By providing an introduction to language attitude theory, this chapter serves as a reference point for the subsequent chapters. The chapter begins by considering attitudes in general (their formation, functions, and components) before focusing specifically on language attitudes. The chapter examines the link between language and social identity, the notion of language attitudes as reflections of social mores and the related issue of language attitude change, and the difference between (and inter-relatedness of) language attitudes and ideologies. The chapter then discusses the implications and consequences of language attitudes at the micro as well as the macro level. Subsequently, the chapter covers the key individual and socio-structural factors that influence language attitudes, and it discusses the evaluative dimensions of language attitudes (and how they are connected to the aforementioned socio-structural factors). The chapter introduces the three types of methods by means of which language attitudes can be investigated – that is, the analysis of the societal treatment of language, direct methods, and indirect methods – and the key overarching issues in language attitudes research which are covered in the book (i.e. regarding different community types, different data types, priming, and mixed-methods approaches). The aims of the book, and its structure and contents, are explained.

Following on from the previous chapter on questionnaire-based elicitation of quantitative data, this chapter outlines how open-ended questionnaire items can be used to elicit qualitative language attitudes data. These items invite the respondent to freely answer a question with a few words, sentences, or a paragraph of free writing, thereby eliciting idiosyncratic responses. Open-ended items provide complex and potentially unexpected information on the different attitude components and can thus play a complementary role to closed-ended items in the evaluation of attitudes. The chapter guides the reader through a wide range of ways to use open-ended items and discusses their strengths as well as weaknesses. Building on the preceding chapter, key issues of study design are added, including the choice of open-ended question types and factors that inform decisions of participant sampling. The chapter instructs the reader how to pilot a questionnaire and how to conduct (inductive or deductive) qualitative content analysis. Finally, it addresses ethical concerns of privacy and confidentiality. A case study on attitudes towards different varieties of English in Fiji serves as illustration of the main points made in the chapter.

This chapter discusses the relevance of language contact in smaller-scale migration and linguistic diaspora situations for the study of World Englishes (WEs). It provides definitions of the terms diaspora and diasporic language variety and establishes a practice-oriented view of language use that acknowledges the speakers’ linguistic agency in constructing social meaning. It explores intersections of WEs with sociolinguistic identity construction (1) by attempting to bridge the gap between language mixing and WEs research; (2) by problematizing the role of the immigrant generation in the use of ethnolinguistic features; (3) by teasing apart factors on language contact in multiple migration scenarios; and (4) by highlighting the relevance of urban multi-ethnolects for WEs. Contextualizing WEs studies with these different theoretical perspectives pushes the boundaries of the discipline toward foregoing essentialist categories (such as “varieties” or “ethnolects”) in favor of more fluid concepts (such as “processes,” “practices,” or “repertoires”). The chapter thus uses concepts from migration and diaspora studies to show their benefit for future research of WEs.