Occupation

• Jargon refers to language which is specific to a certain occupation or area.
• Phatic conversation refers to conversation which fulfils a social function. Also known as 'small talk'.
• Legalese refers to the language of the law. Seen as opaque to non-legal workers. Difficult to understand.
• Swales coined the term 'discourse communities' to describe groups of people with a common goal purpose who need language as a form of communication.
• Crystal says that the use of Jargon is part of an identity at work.
• Drew and Heritage says that Jargon makes the workplace efficient. For example, kitchens are fast paced environments.
• Spolsky says that using jargon shows that you are a part of the discourse community but not knowing it can make you feel excluded.
• Koestar says that a key part of workplace discourse is phatic communication and they can be:

  • Transaction (exchanging information)
  • Interactional (socialising)
• Kim and Elder found that miscommunication between Korean and American colleagues was due to people not using an agreed language.
• Fairclough found that conversations at work were becoming more informal. This is called conversationalisation.
• Holmes and Stubbe found that when someone with power talks to someone with less power, they can decide to downplay or assert their authority.