Types of Code-switching among Young Adults with Bilingualism

Abstract

The present study aimed to analyse and compare various forms of code-switching among adult male and female Tamil-English bilinguals. This research involved thirty bilingual (Tamil and English) adults between the ages of 18 and 25. Each participant was given an updated version of the cookie-theft picture and asked to describe it in Tamil. The various kinds of code-switching, such as tag switching, intra-sentential switching, and inter-sentential switching, were identified through the data analysis. Results indicated that language switching occurs more frequently between phrases and that female participants exhibit code-switching significantly higher than male participants, particularly in tag switching. The study findings can help linguists and speech-language pathologists understand the various types of code-switching employed by Tamil-English bilinguals. However, a larger population needs to be studied for further investigation.