场域及各种社交距离的情况下之使用频率。数据是在全台各地由问卷方式搜集。研究结果发现，政府虽然积极提倡英文教育，英文仍未广泛且经常被使用，经常使用英文大多是经理级或专业人士。国语的使用则不同，无论在任何场域，任何年龄层、职业类别或社交距离(除了六十岁以上)，国语的使用均远超过其他语言。虽然如此，本土语言的使用也有微幅增加，但新住民的母语则很少被使用。这样的结果显示，全球化时代的新语言教育政策同时增加国语及本土语言的活力。虽未能有效增加英文使用的活力，但英文的经常使用则能显示一个人的职业位阶。 This study investigates patterns of language use in Taiwan in the age of globalization. At the turn of this century, Taiwan’s social and educational environment has been rapidly changed due to the impact of globalization. In order to develop Taiwanese global competence, both English education and mother tongue education have been first time implemented in elementary schools, in addition to the long-existing National Language Policy which favors Mandarin as the official language in Taiwan. However, to what extent those language-in-education policies have affected Taiwanese patterns of language use is yet to be investigated. This study attempts to do so. Patterns of language use are investigated in terms of domains and social distances among participants. Data were collected through questionnaires throughout Taiwan island. Results show that, in the age of globalization in which English has been aggressively promoted, English is still not widely and frequently used. English is frequently used mostly by those who are in managerial or professional positions. But it is Mandarin that grows in importance and is used even more frequently than before in all domains by all age groups and occupation types, and between all social distances among Taiwanese except those in the 60/over age group, and that in the interaction with grandparents. Nevertheless, the rates of frequent use of local ethnic languages were also found slightly increased, but the rates of frequent use of immigrant languages are still very low. These results imply that both the “new” English education and mother tongue education increase the vitality of both Mandarin and local ethnic languages. While it is true that the vitality of English use is not increased, the frequent use of English reflects one’s career level.