CODE-SWITCHING AMONG BILINGUAL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: A STUDY OF LANGUAGE CHOICE AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

Abstract

Code-switching among Pakistani speakers of the English language is a commonly observable phenomenon; however, it makes a good amount of impression among university students across Pakistan with an indigenous first language and Urdu as a lingua franca. In the face of numerous qualitative studies available on code-switching, the study using a quantitative design, measures and explicates the frequency of code-switching among university students in formal and informal settings. The variations of code-switching in academic and social spheres, the key factors influencing it, and the effects of online and offline communication were the objectives of the study. Relying upon Interactional Sociolinguistics of Grumperz (1982), and the theoretical views of Poplack (1980), the study finds that in higher education settings, code-switching, in informal and academic settings, is highly frequent. Switching from one code to the other code chiefly relies upon the context; it is more frequent among peers than in academic contexts. Moreover, it is viewed as a positive communication style by the students. It is closely connected with the confidence and identity of students. However, negative perceptions of it are at their lowest. The study concludes that code-switching among university students is one of the most docile and pliant ways of communication and learning.