Investigating World Englishes ― Research Methodology and Practical Applications

This book provides readers with an in-depth understanding of the methodological tools that have to date been implemented within World Englishes (WE) research.

It serves as a tool to allow for better methodological rigor in interpreting prior research, as well as in conducting future research in this important area of sociolinguistic investigation. This book explores various methodological tools, ranging from corpus analysis to ethnography to questionnaires, demonstrating how such approaches have been used to address a wide range of empirical topics common to WE research. With chapters dedicated to specific methodological approaches and demonstrating these approaches in context, readers are provided with the knowledge necessary to both pursue future empirical inquiry as well as consider existing research from a critical perspective. The book will also explain the similarities and differences that exist between WE and English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) and English as an International Language (EIL).

Peter De Costa is an Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics and Languages at Michigan State University. His primary areas of research are identity and ideology in second language acquisition. He is the author of The Power of Identity and Ideology in Language Learning (Springer, 2016). He also edited Ethics in Applied Linguistics Research (Routledge, 2016). His work has appeared in AILA Review, Applied Linguistics Review, International Journal of Applied Linguistics, Language Learning, Language Policy, Language Teaching, Linguistics and Education, Research in the Teaching of English, System, TESOL Quarterly, and The Modern Language Journal. He recently guest edited special journal issues on scalar approaches to language learning and teaching (Linguistics and Education, 2016; with Suresh Canagarajah), teacher identity (The Modern Language Journal, 2017; with Bonny Norton), study abroad research methodologies (System, 2017; with Hima Rawal and Irina Zaykovskaya), and World Englishes and Second Language Acquisition (World Englishes, 2018; with Kingsley Bolton). He is the co-editor of TESOL Quarterly.

Dustin Crowther is a visiting assistant professor of English at Oklahoma State University, and holds a PhD in Second Language Studies from Michigan State University. He previously completed his MA in Applied Linguistics at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. His research interests include second language pronunciation, the promotion of mutual intelligibility in multilinguistic and multicultural contact, World Englishes, and research methodologies. His research has been published in a wide range of journals, including Studies in Second Language Acquisition, The Modern Language Journal, and TESOL Quarterly.

Jeffrey Maloney is an assistant professor of English at Northeastern State University. He holds a PhD in Second Language Studies from Michigan State University and an MA in Applied Linguistics from Ohio University. His research interests include language teacher training with technology, computer assisted language learning, and language teacher and learner identity.