2026 Undergraduate Research Showcase

It's Fine When I Do It?: Competitive Forensics Performances and Hidden Language Ideologies

Document Type

Student Presentation

Presentation Date

4-24-2026

Faculty Sponsor

Dr. Gail Shuck

Abstract

Language ideologies refer to the systems of ideas, beliefs, and attitudes that link language use to social positions and identity, most of which operate in a wide variety of manners and contexts. One common language ideology is the belief of a standardized, correct form of languages that should be used. This research aims to explore how the context of a structured performance environment shapes, justifies, and legitimizes dominant language ideologies. It examines, in particular, the manifestation of these ideologies through self-reported usage and perception of accents from competitors having participated in collegiate forensics interpretation events, spoken performances of literature where students bring authors’ works to life through a variety of acting techniques (i.e. voice, facial expressions, and movement) without costumes or props. This study’s findings indicate that competitors in these events appear to perceive their performances of their chosen accents as appropriate and non-offensive within the structured context of the activity. In contrast, the same competitors appear to perceive others’ usage of accents in the same context are far less appropriate, highlighting an intriguing form of ideological self-justification that reveals how powerful performances are for maintaining ideologies about language.

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