@article{ART003354698},
author={Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna},
title={Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat},
journal={The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea},
issn={1226-4822},
year={2026},
volume={34},
number={2},
pages={291-329}
TY - JOUR
AU - Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna
TI - Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat
JO - The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea
PY - 2026
VL - 34
IS - 2
PB - The Sociolinguistic Society Of Korea
SP - 291
EP - 329
SN - 1226-4822
AB - This study examines how five multilingual teaching assistants use daily digital interactions to build communities, manage face, and construct identities in a KakaoTalk group chat. Analysis of 442 messages collected over 5.5 months (September 2025 – February 2026) revealed systematic changes: task-focused talk decreased from 32% to 7%, while social talk increased from 19% to 42%. Using qualitative discourse analysis with quantitative frequency tracking, this study identified five recurrent practices: emotional support (8.1%), apology and responsibility management (2.7%), task coordination (20.1%), leadership implementation (4.5%), and cultural sharing (1.6%). A single conflict in October was resolved through a distributed apology (9% of monthly messages) and increased support (13%), illustrating collaborative facework (Goffman, 1967). Drawing on communities of practice theory (Wenger, 1998), relational approaches to politeness (Locher & Watts, 2005), and computer-mediated discourse research (Herring & Androutsopoulos, 2015), the analysis shows that, although English is a shared language, participants draw on culturally embedded resources: Korean members use Korean-specific emoticons, the American member uses global common emojis, and the Uzbek member shares cultural references in 4.1% of their messages. This study contributes to multilingual academic communication research by demonstrating how digital communities form and negotiate their identities on KakaoTalk, an important non-Western platform.
KW - multilingualism;computer-mediated communication;communities of practice;digital discourse;identity construction;relational work;politeness;KakaoTalk
DO -
UR -
ER -
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. (2026). Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, 34(2), 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. 2026, "Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat", The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, vol.34, no.2 pp.291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna "Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34.2 pp.291-329 (2026) : 291.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat. 2026; 34(2), 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. "Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34, no.2 (2026) : 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, 34(2), 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea. 2026; 34(2) 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat. 2026; 34(2), 291-329.
Matkhiya Usmonova Rustamovna. "Relational Work and Identity Construction in a Multilingual Teaching Assistant Group Chat" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34, no.2 (2026) : 291-329.
