Addressee Honorifics as an Interactional Resource for Socialization in Korean Adult–Child Interaction

Abstract

AbstractThis study examines how addressee honorifics, recognized as an index of deference and respect, are utilized as an interactional resource for socialization in Korean adult–child interaction. This study analyzes 62 instances of adults’ use of Korean addressee honorific utterances to children collected from video recordings of five different families using multimodal discourse analytic and language socialization frameworks. The study identifies three major environments where addressee honorification serves as a tool for socializing children into socio-moral values of Korean society: a) giving compliments, b) showing gratitude, and c) issuing directives. In these interactional environments, addressee honorification is used alongside semiotic resources to evaluate children’s behaviors and draw attention to the action and content of honorific utterances. The analysis of status-incongruent and creative or performative uses of adults’ addressee honorifics further demonstrates that honorifics, which are sometimes employed for politeness and deference toward addressees, do also serve as resources for fostering social awareness, social responsiveness, and courtesy in children. This may contribute to children becoming competent members of Korean society who think, feel, and act in accordance with Korean cultural norms and expectations.