@article{ART003388747},
author={Jungah Lee},
title={Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees},
journal={The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea},
issn={1226-4822},
year={2026},
volume={34},
number={3},
pages={283-329}
TY - JOUR
AU - Jungah Lee
TI - Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees
JO - The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea
PY - 2026
VL - 34
IS - 3
PB - The Sociolinguistic Society Of Korea
SP - 283
EP - 329
SN - 1226-4822
AB - Although language attitudes have often been treated as stable dispositions, less is known about how they are articulated across interactional contexts among socially vulnerable groups experiencing prestige reversal. This study examines how six North Korean (NK) refugees in South Korea evaluated Seoul and Pyongyang Korean across two sociolinguistic interview settings: a South Korean (SK) researcher-led interview and an NK peer-led interview conducted one to two years apart. Using a qualitatively driven approach, the study used point-based coding of Identification, Assimilation, and Language Attitude to identify patterns descriptively, while qualitative analysis examined stance-taking, identity negotiation, perceived evaluation, and interactional conditions associated with familiarity and perceived safety in participants’ narratives. Descriptive coding suggested that Language Attitude showed clearer context-related variation than Identification and Assimilation. In the NK peer-led interviews, participants more often foregrounded the pragmatic value of Seoul Korean, whereas in the SK researcher-led interviews, they more often foregrounded the affective and symbolic value of Pyongyang Korean. These patterns are interpreted not as unstable beliefs or a pure interviewer effect but as context-sensitive stance-taking associated with social alignment, perceived evaluation, familiarity, and prestige reversal. These findings contribute to interactional sociolinguistics and migration research by reconceptualizing language attitudes as context-sensitive stance performance.
KW - language attitudes;stance-taking;North Korean refugees;interviewer positioning;prestige reversal
DO -
UR -
ER -
Jungah Lee. (2026). Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, 34(3), 283-329.
Jungah Lee. 2026, "Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees", The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, vol.34, no.3 pp.283-329.
Jungah Lee "Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34.3 pp.283-329 (2026) : 283.
Jungah Lee. Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees. 2026; 34(3), 283-329.
Jungah Lee. "Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34, no.3 (2026) : 283-329.
Jungah Lee. Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea, 34(3), 283-329.
Jungah Lee. Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees. The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea. 2026; 34(3) 283-329.
Jungah Lee. Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees. 2026; 34(3), 283-329.
Jungah Lee. "Language Attitudes as Interactional Stance: Stance-taking across Researcher-led and Peer-led Interviews with North Korean Refugees" The Sociolinguistic Journal of Korea 34, no.3 (2026) : 283-329.
