Moving beyond Linear Trajectories of Language Shift and Bilingual Language Socialization

Abstract

Demographers and sociologists conducting large-scale surveys of the language choices and preferences of different immigrant groups residing in the United States have contributed to the widespread characterization of language shift as following a single trajectory and of bilingualism as a transitory phenomenon. However, researchers studying bilingualism and bilingual language socialization among Latino populations have found variations in the trajectories language shift follows for these groups. Drawing on sociocultural perspectives of language and learning, this article describes the language socialization experiences of Mexican-descent families living in a California community in order to understand how these experiences are implicated in the development and evolution of their bilingualism. In working toward this goal, the findings reported here contribute to a dynamic and multifaceted portrayal of bilingualism.

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