scholarly journals Agreement Strategies Among Malaysian Chinese Speakers of English

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 168-189
Author(s):  
Azlina Abdul Aziz
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
Malaysian Chinese

The Sociolinguistic Registers of ‘Malaysian English’

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf Vollmann ◽  
◽  
Soon Tek Wooi ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Group Communication ◽  
Interesting Case ◽  
Lexical Borrowing ◽  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
Spoken English ◽  
Ethnic Chinese ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Malaysian Chinese ◽  
Ingroup Identity

The interplay of four standard languages and a number of spoken languages makes Malaysia an interesting case of societal multilingualism. There is extensive convergence between the spoken varieties. ‘Malaysian English’ (ME) has developed its own structures which can be shown to copy structures of the mother tongues of the speakers at all levels of grammar, thereby being an example for localisation and the creation of a new dialect/sociolect. An analysis of the basilectal register of ME in ethnic Chinese speakers finds that converging patterns of ME and Malaysian (Chinese) languages, with situational lexical borrowing between the various languages. Sociolinguistically, ME plays the same role as any dialect, with covert prestige as an ingroup (identity) marker which is avoided in acrolectal (outgroup) communication. Spoken English in Malaysia can therefore be seen as a localised creoloid dialect of English, based on linguistic substrates. Sociolinguistically, ME is mainly an orate register for basilectal and mesolectal intra-group communication.

The psychology of chinese behaviour as seen in spoken discourses

2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 286-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuang Ching Hei
Keyword(s):  
Ming Dynasty ◽  
Filial Piety ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Young Male ◽  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
Mixed Marriages ◽  
The Social ◽  
Li Po ◽  
The Many ◽  
Malaysian Chinese

Chinese people can be found in most continents and history has shown that they migrate in the early days to seek better livelihoods. Of the many places they have set foot on, Malaya was one country which not only saw the marriage of Princess Hang Li Po of the Ming Dynasty to the sultan of Malacca in the 16th century but also the birth of mixed marriages between local Malays and Chinese who had come with the marriage entourage. Subsequently, others came to work as miners, actors, writers, bankers and various occupations. Malaysian Chinese are the descendants of these migrants. For some reason, literature often associate migrant Chinese with Confucian values like filial piety, respect for elders, benevolence and humility. To some extent this is probably true because Chinese children are taught these virtues through the way they should talk and behave with others. Nevertheless, times have changed. Young people today are exposed to more challenges, new cultures, new experiences and new opportunities. Directly or indirectly, these have an impact on their behaviour and how they talk. Yang Kuo-Shu (1986), Michael Harris Bond and Hwang Kwang-kuo (1986) look at various studies and models of Chinese Social Behaviour. Their findings indicate that the social behaviours of the Chinese have evolved over the years. Adding on to this is the contribution of this paper which discusses the behaviour of young male Malaysian Chinese speakers as shown through their speech. Using participant observation as an approach, spontaneous data of male children interacting with their elders were manually recorded and transcribed. Focussing on politeness, their utterances were then analysed based on the intended functions and the linguistic forms used. Analysis of data suggests that the speakers are direct and less reserved in their speech norms.

The 32-Item Multilingual Naming Test: Cultural and Linguistic Biases in Monolingual Chinese-Speaking Older Adults

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Clara Li ◽  
Xiaoyi Zeng ◽  
Judith Neugroschl ◽  
Amy Aloysi ◽  
Carolyn W. Zhu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
New York ◽  
Test Performance ◽  
Item Difficulty ◽  
Chinese Older Adults ◽  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
School Of Medicine ◽  
Consensus Conferences ◽  
Linguistic Groups ◽  
Naming Test

ABSTRACT Objectives: This study describes the performance of the Multilingual Naming Test (MINT) by Chinese American older adults who are monolingual Chinese speakers. An attempt was also made to identify items that could introduce bias and warrant attention in future investigation. Methods: The MINT was administered to 67 monolingual Chinese older adults as part of the standard dementia evaluation at the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS), New York, USA. A diagnosis of normal cognition (n = 38), mild cognitive impairment (n = 12), and dementia (n = 17) was assigned to all participants at clinical consensus conferences using criterion sheets developed at the ADRC at ISMMS. Results: MINT scores were negatively correlated with age and positively correlated with education, showing sensitivity to demographic factors. One item, butterfly, showed no variations in responses across diagnostic groups. Inclusion of responses from different regions of China changed the answers from “incorrect” to “correct” on 20 items. The last five items, porthole, anvil, mortar, pestle, and axle, yielded a high nonresponse rate, with more than 70% of participants responding with “I don’t know.” Four items, funnel, witch, seesaw, and wig, were not ordered with respect to item difficulty in the Chinese language. Two items, gauge and witch, were identified as culturally biased for the monolingual group. Conclusions: Our study highlights the cultural and linguistic differences that might influence the test performance. Future studies are needed to revise the MINT using more universally recognized items of similar word frequency across different cultural and linguistic groups.

scholarly journals Modifiable and non-modifiable epidemiological risk factors for acne, acne severity and acne scarring among Malaysian Chinese: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yee-How Say ◽  
Anna Hwee Sing Heng ◽  
Kavita Reginald ◽  
Yi Ru Wong ◽  
Keng Foo Teh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Familial History ◽  
Severe Acne ◽  
Epidemiological Risk ◽  
Frequent Consumption ◽  
Acne Scarring ◽  
Malaysian Chinese

Abstract Background Acne vulgaris, a highly prevalent multifactorial inflammatory skin disease, can be categorised into different severity and scarring grades based on the type, number, and severity of lesions. While many epidemiology studies have investigated the risk factors for acne presentation, fewer studies have specifically studied the risk factors for acne severity and scarring. Therefore, this study investigated the prevalence of acne, acne severity and scarring grades, and their associated non-modifiable and modifiable epidemiological risk factors among Malaysian Chinese. Methods A total of 1840 subjects (1117 cases/723 controls) completed an investigator-administered questionnaire as part of a cross-sectional study, which include socio-demographics, familial history, lifestyle factors, dietary habits, and acne history. Acne cases were further evaluated for their severity (n = 1051) and scarring (n = 1052) grades by a trained personnel. Results Majority of the acne cases (up to 69%) had mild acne or Grade 1/2 scarring, while 21.6% had moderate/severe acne and 5.5% had Grade 3/4 scarring. Males had significantly higher risk of presenting with higher grades of acne scarring. Those who had acne, regardless of severity and scarring grades, had strong positive familial history (either in parents and/or sibling). Frequent consumption (most or all days) of foods that are commonly consumed during breakfast (butter, probiotic drinks, cereals and milk) decreased the risk for acne presentation and higher acne scarring, while periodic consumption (once/twice per week) of nuts and burgers/fast food decreased the risk for higher acne severity. Alcohol drinking was significantly associated with increased risk for acne presentation, while paternal, parental and household smoking were associated with reduced risk of more severe acne. Conclusions In conclusion, positive familial history is a strong predisposing factor in influencing acne presentation, severity and scarring. Frequent consumption of foods that are commonly consumed during breakfast is protective against acne presentation.

Transfer and unlearning of topic prominence by Chinese learners of English

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Chang ◽  
Lilong Xu
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
L2 Acquisition ◽  
L1 Transfer ◽  
Chinese Speakers ◽  
English Only ◽  
Cognitive States ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Topic Constructions ◽  
Chinese Learners Of English

Abstract Chinese allows both gapped and gapless topic constructions without their usage being restricted to specific contexts, while English only allows gapped topic constructions which are used in certain contexts. In other words, Chinese uses ‘topic prominence’, whereas English does not. The contrast between English and Chinese topic constructions poses a learnability problem for Chinese learners of English. This paper uses an empirical study investigating first language (L1) transfer in the case of Chinese learners of English and the extent to which they are able to unlearn topic prominence as they progress in second language (L2) English. Results of an acceptability judgment test indicate that Chinese learners of English initially transfer Chinese topic prominence into their English, then gradually unlearn Chinese topic prominence as their English proficiency improves, and finally unlearn Chinese topic prominence successfully. The results support the Full Transfer Theory (Schwartz, Bonnie & Rex Sprouse. 1996. L2 cognitive states and the Full Transfer/Full Access model. Second Language Research 12. 40–72) and the Variational Learning Model (Yang, Charles. 2004. Universal Grammar, statistics or both? Trends in Cognitive Sciences 8. 451–456), but contradict the proposal that the topic prominence can never be transferred but may be unlearned from the beginning in Chinese speakers’ acquisition of English (Zheng, Chao. 2001. Nominal Constructions Beyond IP and Their Initial Restructuring in L2 Acquisition. Guangzhou: Guangdong University of Foreign Studies Ph.D. dissertation). In addition, the type of topic constructions that is used and whether or not a comma is added after the topic have an effect on learners’ transfer and unlearning of topic prominence. It is proposed that the specification of Agr(eement) and T(ense) as well as the presence of expletive subjects in English input can trigger the unlearning of topic prominence for Chinese learners of English.

scholarly journals An Innovative Mental Health Model for Treating Culturally Diverse Older Adults

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 93-93
Author(s):  
Tobi Abramson ◽  
Jacquelin Berman ◽  
Madison Gates
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Older Adult ◽  
Culturally Diverse ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Chinese Speakers

Abstract The mental health needs of older adults are largely unmet, a finding even more prevalent within culturally diverse older adult populations. Added to this is the high rate of social isolation. Research has indicated increased connection to mental health services when services are embedded within physical health care settings. For those attending community centers, 85% indicate that they are socially isolated, 68% indicate they are lonely, and 53% have a mental health need (compared to 20% nationally). The need for innovative programming is evident. When examining the needs of diverse older adults, it is increasingly important that new and innovative approaches address social isolation, loneliness, and mental health problems experienced by this cohort. Utilizing this knowledge an innovative model of embedding and integrating mental health services, provided by bilingual and bicultural clinicians, into congregate sites (older adult centers) was implemented. Those that participated were mainly female (72.1%), 68.5% English-speaking, 14.5% Spanish-speaking, 13.6% Chinese-speaking and 3.4% other. Spanish-speakers had more depression than English-speakers and both had more depression than Chinese-speakers. English and Spanish-speakers reported more social isolation and Chinese-speakers compared were more likely to participate in engagement. Chinese-speakers were less likely to be in clinical services with a positive screen compared to English-speakers. Overall, 75% engaged in treatment; 37.3% and 41% showed a 3-month improvement of depression and anxiety, respectively. This presentation focuses on the innovative components of this model, how to engage diverse older adults to utilize treatment, steps needed for replication, and policy implications around integrated mental health treatment.

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