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"What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2021.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | en_ZA |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2021
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| _version_ | 1867613924255334400 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily |
| author2 | Bylund, Emanuel |
| author_browse | Bylund, Emanuel Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily |
| author_facet | Bylund, Emanuel Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily |
| author_sort | Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2021. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/123997 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | en_ZA |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:43:52.525Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publishDateRange | 2021 |
| publishDateSort | 2021 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/123997 "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily Bylund, Emanuel Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of General Linguistics. Euphemism Euphemism -- Political aspects Euphemism -- Psychological aspects English language -- Euphemism UCTD Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2021. ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study assessed the impact that euphemistic language may have on one’s reasoning about phenomena, with specific regard to how nominal politically correct labels affect perceptions about groups of people. The main research question of the study is “To what extent do politically correct euphemisms impact reasoning?” The main study consisted of 263 first language English speakers, who were randomly assigned to one of four conditions consisting of a fictional report. In each of the conditions, the reports were identical except for the label which referenced the target group. In a pre-experimental study, the four labels used in the conditions were each rated as having varying levels of euphemistic characteristics. Subsequently, participants were asked to respond to questions about the report that they had read. Responses from the four conditions were analysed and compared in order to determine how the lexical differences in the text affected the participants’ reasoning. The results of the study contribute to the broader body of research on the impact of lexical choices on cognitive processing and provide some new empirical insights into the psychological aspects of euphemism. Results largely indicated that the use of different euphemistic labels likely does not lead to differences in reasoning about the labels’ referent. However, in two of the results obtained, it was found that euphemistic labels may affect perception, but only under highly specific conditions that are dependent on contextual cues that euphemisms, by virtue of their nature, do not provide. The findings from this study are therefore valuable for generating further theoretical comprehension of the cognitive processing of euphemism. In addition to this, the present findings demonstrate that the topic of political correctness, as a linguistic phenomenon, can be empirically examined as a rich topic of research. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie het die invloed wat eufemistiese taal kan hê op die redenasie van verskynsels geassesseer, spesifiek met betrekking tot hoe nominale polities korrekte naamwoorde persepsies oor groupe mense beïnvloed. Die hoof navorsingsvraag van die studie is: “Tot watter mate beïnvloed polities korrekte eufemismes redenasie?” Die studie het bestaan uit 263 eerste taal Engelssprekendes wat ewekansig gesorteer is in een van vier leestoestande wat het bestaan uit ‘n fiktiewe verslag. In elk van die leestoestande was die verslae identies, behalwe vir die naamwoord wat na die teikengroup verwys het. In ‘n pre- eksperimentele studie was die vier naamwoorde wat in die leestoestande gebruik is beoordeel met verskillende vlakke van eufemistiese eienskappe. Daarna was deelnemers gevra om te reageer op vrae oor die verslag wat hulle gelees het. Die antwoorde uit die vier leestoestande is geanaliseer en vergelyk om vas te stel hoe die leksikale verskille in teks die redenasie van die deelnemers beïnvloed het. Die resultate van die studie dra by tot die breër bestaande navorsing wat die impak van leksikale keuses op kognitiewe verwerking ondersoek en bied ‘n paar nuwe empiriese insigte oor die sielkundige aspekte van eufemisme. Die resultate het grootliks aangedui dat die gebruik van verskillende eufemismes waarskynlik nie lei tot verskille in die redenasie oor die naamwoord se referent nie. In twee van die resultate wat verkry is, is egter gevind dat eufemistiese naamwoorde ‘n invloed kan hê op ‘n individu se persepsie, maar slegs onder hoogs spesifieke toestande wat afhanklik is van kontekstuele aanwysings wat eufemismes – op grond van hul aard – nie verskaf nie. Die bevindinge uit hierdie studie is dus waardevol om verdere teoretiese begrip van die kognitiewe verwerking van eufemisme te genereer. Hierbenewens toon die huidige bevindings aan dat die onderwerp van politieke korrektheid ‘n oorvloedig navorsingsonderwerp kan word. Masters 2021-12-07T12:20:18Z 2021-12-22T14:33:53Z 2021-12-07T12:20:18Z 2021-12-22T14:33:53Z 2021-12 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/123997 en_ZA Stellenbosch University 156 pages : illustrations application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Euphemism Euphemism -- Political aspects Euphemism -- Psychological aspects English language -- Euphemism UCTD Collington-O'Malley, Tessa Emily "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title | "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title_full | "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title_fullStr | "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title_full_unstemmed | "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title_short | "What's in a name?": political correctness, euphemism, and the impact of name-words on thought |
| title_sort | what s in a name political correctness euphemism and the impact of name words on thought |
| topic | Euphemism Euphemism -- Political aspects Euphemism -- Psychological aspects English language -- Euphemism UCTD |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/123997 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT collingtonomalleytessaemily whatsinanamepoliticalcorrectnesseuphemismandtheimpactofnamewordsonthought |