Code-Switching of Bilingual Twitter Users in Private Speech: A Sociolinguistics Study = Code-Switching of Bilingual Twitter Users in Private Speech: A Sociolinguistics Study

This study aims to: (1) find out the various types of code-switching used by bilingual Twitter users and (2) to determine the function of code-switching in their private speech. The descriptive qualitative study approach was used, using 34 data sources taken from the tweets of bilingual Twitter users who performed English-Indonesian code-switching in private speech. The writer collected the data by doing observation and documentation, giving questionnaires, and conducting interviews to get more detailed information. The writer began by categorizing the tweets data to identify the types of code-switching based on Poplack and Yassi's concepts and then sorting the questionnaire and interview data to reveal the specific functions of code-switching using the adapted theories from Appel & Muysken, Hoffmann, and Gumperz. The findings of this research show that there are five types of code-switching found in the 34 data: tag switching, intra-sentential switching (intraclausal, intraphrasal, and intralexical switching), and inter-sentential switching. The most common type of code-switching is inter-sentential switching, which makes up to 35.5% of the data, showing that most of the users are quite fluent in both languages. The writer also discovered that bilingual Twitter users apply nine code-switching functions: referential, directive, expressive, phatic, repetition, quotation, interjection, clarification, and poetic functions. The referential, expressive, and poetic function are the most often functions applied by the users, implying that bilingual Twitter users utilize code-switching as a strategy to communicate their mind and expressing their feelings on private speech. However, according to the theories presented, some of the data cannot be classified into any of the function categories. The writer then categorized them as shortening words or sentences, improving English language skills, and indicating sociability.

Keyword : code-switching , bilingual twitter user , private speech