Gender and Uptalk in Hong Kong English

This Element interrogates the complex role of gender in shaping the sociolinguistic variable of UPTALK within Hong Kong English, highlighting its interaction with other sociodemographic factors. Foregrounding gender as a central factor, the Element employs a robust array of methodologies to dissect how gender interacts with social factors, identities, and social types across a sample of sixteen participants. Findings unveil new perspectives on gender-dependent meanings of UPTALK, demonstrating that while gendered stylistic accommodation plays a notable role, UPTALK is not merely a gender marker. Instead, it embodies complex social meanings shaped by a broad spectrum of individual, cognitive (awareness), and contextual factors. By integrating both production and perception/attitudinal data from a relatively unexplored context, the Element provides a holistic, nuanced understanding of how UPTALK can function as a multifunctional sociolinguistic resource, offering insights into the theorization of language variation and social meaning, with particular focus on the role of gender.

List of contents

1. Introduction; 2. Background; 3. Hypotheses; 4. Methodology; 5. Results and discussion; 6. Comparison of quantitative and qualitative data; 7. General discussion; 8. Conclusion; References.

Product details

• Authors: Wilkinson Daniel Wong Gonzales, Zhang Xiaohan Harry, Chan Pui Yu Ivy, Ng Chui Yin Judy, Chung Yan Ching Karina
• Publisher: Cambridge Academic
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 28.02.2026
• EAN: 9781009634045
• ISBN: 978-1-009-63404-5
• Illustrations: Worked examples or Exercises
• Series: Elements in Language, Gender and Sexuality
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative linguistics; English, LANGUAGE ARTS & DISCIPLINES / Linguistics / General, Hong Kong, Sociolinguistics, Gender studies, gender groups, Research methods: general, Research methods / methodology