Catchy and conversational? A register analysis of pop lyrics

Corpora ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-270
Author(s):  
Valentin Werner
Keyword(s):  
Pop Culture ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Multidimensional Analysis ◽  
Register Analysis ◽  
N Gram

This study presents a register analysis of pop lyrics. To this end, it applies multi-dimensional register analysis to empirically test claims regarding the allegedly conversational nature of pop lyrics. It thus follows broader calls for the linguistic exploration of performed language as represented in non-canonical pop culture registers. This text-linguistic investigation relies on a corpus of contemporary pop lyrics and uses the Multidimensional Analysis Tagger ( Nini, 2018 ), software that replicates Biber's (1988) tagger, to identify register features to contrast lyrics with other varieties of text. In addition, the n-gram and keyword functionalities of a concordancer are used for establishing register markers and style features to identify characteristic properties of pop lyrics. In line with earlier claims, it becomes apparent that pop lyrics indeed carry some conversational force despite situational factors being indicative of planned and performed production. Furthermore, this analysis identifies additional features that are highly distinctive of pop lyrics ( versus general conversation), and is suggestive of the special status of this register on the speech-writing continuum.

scholarly journals Functional variation in the Spoken BNC2014 and the potential for register analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 296-317
Author(s):  
Robbie Love ◽  
Vaclav Brezina ◽  
Tony McEnery ◽  
Abi Hawtin ◽  
Andrew Hardie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Written Language ◽  
Multidimensional Analysis ◽  
Functional Variation ◽  
Design Decisions ◽  
Register Variation ◽  
Situational Contexts ◽  
Register Analysis ◽  
British National Corpus ◽  
High Level ◽  
Selection Of

Abstract This article focuses on how register considerations informed and guided the design of the spoken component of the British National Corpus 2014 (Spoken BNC2014). It discusses why the compilers of the corpus sought to gather recordings from just one broad spoken register – ‘informal conversation’ – and how this and other design decisions afforded contributors to the corpus much freedom with regards to the selection of situational contexts for the recordings. This freedom resulted in a high level of diversity in the corpus for situational parameters such as recording location and activity type, each of which was captured in the corpus metadata. Focussing on these parameters, this article provides evidence for functional variation among the texts in the corpus and suggests that differences such as those observed presently could be analysable within the existing frameworks for analysis of register variation in spoken and written language, such as multidimensional analysis.

Implicit Association Test: Separating Transsituationally Stable and Variable Components of Attitudes toward Gay Men

2003 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie C. Steffens ◽  
Axel Buchner
Keyword(s):  
Gay Men ◽  
Implicit Association Test ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Implicit Attitudes ◽  
Association Test ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Situational Factor ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Implicit Attitude ◽  
Implicit Association

Implicit attitudes are conceived of as formed in childhood, suggesting extreme stability. At the same time, it has been shown that implicit attitudes are influenced by situational factors, suggesting variability by the moment. In the present article, using structural equation modeling, we decomposed implicit attitudes towards gay men into a person factor and a situational factor. The Implicit Association Test ( Greenwald, McGhee, & Schwartz, 1998 ), introduced as an instrument with which individual differences in implicit attitudes can be measured, was used. Measurement was repeated after one week (Experiment 1) or immediately (Experiment 2). Explicit attitudes towards gay men as assessed by way of questionnaires were positive and stable across situations. Implicit attitudes were relatively negative instead. Internal consistency of the implicit attitude assessment was exemplary. However, the within-situation consistency was accompanied by considerable unexplained between-situation variability. Consequently, it may not be adequate to interpret an individual implicit attitude measured at a given point in time as a person-related, trait-like factor.

Situational Factors Competing for Attention

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weiyu Zhang ◽  
Se-Hoon Jeong ◽  
Martin Fishbein†
Keyword(s):  
Task Performance ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Sexual Content ◽  
Sexually Explicit ◽  
Explicit Content ◽  
Audio Information

This study investigates how multitasking interacts with levels of sexually explicit content to influence an individual’s ability to recognize TV content. A 2 (multitasking vs. nonmultitasking) by 3 (low, medium, and high sexual content) between-subjects experiment was conducted. The analyses revealed that multitasking not only impaired task performance, but also decreased TV recognition. An inverted-U relationship between degree of sexually explicit content and recognition of TV content was found, but only when subjects were multitasking. In addition, multitasking interfered with subjects’ ability to recognize audio information more than their ability to recognize visual information.

Identifying Patterns in Complex Field Data

2017 ◽  
Vol 225 (3) ◽  
pp. 268-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. White ◽  
Dieter Kleinböhl ◽  
Thomas Lang ◽  
Alfons O. Hamm ◽  
Alexander L. Gerlach ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Panic Disorder ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Treatment Protocol ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Complex Field ◽  
Cluster Assignment ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Conventional Analysis

Abstract. Ambulatory assessment methods are well suited to examine how patients with panic disorder and agoraphobia (PD/A) undertake situational exposure. But under complex field conditions of a complex treatment protocol, the variability of data can be so high that conventional analytic approaches based on group averages inadequately describe individual variability. To understand how fear responses change throughout exposure, we aimed to demonstrate the incremental value of sorting HR responses (an index of fear) prior to applying averaging procedures. As part of their panic treatment, 85 patients with PD/A completed a total of 233 bus exposure exercises. Heart rate (HR), global positioning system (GPS) location, and self-report data were collected. Patients were randomized to one of two active treatment conditions (standard exposure or fear-augmented exposure) and completed multiple exposures in four consecutive exposure sessions. We used latent class cluster analysis (CA) to cluster heart rate (HR) responses collected at the start of bus exposure exercises (5 min long, centered on bus boarding). Intra-individual patterns of assignment across exposure repetitions were examined to explore the relative influence of individual and situational factors on HR responses. The association between response types and panic disorder symptoms was determined by examining how clusters were related to self-reported anxiety, concordance between HR and self-report measures, and bodily symptom tolerance. These analyses were contrasted with a conventional analysis based on averages across experimental conditions. HR responses were sorted according to form and level criteria and yielded nine clusters, seven of which were interpretable. Cluster assignment was not stable across sessions or treatment condition. Clusters characterized by a low absolute HR level that slowly decayed corresponded with low self-reported anxiety and greater self-rated tolerance of bodily symptoms. Inconsistent individual factors influenced HR responses less than situational factors. Applying clustering can help to extend the conventional analysis of highly variable data collected in the field. We discuss the merits of this approach and reasons for the non-stereotypical pattern of cluster assignment across exposures.

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