yet there exists a noticeable absence of sociolinguistic analysis in the literature. ... plural second-person, switch (i.e., singular to plural or plural to singular), or no.
Sociopragmatic Norms in Québécois On-line Personal Advertisements Rémi A. van Compernolle University of North Texas In M.-C. Koop (Ed.) Québec at the dawn of the new millennium: between tradition and modernity. Quebec: Presse de l'Université du Québec
1. Introduction Social interaction in modern society occurs in many new arenas that did not exist, or were not at least widely available, a mere 20 years ago. Since the advent of the Internet and other networked technologies, on-line dating networks have emerged as popular venues for singles of all ages (Ben-Ze'ev, 2004; Hardey, 2004; Hollander, 2004; Yurchisin et al., 2005; Sahib et al., 2006; Whitty and Carr, 2006), especially for those seeking an alternative to more traditional meeting places, such as bars, clubs, work, and so forth (Whitty and Carr, 2006, p. 125). Although the technology that enables on-line dating networks to exist is modern, the notion of finding and developing romance through written language is very old (Hardey, 2004; Hollander, 2004; Gudelunas, 2005). Yet, unlike traditional modes of written correspondence (e.g., letter writing), geographical and time constraints appear to be less influential in modern on-line environments since messages can be sent and received rapidly, which may help foster emotions and romance more quickly than ever before (Ben-Ze'ev, 2004, p. 7). Recent research (Smith and Stillman, 2002; Hardey, 2004; Yurchisin et al., 2005; Gudelunas, 2005; Groom and Pennebaker, 2005) has explored a number of social norms for behaviors and practices among members of on-line dating networks, yet there exists a noticeable absence of sociolinguistic analysis in the literature. This study analyzes the structure of personal advertisements from Québec and compares the use of the second-person pronouns tu (T) and vous (V)—and related forms (e.g., imperatives, object pronouns, and so forth)—as they occur in the on-line personals of heterosexual men and women from two different age groups.
2. Methodology The data analyzed in this study were collected during late Fall 2006 from the on-line dating network Netclub.com. Two hundred personal advertisements were considered. The analysis focused on an equal number of men and women from two different age groups (18 to 25 years and 36 to 45 years). Although the Netclub.com network allows a member to divulge much personal information selected from drop-down menus and multiple choice questions, the text of the free-response personal narrative was analyzed in this study since T and/or V could occur only in this section. Personal advertisements were first coded for the presence or absence of five recurring sections: greeting, purpose, self-promotion, description of ideal partner, and 1
invitation to contact. In addition, the use of second-person pronouns and related forms (e.g., imperatives, object pronouns, and so forth) was analyzed. A preliminary analysis of the data revealed a wide range in the number of second-person pronoun tokens (i.e., occurrences) present in the personal narrative (i.e., some advertisements included ten or more tokens of T or V while others had only one). Therefore, in order to avoid skewing the results, each advertisement was coded for the use of singular or plural second-person, switch (i.e., singular to plural or plural to singular), or no second-person address. The results do not, therefore, reflect absolute frequency; rather, each personal advertisement was counted as one occurrence, irrespective of the observed frequency of T/V tokens in the personal narrative. In addition, the use of T and vous-singular (Vsg) was explored in those advertisements having only singular second-person addresses. In the following analysis of the data, traditional chi-square procedures have been performed in order to test for statistical significance in the distribution of the data. Although the chi-square test does not calculate probability of occurrence, it does allow us to test whether observed frequencies are due to chance or fit within theoretical expectations. For an overview of the assumptions underlying chi-square, see Hatch and Lazaraton (1991, ch. 14).
3. Structure of personal advertisements Advertisers on Netclub.com respond to numerous questions about their social identity, such as their age, gender, education level, location, hair color, height, hobbies, and so forth. However, these questions are multiple choice (i.e., the advertiser checks the appropriate response for each question or selects from a drop-down menu), which limits the advertiser to the answers provided by the network 1 . It is in the free-response section (i.e., son annonce) that members have the opportunity to personalize their advertisements, provide additional information about themselves, and address other members on the network. Table 1 gives the frequency with which five types of information appeared in the personal advertisement: greeting, purpose, selfpromotion, partner's descriptions, and invitation to contact.
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It must be noted that the multiple choice questions are extremely important since the responses are searchable on the network. Members of dating networks are therefore able to define their searches by specified criteria, which in turn may help reduce the risk of meeting "undesirables" (Hardey, 2004, p. 208).
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Table 1. Structure of personal advertisement 2 Gender
Greeting
Purpose
Men Women
36 % 55 %
37 % 56 %
TOTAL
45.5 %
46.5 %
Age
Greeting
Purpose
53 % 38 %
37 % 56 %
45.5 %
46.5 %
18-25 yrs. 36-45 yrs. TOTAL
Selfpromotion 92 % 92 %
Partner's description 39 % 18 %
92 %
28.5 %
Selfpromotion 92 % 92 %
Partner's description 29 % 28 %
92 %
28.5 %
Invitation to contact 65 % 60 % 62.5 % Invitation to contact 69 % 54 % 62.5 %
The data indicate that self-promotion is by far the most often occurring part of personal narratives, being present in no less than 92% of the advertisements. This should not, however, be surprising given that personals—just as any other form of product advertising—aim to attract consumers; therefore, advertisers must present the product (i.e., themselves) in order to entice consumers (i.e., other members) into obtaining the product advertised. Incidentally, informal observations suggest that advertisers devote more words to self-promotion than to any other type of information. Invitation to contact was the second most often occurring section in all four demographic groups, which should be expected given that an interpersonal relationship cannot develop until two members have contacted each other and begun some form of one-to-one private communication (e.g., e-mail, chat, telephone, and eventually an off-line meeting) 3 . The data provided in Table 1 also reveal a number of differences between the various demographic groups. First, men were more likely than their female counterparts to include a description of their ideal partner 4 , which corroborates results reported by Shalom (1997, pp. 194-195) who explored partner descriptions in English print personals. This finding suggests that men are more forthcoming about what they are seeking; therefore, not only do men assume the role of the product of their advertisement, but also that of the discriminating consumer. Women, on the other hand, were more likely than men to include a greeting and a purpose 5 . Differences were also observed between younger and older advertisers. While younger advertisers included greetings and invitations to contact at higher frequencies than their older counterparts 6 , the latter were more likely to include a statement of purpose 7 . The statement of purpose is particularly interesting. Members who included this type of information usually provided an explanation or justification for having 2
Percentages are reported here based on 100 personals from each group (i.e., men = 100; women = 100; 18-25 yrs = 100; 36-45 yrs = 100). Totals therefore correspond to the percentage out of 200 ads. 3 Until two members contact each other, the personal advertisement can be considered a form of noninteractive "one-to-many" communication. In other words, communication is one way: the advertiser posts his or her personal, which is then accessible to all other members of the network to read. One-toone communication is therefore dependent upon contact with another specified member. 4 2 χ (1, N = 200) = 10.82, p = .05 5 Greeting: χ2 (1, N = 200) = 7.28, p = .05; Purpose: χ2 (1, N = 200) = 7.26, p = .05 6 Greeting: χ2 (1, N = 200) = 4.54, p = .05; Invitation to contact: χ2 (1, N = 200) = 4.75, p = .05 7 2 χ (1, N = 200) = 7.25, p = .05
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joined the Netclub.com dating network. As the data given in Table 1 indicate, women and older advertisers were more likely to include a statement of purpose or justification for having joined Netclub.com. A closer analysis of the data revealed that 34 of the 38 older advertisers who included a purpose statement were women, which suggests that women feel the need to justify their presence on the network more than men. Incidentally, the most frequent justification for having joined the on-line dating network was separation or divorce, which is undoubtedly more common among members aged 36-45 years than among those in the 18-25 year-old group.
4. Second-person pronoun use in personal advertisements Variations and changes in the T/V paradigm have been widely documented in sociolinguistics literature. While T can only designate one interlocutor (either real or perceived), V has the role of both the plural second-person pronoun and the more formal or polite singular form. According to Grevisse and Goose (1993, p. 963), T usually implies familiarity with one's interlocutor, whereas singular V (Vsg) marks social distance, most notably with an unknown person or a person to whom one owes respect. However, "variations exist due primarily to differences across time, place, social class, families, and individuals" (Williams and van Compernolle, 2007, p. 806). In Québec society, the use of T is widespread (Thibault, 1991, pp. 86-89; Tétu de Labsade, 2001, p. 116), while Vsg remains rather strong in European French (Morford, 1997). Recent research (Williams and van Compernolle, 2007) has also documented an overwhelming preference for T in non-moderated Internet chat communities. For a general treatment of personal pronoun paradigms in French, see Peeters (2006). The personal narratives were first classified into four categories according to the presence or absence of a second-person pronoun or related form: "singular" (i.e., T and Vsg), "plural" (i.e., Vpl), "switch" (i.e., singular and plural addresses in the same ad), and "no second-person address." The distribution of second-person pronouns is provided in Table 2. Table 2. Use of second-person forms 8 Singular Gender Plural (Vpl) (T/Vsg) Men 36 % 32 % Women 49 % 20 %
Switch
TOTAL
6%
42.5 %
18-25 yrs. 36-45 yrs.
Singular (T/Vsg) 35 % 50 %
TOTAL
42.5 %
Age
26 % Plural (Vpl)
5% 7%
Switch
36 % 16 %
6% 6%
26 %
6%
No 2nd person address 27 % 24 % 25.5 % No 2nd person address 23 % 28 % 25.5 %
The data in Table 2 clearly show that the majority of advertisers (74.5%) used a second-person pronoun or related form to address their reader(s) (i.e., Singular, 8
See note 2 (Table 1).
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Plural, and Switch combined). This in itself suggests that most members of the Netclub.com dating network prefer to address directly the reader(s) of their ad. The small number of advertisers who used both plural and singular forms in their ad (i.e., "switch") was analyzed further. It was found that all 12 ads included a plural form in the greeting and/or description of partner, but switched to a T form in the invitation to contact. The switch from a rather generic, plural V form in the greeting and/or description of partner to a more specific, singular T form in the invitation to contact suggests that the advertisers are aware that any number of people could be reading their ad and therefore address all potential readers; yet, they personalize the invitation to contact through the use of T in order to establish a more intimate relationship with a single reader in the hopes of moving from one-to-many public communication toward one-to-one private communication. In the case of the use of T/Vsg and Vpl, the data indicate a number of differences among the four demographic groups. First, while men and younger advertisers are divided approximately equivalently between singular and plural second-person forms, a preference for singular forms exists among women and older advertisers 9 . A closer analysis of the data revealed, however, that 24 of the 32 men who used Vpl were aged 18 to 25 years, suggesting that young males constitute the demographic group that is most likely to address all potential readers of their ad, while all other groups tend to use a singular form most often. The distribution of T and Vsg was also explored among those advertisers who used a singular second-person pronoun or related form. These results are provided in Table 3. Table 3. Singular second-person use 10 Gender
T forms
Vsg forms
Men Women
86.11 % 77.55 %
13.89 % 22.45 %
TOTAL
81.18 %
18.82 %
Age
T forms
Vsg forms
18-25 yrs. 36-45 yrs.
77.14 % 84.00 %
22.86 % 16.00 %
TOTAL
81.18 %
18.82 %
The data show a clear preference for T in all demographic groups. Although this finding is not necessarily surprising in the Canadian context, where T use is common even among people who do not know each other well or at all (Tétu de Labsade, 2001, p. 116), the preference for T at the expense of Vsg suggests that the use of T has become expected in on-line dating contexts, where Vsg might add unnecessary formality and social distance between people who aspire to establish an intimate, romantic relationship first on-line and eventually in an off-line environment. 9
Men vs. women: χ2 (1, N = 137) = 4.75, p = .05; 18-25 yrs. vs. 36-45 yrs.: χ2 (1, N = 137) = 10.17, p = .05 10 Singular second-person pronouns (i.e., T and Vsg combined) were distributed as follows: men = 36; women = 49; 18-25 yrs = 35; 36-45 yrs = 50.
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It is probable that members of on-line dating networks perceive each other as equals sharing a common goal, which would naturally lead to the use of T, among other behaviors and practices that demonstrate desired intimacy or familiarity.
5. Discussion and conclusion The analysis of the data revealed a number of norms for behaviors and practices of on-line dating network members as well as differences between the four demographic groups considered in this study. First, the most common type of information included in the personal narratives was self-promotion, which is explained by the fact that personals, just as any other type of advertisement, must promote the product to potential consumers. In the case of personals, the product is the advertiser, the consumer the reader. In addition, differences were found between men and women. Men were more likely than women to provide a description of their ideal partner, whereas women were more likely to include a greeting and a statement of purpose or justification for having joined the dating network. Theses differences may be explained by what Tannen (1990) calls report and rapport communication styles. According to Tannen (1990), report communication style, which emphasizes possession or ownership and is often centered around facts and logic, is associated with male discourse; rapport communication style, which focuses on building interpersonal relationships, expressing feelings and desires, and divulging personal information, is associated with female discourse. It is therefore not surprising that men's personals included a description of partner at higher frequencies than women's ads, which shows that men are more forthcoming about what they are seeking and are more goal-oriented. Women, however, included greetings and a statement of purpose or justification more often than men, which indicates that the goal of the ad is to establish interpersonal relationships, even during the period of one-to-many communication. Differences were also observed between younger and older advertisers. First, the data indicate that younger advertisers treat the personal ad as a form of interpersonal communication, or at least recognize the possibility of one-to-many communication leading to one-to-one communication. This was shown by the higher frequency of greetings and invitations to contact among younger advertisers than among their older counterparts. Second, older advertisers—especially women—were more likely to justify their presence on the dating network, which is explained by the fact that separation and divorce are certainly more common among older advertisers than among the younger age group. In the case of second-person pronoun use, the data indicate that T/V use is very common among all demographic groups (nearly three quarters of all advertisers used a second-person pronoun or related form). The high rate of second-person use in advertisements suggests that most advertisers acknowledge the fact that any number of people could be reading their ad, and the use of T or V establishes a more interpersonal relationship with their readers, especially when a greeting or an invitation to contact is present.
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A comparison of T/Vsg and Vpl use indicated that women and older advertisers were more likely to address individual readers with a singular secondperson pronoun, whereas men and younger advertisers were equally divided between singular and plural addresses. A closer analysis revealed a strong preference among young males for a plural second-person pronoun, which suggests that young men are more likely to address all potential readers rather than to establish a more personal relationship with individual readers. These findings are in line with previous research concerning the social aspect of on-line personals, such as Groom and Pennebaker (2005, p. 458), who found that women were more likely to concentrate on one personal ad, while men tended to respond to many ads. Finally, T was categorically preferred by advertisers who used a singular second-person pronoun or related form. Although this is not necessarily surprising in Québec French, the relatively low frequency of Vsg suggests, at least, that advertisers treat on-line dating networks as an extension of their off-line selves. Further, the social and interpersonal side of on-line dating networks, and the sense of a shared objective among members (e.g., finding a date, a partner, or marriage), may help to explain the preference for T, which conveys equality and/or solidarity within the community, while the use of V would add unnecessary social distance. Although this study has undertaken a formal analysis of only one Frenchlanguage on-line dating network, the author's informal observations suggests that T/V use is similar on other dating sites, both Québécois and French. In addition, sites with similar participation structures (e.g., roommate finding networks) appear to utilize both plural and singular addresses. Future research exploring and comparing T/V use in other types of on-line networks may prove rather insightful in the study of the French pronominal address system in public, one-to-many communication environments.
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