December 12, 2024 • 29 mins
In this student takeover episode, Xu Junzhe (Cecilia) and Li Haoran (Miles) from Shenzhen College of International Education in China discuss the use of English names amongst Chinese students.
Cecilia says 'Together with my classmates, we’ve been reflecting on why many of us choose to adopt English names, how this influences our sense of identity, and whether it affects our connection to Chinese culture. In our conversation, we explore questions like:
You can book onlne tutoring here -https://calendly.com/sociologyshowtutoring
Cecilia says 'Together with my classmates, we’ve been reflecting on why many of us choose to adopt English names, how this influences our sense of identity, and whether it affects our connection to Chinese culture. In our conversation, we explore questions like:
- Why do we use English names in the first place?
- How do we feel about these names compared to our Chinese ones?
- Does this practice influence our cultural identity or sense of belonging?
- What sociological theories can help explain this phenomenon?
You can book onlne tutoring here -https://calendly.com/sociologyshowtutoring
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, and welcome to another student takeover episode of the
Sociology Show podcast. This episode has come in from Shenzen
College of International Education in China and has been sent
in by Cecilia and Miles or is that really their
names or will be revealed in a little moment. First
of all, before we get onto that, just to let
you know that the Sociology Show podcast now offers online tutoring.
(00:23):
Whether you want a single session, weekly sessions, multiple sessions,
whatever it might be. You can book a one hour,
one hour and a half or two hour session. All
you need to do is visit calendly dot com forward
slash Sociology Show Tutoring. That's Calendly c A L E
N d l Y, and there you'll be able to
see which slots are available. If you are also interested
(00:45):
in contributing to the Sociology Show podcast, perhaps you've got
something you'd really like to discuss. Then all you need
to do is record an MP three file. You can
do it on your iPhone if you like, and send
over the file to the Sociology Show Podcast at gmail
dot com. Take a listen and if I like it,
if it's really good, then a bit like this episode,
then I can put it out as an episode for you.
(01:08):
So I mentioned this episode then, So the full title
of this one is the use of English names amongst
Chinese International school students and this is sent him by
Cecilia Ramles. Not their real names. They will reveal all
in this episode in a moment, and they are from
Shenzhen College of International Education in China. Enjoy.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Hi everyone, we are students studying in level sociology from
Hindun College of International Education. My name is Cecilia and
my Chinese name is shu Junju.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Hi. Everyone am Miles Lee. Oh, my Chinese name is Jhara.
It actually sounds quite weird why we introduce ourselves with
both Chinese names and English names.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
Yes, indeed, Miles, have you ever thought about that? How
interesting it is that we always college under English names.
For example, I call you Miles and you call me Cecilia,
despite that we both are Chinese.
Speaker 4 (02:08):
Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
And I've noticed that not only we, most of the
students here like in this international school call each other
English names. So I remember before we enter this international college,
the school asked us to put down our English name
in our profile rather than our Chinese name. So probably
because the place or the institution that we live in
(02:34):
requires us to do so. So, therefore, not only our classmates,
the teachers, and sometimes our parents call us an English name.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Yes, that's the case. I think to avoid mispronunciation by
foreign teachers is the main purpose of the school, right,
I guess.
Speaker 4 (02:53):
Yeah, that sounds yeah, that sounds quite interesting.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
But when I take a step back, some times I
find it actually quite weird seeing a group of Chinese
students and some Chinese teachers calling each other's English name.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
Don't you I always.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Feel the same. Actually, I've even conducted a research on
this topic. So early in the year, I did a
survey amount of international students in my rechhat groups and moments.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
Oh really, what's the survey about?
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Based on pre observation, I used two skills to explore
students' experiences in such a scenario within Chinese International High School,
specifically focusing on the aspect of cultural identity by examining
the correlation between English name usage and the three of
(03:48):
Chinese cultural identification.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
But that sounds fun. What's the result?
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Well, I'll start with the results of two separate skills.
There are both five point like skill uses a five
answer point, including a main point or a neutral point,
to assess a respondent's opinions. Participants rate the degree of
(04:19):
how much the statement fits their condition. One is completely
disagree and five is strongly agreed. One skill is an
English name usage questionnaire with mainly two dimensions. One is
daily usage and the other is in deferent condition. Daily
(04:41):
usage includes some questions like do you how often do
you use your Chinese like? I mean you always use
your English name when talking to your friends and you
introduce yourself with English name. The dimension of indeferent condition
include questions like do you prefer your English name rather
(05:05):
than your Chinese name? Do you think there's like a
strong attachment to.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Your English name.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I found that the dimensional daily usage has a higher
score than in the recognition. This demonstrates the instrumental properties
of the names rather than a source of identity.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
I think, oh, so, like, what do you think What
do you mean by instrumental properties of the name.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I think it means that using an English name is
more of a daily practice. Yes, And another skill calper
identity skill. I think there's no significant difference between the
two dimensions. One is emotional commitment and behavioral exploration. I
(05:57):
mean there's no difference of the scores the results of
the three dimensions. So overall, this particular statistic shows it
commonly identified Chinese cultural identity, both in a way that
people are attached to Chinese culture and that people are
(06:19):
willing to further explore and advocate for the culture.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Oh, I see, And I've noticed that the focus of
the research is about the correlation between the cultural identity
of Chinese cultural identification and English name usage. And actually,
I wonder what's what about the correlation examination?
Speaker 4 (06:43):
What's the result about that?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
The result was quite surprising, I think I found that
there is a positive correlation between the daily usage of
English names and the overall Chinese cultural identity, especially participants
well in to further explore their cultural identity.
Speaker 3 (07:03):
Oh that is quite counterintuitive, I think, because like naturally,
we might think that if a person has great attachment
to Chinese identity, he may be more likely to use
his or her Chinese name rather than his English names.
But the result seems to be like the opposite. So
(07:23):
what do you think is the rationale behind him?
Speaker 2 (07:27):
I think this is a very interesting question. So I
first delve more into the coalitions between specific questions from
the skills, maybe we can find some potential explanation. For instance,
there's two questions I want to mention. One is that
(07:48):
I don't resent my English name being used in any situation,
and the other statement is I think my English name
helps me to integrate into the school environment better. I
found a significant positive relationship correlation between these two questions
and the cultural identity skill result the total score of it.
(08:14):
This might indicate a greater cultural inclusiveness and adaptability of
the students to navigate and an intersection of both English
and Chinese. Maybe cultural or language usage.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Oh so you'll emphasize on your emphasis on inclusiveness and adaptability.
Sounds very inspiring, And I guess the reason behind this
positive relationship between greater English name usage and strong cultural
identity to like Chinese identity. Maybe because like, the more
(08:53):
students aligned with Chinese identity, the more he actually realized
the gap or the differences between Chinese and Western culture.
So in this international environment, he or she might want
to use an English name more often in this English
environment to better integrate into the English world. So he
(09:15):
actually realized this separation between like the Chinese world in
like the Western or English world. So keep using a
Chinese name, which is actually a strong representation of Chinese
identity may be a barrier to solve their identity conflict
in such an international environment. So I think inherently, yeah,
(09:39):
there may be a sense or need of inclusiveness and
adaptability for them to better integrate into the environment.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Now, also, I think your exation is excellent. Like to
be honest, do you like, are you talking about yourself
in this sense that like this is your idea?
Speaker 3 (10:00):
Yeah, to some extent, So my own understanding is like
based on what I've talked about before.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
I see, I've also found another interesting result, like there
is saleso a negative correlation between the likeness and identification
of the participant's English name and the degree of emotional
commitment to Chinese culture. I think this can be explained
(10:30):
in a similar way as you've said that students may
perceive English names as more consistent with an internationalized identity,
whereas Chinese names may be seen as a symbol of
tradition or confinement to a particular culture. Influenced by globalization
(10:51):
and international education, they might be more likely to adopt
foreign cultural elements and weakened their identification with Chinese culture,
developing the sort of hybrid identity.
Speaker 3 (11:05):
I think, oh, that sounds a very reasonable conclusion. And
have you met any particular challenge where searching the topic.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Well, my main concern when researching this topic is that
the self report questionnaire may cause some bias. For example,
participants may misunderstand the statement given by the questionnaire or
influenced by the Hawthorne effect we learned in the topic
(11:40):
the unit of research method, so halfign effects means that
participants may modify an aspect of their answers in response
to their awareness of being observed or being analyzed by
our researcher, which is me in this case. I think
(12:01):
this is the major limitation of questionnaire that it's difficult
to avoid. However, I still consider a questionnaire or a
quite reliable research method.
Speaker 4 (12:14):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
So because the survey is conducted in China, so people
may be subject to the pressure or expectation that they
need to be like somehow patriotic. So like, they may
assume that the researcher is somehow patriotic. So this might
change or like distort their response and probably result in
(12:39):
an overestimation of the attachment to Chinese identity. And also
what I find pretty what I'm curious about actually is
that the concept of identity may be constantly changing, especially
for students in an adolescent because like students are still
(13:04):
growing and their mentality is pretty unstable and constantly changing,
and I think this may be like strongly affect the result,
like probably, I mean, like doing a launch Tumino study
for like a long time can track their changes or
somehow like make the research more valid, like do you
(13:27):
think so?
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Yes, I think you're definitely right. You remind me of
another concern that the fact is said that identity is
fluid and has several aspects. For example, some people may
resonate a lot with the food in China or a
particular manner or like Chinese literature, but they don't necessarily
(13:54):
identify with other aspects of Chinese culture. So maybe this
makes it quite hard to discuss the whole topic and
one single study. The method of questionnaire lacks validity in
this case. Therefore, to check the changes and for a
(14:16):
more valid approach, I think what you've suggested in a
longitudinal study and maybe a follow up interview with classmates
will be really helpful.
Speaker 4 (14:26):
Oh that sounds nice.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
So have you ever thought of some further questions that
you may ask in future interviews in future studies.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Well, I'm thinking of like more of a casual conversation.
For example, I can start with sharing some stories about
my name. Oh really, yes, Actually, to tell you a secret,
my first English name is not Cecilia. That sounds quite normal, well,
(15:02):
at least like you're paring to my first name. My
first name is Apple because I have this Chinese nickname
of Wool, which means apple fruit and Chinese I use.
I kept the name till the age of twelve. Then,
for the purpose of going into an international summer camp.
(15:25):
I think, no, this is the time that I should
change to a serious name. I'll stop using the name
like so funny as Apple.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
Yeah, you've been loved it, or you've been marked by
other students.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yes, exactly. So I chose to him in Sicilia from
that like literature for children, and the sicilia is with
an e instead of an eye, because I think it
makes me a little bit more special. Yes, what about
what about your name, Miles?
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Yeah, so I actually noticed that you're like seeking a
sense of like uniqueness and the sense of the meaning
or the purpose of this name. And that's true also
for me, because so I actually picked Miles. I picked
this name like three years ago when I first came
into this international school. So basically the reason why I
(16:20):
chose this name is because like I google it and
I find that the meaning of it is like it
means like quite quite wise and pretty introverted and like
somehow introspective, like which is I think it's a best
feit for of my personality, So I just.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
Chose this name.
Speaker 2 (16:41):
I think it's really funny that in most cases our
names are given by parents, like our Chinese thing and
most of English names for Westerners or you know, names
in their own culture. But in this case, we can
really access or sort of agency or our decision to
(17:05):
make a choice for ourselves to haven't named that is,
like truly decided on our own, like our own minds.
Speaker 3 (17:18):
Yeah, so I think the there's like fundamental difference between
the origin of like English names of students or people
from a different color background because they can use their
agency to like free each rust their name. And also,
so you mentioned that you have changed your names, yes, once,
(17:39):
so it actually reflects the fluidity of our like of
our identity, because like we can constantly change our name, yes,
as long as we like don't like it.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Yeah, but it's really hard to change the Chinese right,
not like legally, but like from the bottom of our heart.
How we resonate with the name. For some whenever people
calls me and my Chinese thing, I just respond naturally.
But sometimes if people call me in my English name,
I may like hesitate.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
For a moment.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
Yeah, because like there is your path, there are some
like past experience before you need the books you read,
and like your sadness and your happiness like inherently embedded
within your name. So when people call your Chinese name
more like your original name, then like you might intuitively
(18:31):
like turn around and then be like, oh, why are
you calling me?
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Yes, So I think like in this case, maybe you
don't relate to your English name that lunch, or do
you prefer your Chinese name or your English name? And
as do they like mean so different to you? What
do you think? So?
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I mean personally, I think there are different meanings within
this two names. So I think in a Chinese environment,
I might like be more likely to use my Chinese
name because it's like closely related to my past experience
with my parents, my friends and all these are all
(19:17):
within the Chinese environment. But for the English name, then
there are a lot of memories and different kinds of
stuff that is related to these English names. So I
see a clear separation between the usage of these two names.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
So like what about you, whoa, I think it's true
that names aren't carrying something like really enough.
Speaker 5 (19:43):
Sociology Show podcast relies on the kind contributions of sponsorship
and donations. If you enjoy the show, then you can
help with the hosting costs by donating as little as
five pounds on the go fundme page. Simply visit UK
dot GoFundMe dot com and search for the Sociology Show.
If you can donate, then you will be sent a
(20:03):
Sociology Show pen as a small thank you for your
continued support of the show.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
For me, I think mmm, like my experience your mind,
my attitude towards the usage of names is similar to you,
because I don't like any of my friends like who
knows me when when we are in a Chinese context
to use my English and that sounds weird, that sounds
they are like teasing me. But in this school where
(20:33):
I met everybody, like we all use our English in
this case is quite natural, and I think there's a
sense of community based on the English game usage. Like
for example, in daily conversations, we always call each other
English names, and we are frequently switching between Chinese and English.
(20:57):
This kind of communication is you know, it can special
compared to other personal relationships.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Oh yeah, and beauty.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
See, so I think it's time to switch a top
a little bit to the Chinese identity part. Well, do
you think, like how would you regate your Chinese identity?
And probably, like we mentioned some aspects of Chinese identity,
how would you explain this sort of relation or attachment
(21:29):
to identity regarding various aspects.
Speaker 4 (21:33):
So I personally feel like.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
An identity is like a very complex topic because it
involves so many parts. So it actually includes your personal
attachment to let's say, like a culture including like food, language,
and like personal relationship. So because I am, we are
(21:59):
actually born and grow up in a Chinese context. So
basically you can't deny that you have a close relationship
with your with your like let's say, your family and
your friends in this Chinese context. So I mean for
me personally, I would say I have a strong attachment
to Chinese culture.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
M h. I see, I think, well it was obviously understandable,
especially like we both come from you know, public Chinese schools,
Like before we enter this international school, we always receive
education in our Chinese context, And I was wondering about,
(22:43):
how do you feel like when you first transferred to
this international schools? Do Chinese ning, I mean, do English
name help human integrate a little bit more?
Speaker 3 (22:52):
Yeah, yeah, definitely definitely, because like when you're entering like
a completely new environment and then you want to get
away from the past, then you need a brand new name.
Then probably an English name is like a new start
and kind of like refresh your mind and like open
up a new page for you. So yeah, basically that's
(23:16):
actually related to what you mentioned above. It's the concept
of agency, right, So you can use your free agency
to probably open up a new, completely new space for
you to explore by adopting the English name.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I see you're talking about something I just mentioned like
practical use.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
Right, practical, but also like oh, but also related to
identity and culture.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
So I've actually come across this concept of cultural assimilation
while doing so literal you know, literature review, Like it
means that you're into reading not only like the school environment.
Speaker 4 (24:02):
But also a cultural context.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
Yes, like the whole context within English. Do you think
the name is like a representation of you, like delve
more into the environment. For example, Like, let me give
you an example. Some foreigners who trouble around China, who's
really interesting with the sort of Inzasian culture, they choose
(24:28):
a Chinese name for themselves and they use it in
Chinese context. Do you think it's something similar or is
a totally different thing when it comes to like we adopting.
Speaker 4 (24:40):
English names, Well, the first thing that comes to mind
is that.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
Some foreigners, like so called foreigners from our perspective, to
come to China and then they adopt a Chinese name,
which is quite funny.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
So I actually the meaning or like.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
The connotations of the worlds or the latter, it's quite
funny and they didn't realize it doesn't realize they don't
realize that.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
So like I think it works like all the way
around times we shoes really strange English things that make
make you know, native speakers laugh a lot. Yes, For example,
apple first place.
Speaker 3 (25:18):
Or some very like prestigious or like very comfory class.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Yes, or maybe some religious names or names from Spain
or other culture, like Chinese name using a Spanish name.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
That's just that sounds weird, yes, because you don't actually
have the connection within the culture.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
Yes. Indeed, so do you plan to I mean, do
you plan to keep your English name after entering the
university or to plan for the future. You mentioned maybe
there's like a cultural marriage or sort of cultural appropriation,
(25:59):
you know what, we are trying to use a name
in different culture.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Yeah, that's a good question because like we don't actually
know what will happen after we enter the university. So
basically when we are in completely English environment, we might
want to use our English name or like Chinese names
or biscuit.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
It depends.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
Yes, Like I think for me during this challenge is
still pronunciation. Oh, it's quite hard for professors to like
recognize the name and you know, just react with a
correct pronunciation.
Speaker 4 (26:41):
But they can just call it, call you your surname.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Yes, that's right. I think in this paras Olympics, people
are recording their names the right pronunciation of the names
and put out put on the audios into the internet,
and just so that there's no confusion. Do you think
that may be a good solution.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
To the problem.
Speaker 3 (27:08):
That's that's also pretty hard though, because when you yourself
pronounced him, it's quite hard.
Speaker 4 (27:15):
Mm hmm, like like like the foreigners. Like let's say.
Speaker 3 (27:21):
Those commentators in Olympics, they know how wonder routine is pronounced,
but they just can't pronounce very accurately.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yeah, yes, that may happen sometimes well overalls, still quite
I was a complex topic to say.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
I think in some college pages, I see they are
doing this audio things, you know, to show some respects
for other cultures, to adapt this sort of globalized environment.
I think it's sometimes US schools and nows we are
(28:02):
both working towards it.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
Yeah, And I think it's a good thing to attach
equal importance to like different writings and different pronunciations of names.
Speaker 2 (28:13):
Yes, like for example, where I have to do some
signatures and online I have to type the opening of
my names instead of the real characters. I think it's
a really great conversation for us. Do you have anything
else to share?
Speaker 4 (28:31):
Yeah, I'm so elected to here and then have this podcast. Yeah, So.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
It's been it's faring conversation between other I think so
I hope you guys find this episode useful and thank
you so much for listening. Goodbye, see you next time.
Good Bye, bye bye.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
Thank you for taking the time to listen to the podcast.
If you would like to contact at the show or
be interviewed, then please email The Sociology Show Podcast at
gmail dot com.
Hello, and welcome to another student takeover episode of the
Sociology Show podcast. This episode has come in from Shenzen
College of International Education in China and has been sent
in by Cecilia and Miles or is that really their
names or will be revealed in a little moment. First
of all, before we get onto that, just to let
you know that the Sociology Show podcast now offers online tutoring.
(00:23):
Whether you want a single session, weekly sessions, multiple sessions,
whatever it might be. You can book a one hour,
one hour and a half or two hour session. All
you need to do is visit calendly dot com forward
slash Sociology Show Tutoring. That's Calendly c A L E
N d l Y, and there you'll be able to
see which slots are available. If you are also interested
(00:45):
in contributing to the Sociology Show podcast, perhaps you've got
something you'd really like to discuss. Then all you need
to do is record an MP three file. You can
do it on your iPhone if you like, and send
over the file to the Sociology Show Podcast at gmail
dot com. Take a listen and if I like it,
if it's really good, then a bit like this episode,
then I can put it out as an episode for you.
(01:08):
So I mentioned this episode then, So the full title
of this one is the use of English names amongst
Chinese International school students and this is sent him by
Cecilia Ramles. Not their real names. They will reveal all
in this episode in a moment, and they are from
Shenzhen College of International Education in China. Enjoy.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Hi everyone, we are students studying in level sociology from
Hindun College of International Education. My name is Cecilia and
my Chinese name is shu Junju.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Hi. Everyone am Miles Lee. Oh, my Chinese name is Jhara.
It actually sounds quite weird why we introduce ourselves with
both Chinese names and English names.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
Yes, indeed, Miles, have you ever thought about that? How
interesting it is that we always college under English names.
For example, I call you Miles and you call me Cecilia,
despite that we both are Chinese.
Speaker 4 (02:08):
Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
And I've noticed that not only we, most of the
students here like in this international school call each other
English names. So I remember before we enter this international college,
the school asked us to put down our English name
in our profile rather than our Chinese name. So probably
because the place or the institution that we live in
(02:34):
requires us to do so. So, therefore, not only our classmates,
the teachers, and sometimes our parents call us an English name.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Yes, that's the case. I think to avoid mispronunciation by
foreign teachers is the main purpose of the school, right,
I guess.
Speaker 4 (02:53):
Yeah, that sounds yeah, that sounds quite interesting.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
But when I take a step back, some times I
find it actually quite weird seeing a group of Chinese
students and some Chinese teachers calling each other's English name.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
Don't you I always.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Feel the same. Actually, I've even conducted a research on
this topic. So early in the year, I did a
survey amount of international students in my rechhat groups and moments.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
Oh really, what's the survey about?
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Based on pre observation, I used two skills to explore
students' experiences in such a scenario within Chinese International High School,
specifically focusing on the aspect of cultural identity by examining
the correlation between English name usage and the three of
(03:48):
Chinese cultural identification.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
But that sounds fun. What's the result?
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Well, I'll start with the results of two separate skills.
There are both five point like skill uses a five
answer point, including a main point or a neutral point,
to assess a respondent's opinions. Participants rate the degree of
(04:19):
how much the statement fits their condition. One is completely
disagree and five is strongly agreed. One skill is an
English name usage questionnaire with mainly two dimensions. One is
daily usage and the other is in deferent condition. Daily
(04:41):
usage includes some questions like do you how often do
you use your Chinese like? I mean you always use
your English name when talking to your friends and you
introduce yourself with English name. The dimension of indeferent condition
include questions like do you prefer your English name rather
(05:05):
than your Chinese name? Do you think there's like a
strong attachment to.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Your English name.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I found that the dimensional daily usage has a higher
score than in the recognition. This demonstrates the instrumental properties
of the names rather than a source of identity.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
I think, oh, so, like, what do you think What
do you mean by instrumental properties of the name.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
I think it means that using an English name is
more of a daily practice. Yes, And another skill calper
identity skill. I think there's no significant difference between the
two dimensions. One is emotional commitment and behavioral exploration. I
(05:57):
mean there's no difference of the scores the results of
the three dimensions. So overall, this particular statistic shows it
commonly identified Chinese cultural identity, both in a way that
people are attached to Chinese culture and that people are
(06:19):
willing to further explore and advocate for the culture.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Oh, I see, And I've noticed that the focus of
the research is about the correlation between the cultural identity
of Chinese cultural identification and English name usage. And actually,
I wonder what's what about the correlation examination?
Speaker 4 (06:43):
What's the result about that?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
The result was quite surprising, I think I found that
there is a positive correlation between the daily usage of
English names and the overall Chinese cultural identity, especially participants
well in to further explore their cultural identity.
Speaker 3 (07:03):
Oh that is quite counterintuitive, I think, because like naturally,
we might think that if a person has great attachment
to Chinese identity, he may be more likely to use
his or her Chinese name rather than his English names.
But the result seems to be like the opposite. So
(07:23):
what do you think is the rationale behind him?
Speaker 2 (07:27):
I think this is a very interesting question. So I
first delve more into the coalitions between specific questions from
the skills, maybe we can find some potential explanation. For instance,
there's two questions I want to mention. One is that
(07:48):
I don't resent my English name being used in any situation,
and the other statement is I think my English name
helps me to integrate into the school environment better. I
found a significant positive relationship correlation between these two questions
and the cultural identity skill result the total score of it.
(08:14):
This might indicate a greater cultural inclusiveness and adaptability of
the students to navigate and an intersection of both English
and Chinese. Maybe cultural or language usage.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Oh so you'll emphasize on your emphasis on inclusiveness and adaptability.
Sounds very inspiring, And I guess the reason behind this
positive relationship between greater English name usage and strong cultural
identity to like Chinese identity. Maybe because like, the more
(08:53):
students aligned with Chinese identity, the more he actually realized
the gap or the differences between Chinese and Western culture.
So in this international environment, he or she might want
to use an English name more often in this English
environment to better integrate into the English world. So he
(09:15):
actually realized this separation between like the Chinese world in
like the Western or English world. So keep using a
Chinese name, which is actually a strong representation of Chinese
identity may be a barrier to solve their identity conflict
in such an international environment. So I think inherently, yeah,
(09:39):
there may be a sense or need of inclusiveness and
adaptability for them to better integrate into the environment.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Now, also, I think your exation is excellent. Like to
be honest, do you like, are you talking about yourself
in this sense that like this is your idea?
Speaker 3 (10:00):
Yeah, to some extent, So my own understanding is like
based on what I've talked about before.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
I see, I've also found another interesting result, like there
is saleso a negative correlation between the likeness and identification
of the participant's English name and the degree of emotional
commitment to Chinese culture. I think this can be explained
(10:30):
in a similar way as you've said that students may
perceive English names as more consistent with an internationalized identity,
whereas Chinese names may be seen as a symbol of
tradition or confinement to a particular culture. Influenced by globalization
(10:51):
and international education, they might be more likely to adopt
foreign cultural elements and weakened their identification with Chinese culture,
developing the sort of hybrid identity.
Speaker 3 (11:05):
I think, oh, that sounds a very reasonable conclusion. And
have you met any particular challenge where searching the topic.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Well, my main concern when researching this topic is that
the self report questionnaire may cause some bias. For example,
participants may misunderstand the statement given by the questionnaire or
influenced by the Hawthorne effect we learned in the topic
(11:40):
the unit of research method, so halfign effects means that
participants may modify an aspect of their answers in response
to their awareness of being observed or being analyzed by
our researcher, which is me in this case. I think
(12:01):
this is the major limitation of questionnaire that it's difficult
to avoid. However, I still consider a questionnaire or a
quite reliable research method.
Speaker 4 (12:14):
Yeah, that makes sense.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
So because the survey is conducted in China, so people
may be subject to the pressure or expectation that they
need to be like somehow patriotic. So like, they may
assume that the researcher is somehow patriotic. So this might
change or like distort their response and probably result in
(12:39):
an overestimation of the attachment to Chinese identity. And also
what I find pretty what I'm curious about actually is
that the concept of identity may be constantly changing, especially
for students in an adolescent because like students are still
(13:04):
growing and their mentality is pretty unstable and constantly changing,
and I think this may be like strongly affect the result,
like probably, I mean, like doing a launch Tumino study
for like a long time can track their changes or
somehow like make the research more valid, like do you
(13:27):
think so?
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Yes, I think you're definitely right. You remind me of
another concern that the fact is said that identity is
fluid and has several aspects. For example, some people may
resonate a lot with the food in China or a
particular manner or like Chinese literature, but they don't necessarily
(13:54):
identify with other aspects of Chinese culture. So maybe this
makes it quite hard to discuss the whole topic and
one single study. The method of questionnaire lacks validity in
this case. Therefore, to check the changes and for a
(14:16):
more valid approach, I think what you've suggested in a
longitudinal study and maybe a follow up interview with classmates
will be really helpful.
Speaker 4 (14:26):
Oh that sounds nice.
Speaker 3 (14:29):
So have you ever thought of some further questions that
you may ask in future interviews in future studies.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Well, I'm thinking of like more of a casual conversation.
For example, I can start with sharing some stories about
my name. Oh really, yes, Actually, to tell you a secret,
my first English name is not Cecilia. That sounds quite normal, well,
(15:02):
at least like you're paring to my first name. My
first name is Apple because I have this Chinese nickname
of Wool, which means apple fruit and Chinese I use.
I kept the name till the age of twelve. Then,
for the purpose of going into an international summer camp.
(15:25):
I think, no, this is the time that I should
change to a serious name. I'll stop using the name
like so funny as Apple.
Speaker 3 (15:34):
Yeah, you've been loved it, or you've been marked by
other students.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yes, exactly. So I chose to him in Sicilia from
that like literature for children, and the sicilia is with
an e instead of an eye, because I think it
makes me a little bit more special. Yes, what about
what about your name, Miles?
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Yeah, so I actually noticed that you're like seeking a
sense of like uniqueness and the sense of the meaning
or the purpose of this name. And that's true also
for me, because so I actually picked Miles. I picked
this name like three years ago when I first came
into this international school. So basically the reason why I
(16:20):
chose this name is because like I google it and
I find that the meaning of it is like it
means like quite quite wise and pretty introverted and like
somehow introspective, like which is I think it's a best
feit for of my personality, So I just.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
Chose this name.
Speaker 2 (16:41):
I think it's really funny that in most cases our
names are given by parents, like our Chinese thing and
most of English names for Westerners or you know, names
in their own culture. But in this case, we can
really access or sort of agency or our decision to
(17:05):
make a choice for ourselves to haven't named that is,
like truly decided on our own, like our own minds.
Speaker 3 (17:18):
Yeah, so I think the there's like fundamental difference between
the origin of like English names of students or people
from a different color background because they can use their
agency to like free each rust their name. And also,
so you mentioned that you have changed your names, yes, once,
(17:39):
so it actually reflects the fluidity of our like of
our identity, because like we can constantly change our name, yes,
as long as we like don't like it.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Yeah, but it's really hard to change the Chinese right,
not like legally, but like from the bottom of our heart.
How we resonate with the name. For some whenever people
calls me and my Chinese thing, I just respond naturally.
But sometimes if people call me in my English name,
I may like hesitate.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
For a moment.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
Yeah, because like there is your path, there are some
like past experience before you need the books you read,
and like your sadness and your happiness like inherently embedded
within your name. So when people call your Chinese name
more like your original name, then like you might intuitively
(18:31):
like turn around and then be like, oh, why are
you calling me?
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Yes, So I think like in this case, maybe you
don't relate to your English name that lunch, or do
you prefer your Chinese name or your English name? And
as do they like mean so different to you? What
do you think? So?
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I mean personally, I think there are different meanings within
this two names. So I think in a Chinese environment,
I might like be more likely to use my Chinese
name because it's like closely related to my past experience
with my parents, my friends and all these are all
(19:17):
within the Chinese environment. But for the English name, then
there are a lot of memories and different kinds of
stuff that is related to these English names. So I
see a clear separation between the usage of these two names.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
So like what about you, whoa, I think it's true
that names aren't carrying something like really enough.
Speaker 5 (19:43):
Sociology Show podcast relies on the kind contributions of sponsorship
and donations. If you enjoy the show, then you can
help with the hosting costs by donating as little as
five pounds on the go fundme page. Simply visit UK
dot GoFundMe dot com and search for the Sociology Show.
If you can donate, then you will be sent a
(20:03):
Sociology Show pen as a small thank you for your
continued support of the show.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
For me, I think mmm, like my experience your mind,
my attitude towards the usage of names is similar to you,
because I don't like any of my friends like who
knows me when when we are in a Chinese context
to use my English and that sounds weird, that sounds
they are like teasing me. But in this school where
(20:33):
I met everybody, like we all use our English in
this case is quite natural, and I think there's a
sense of community based on the English game usage. Like
for example, in daily conversations, we always call each other
English names, and we are frequently switching between Chinese and English.
(20:57):
This kind of communication is you know, it can special
compared to other personal relationships.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Oh yeah, and beauty.
Speaker 2 (21:07):
See, so I think it's time to switch a top
a little bit to the Chinese identity part. Well, do
you think, like how would you regate your Chinese identity?
And probably, like we mentioned some aspects of Chinese identity,
how would you explain this sort of relation or attachment
(21:29):
to identity regarding various aspects.
Speaker 4 (21:33):
So I personally feel like.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
An identity is like a very complex topic because it
involves so many parts. So it actually includes your personal
attachment to let's say, like a culture including like food, language,
and like personal relationship. So because I am, we are
(21:59):
actually born and grow up in a Chinese context. So
basically you can't deny that you have a close relationship
with your with your like let's say, your family and
your friends in this Chinese context. So I mean for
me personally, I would say I have a strong attachment
to Chinese culture.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
M h. I see, I think, well it was obviously understandable,
especially like we both come from you know, public Chinese schools,
Like before we enter this international school, we always receive
education in our Chinese context, And I was wondering about,
(22:43):
how do you feel like when you first transferred to
this international schools? Do Chinese ning, I mean, do English
name help human integrate a little bit more?
Speaker 3 (22:52):
Yeah, yeah, definitely definitely, because like when you're entering like
a completely new environment and then you want to get
away from the past, then you need a brand new name.
Then probably an English name is like a new start
and kind of like refresh your mind and like open
up a new page for you. So yeah, basically that's
(23:16):
actually related to what you mentioned above. It's the concept
of agency, right, So you can use your free agency
to probably open up a new, completely new space for
you to explore by adopting the English name.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
I see you're talking about something I just mentioned like
practical use.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
Right, practical, but also like oh, but also related to
identity and culture.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
So I've actually come across this concept of cultural assimilation
while doing so literal you know, literature review, Like it
means that you're into reading not only like the school environment.
Speaker 4 (24:02):
But also a cultural context.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
Yes, like the whole context within English. Do you think
the name is like a representation of you, like delve
more into the environment. For example, Like, let me give
you an example. Some foreigners who trouble around China, who's
really interesting with the sort of Inzasian culture, they choose
(24:28):
a Chinese name for themselves and they use it in
Chinese context. Do you think it's something similar or is
a totally different thing when it comes to like we adopting.
Speaker 4 (24:40):
English names, Well, the first thing that comes to mind
is that.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
Some foreigners, like so called foreigners from our perspective, to
come to China and then they adopt a Chinese name,
which is quite funny.
Speaker 4 (24:54):
So I actually the meaning or like.
Speaker 3 (24:57):
The connotations of the worlds or the latter, it's quite
funny and they didn't realize it doesn't realize they don't
realize that.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
So like I think it works like all the way
around times we shoes really strange English things that make
make you know, native speakers laugh a lot. Yes, For example,
apple first place.
Speaker 3 (25:18):
Or some very like prestigious or like very comfory class.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Yes, or maybe some religious names or names from Spain
or other culture, like Chinese name using a Spanish name.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
That's just that sounds weird, yes, because you don't actually
have the connection within the culture.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
Yes. Indeed, so do you plan to I mean, do
you plan to keep your English name after entering the
university or to plan for the future. You mentioned maybe
there's like a cultural marriage or sort of cultural appropriation,
(25:59):
you know what, we are trying to use a name
in different culture.
Speaker 3 (26:03):
Yeah, that's a good question because like we don't actually
know what will happen after we enter the university. So
basically when we are in completely English environment, we might
want to use our English name or like Chinese names
or biscuit.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
It depends.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
Yes, Like I think for me during this challenge is
still pronunciation. Oh, it's quite hard for professors to like
recognize the name and you know, just react with a
correct pronunciation.
Speaker 4 (26:41):
But they can just call it, call you your surname.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Yes, that's right. I think in this paras Olympics, people
are recording their names the right pronunciation of the names
and put out put on the audios into the internet,
and just so that there's no confusion. Do you think
that may be a good solution.
Speaker 4 (27:07):
To the problem.
Speaker 3 (27:08):
That's that's also pretty hard though, because when you yourself
pronounced him, it's quite hard.
Speaker 4 (27:15):
Mm hmm, like like like the foreigners. Like let's say.
Speaker 3 (27:21):
Those commentators in Olympics, they know how wonder routine is pronounced,
but they just can't pronounce very accurately.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yeah, yes, that may happen sometimes well overalls, still quite
I was a complex topic to say.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
I think in some college pages, I see they are
doing this audio things, you know, to show some respects
for other cultures, to adapt this sort of globalized environment.
I think it's sometimes US schools and nows we are
(28:02):
both working towards it.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
Yeah, And I think it's a good thing to attach
equal importance to like different writings and different pronunciations of names.
Speaker 2 (28:13):
Yes, like for example, where I have to do some
signatures and online I have to type the opening of
my names instead of the real characters. I think it's
a really great conversation for us. Do you have anything
else to share?
Speaker 4 (28:31):
Yeah, I'm so elected to here and then have this podcast. Yeah, So.
Speaker 2 (28:38):
It's been it's faring conversation between other I think so
I hope you guys find this episode useful and thank
you so much for listening. Goodbye, see you next time.
Good Bye, bye bye.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
Thank you for taking the time to listen to the podcast.
If you would like to contact at the show or
be interviewed, then please email The Sociology Show Podcast at
gmail dot com.
Popular Podcasts
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.