Linguistic Accommodation in Summary

In linguistics, the term accommodation refers to the way people adjust their speech and communication style in face-to-face and other types of communication. It is also called linguistic accommodation, speech accommodation, and communication accommodation. The speakers would adjust their accent, diction, or other aspects of language according to the speech style of the other participant. People generally accommodate due to social factors such as gender, culture, ethnicity, native language, social and occupational status, and age. Consider how you might change your own speech when talking to someone older or considerably richer than yourself.

 

Accommodation most often takes the form of convergence, when a speaker chooses a language variety that seems to fit the style of the other speaker. Less frequently, accommodation may take the form of divergence, when a speaker signals social distance or disapproval by using a language variety that differs from the style of the other speaker.

 

According to Giles' (1973, 1977; Giles & Couland 1991) accommodation theory, speakers may modify their speech to sound more like others they talk with to achieve greater social integration. However, Giles' approach deals not only with convergence through accommodation but also with divergence, where a group can employ deliberate linguistic differences as a symbolic act for asserting or maintaining their distinct identity.