Bloggers’ Speech Behavior: Analysis and Diagnosis of Personal Traits from the Perspective of Implicit and Functional Pragmalinguistics

The aim of this paper is to present a comprehensive methodology for conducting both traditional and modified content analysis using transcripts of spoken language from video bloggers as source material. The specific focus of this research centers around video content dedicated to reviewing retro automotive vehicles. The authors delve into two fundamental branches of pragmalinguistics, namely the implicit and functional aspects, while also detailing the analytical techniques employed within these paradigms. The practical application of these methods is illustrated using the oral speeches of the blogger Alexander Chikunov as a case study, providing a clear and tangible demonstration of the process for diagnosing individual personality traits. The initial phase involves an analysis of the material through the lens of implicit pragmalinguistics, encompassing the frequency analysis of speech patterns within the context of selected linguistic strategies, coupled with rigorous statistical data processing. The outcomes pertaining to a specific blogger are subsequently juxtaposed against data from other bloggers within the same genre, thereby facilitating the identification of shared, stereotypical, and unique personality characteristics attributed to the blogger. Moving forward, this article highlights individual traits of the blogger, which were discerned through traditional content analysis techniques. Finally, the study involves an insightful interpretation of the acquired data, culminating in the development of a nuanced portrait of Alexander Chikunov’s speech behavior. A notable aspect of this research lies in its pioneering effort to discern and systematize linguistic features exclusively found within the domain of video blogs. This is achieved by utilizing unscripted spoken language from bloggers as empirical evidence, adding a distinctive dimension to the study’s scientific novelty.

1. Aminova, V.A. (2013). K voprosu o termine «subkul`tura» [On the issue of the term “subculture”]. Vestnik Moskovskogo universiteta. Ser. 19. Lingvistika i mezhkul’turnaya kommunikaciya [Moscow University Bulletin. Ser. 19. Linguistics and Intercultural communication], 2, 113–118 (in Russian).

2. Cheremisina, M.I. (1973). E`lementarnoye vy`skazy`vaniye kak edinitsa analiza teksta (obshchie principy` i pravila vy`deleniya) [Elementary statement as a unit of text analysis (general principles and rules of selection)]. In A.N. Alekseev (Ed.), Metodologicheskie i metodicheskie problemy kontent-analiza. Tezisy [Methodological Issues of Content-analysis]. Moscow; Leningrad: USSR Academy of Sciences. Institute of Social Studies (in Russian);

3. Chikunov, A. (2019, November 24). Aleksander Chikunov. Kak vy`brat` MOSKVICh? Para sovetov ot Moskvich Shou [Aleksander Chikunov. How to choose MOSKVICH? A few tips from Moskvich show]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Mo3AQe0y_qI (accessed: 19 March, 2023).

4. Hymes, D.H. (1975). E`tnografiya rechi [Ethnography of speech]. Novoye v lingvistike, Vyp. 7. Sotsiolingvistika [New Topics in Linguistics, Issue 7. Sociolinguistics], 42-95 (in Russian).

5. Kislicyna, N.N., & Chernyavskaya, O.G. (2019). Kompozicionny`e, stilisticheskie i leksicheskie osobennosti internet-kommunikacii (na materiale angloyazy`chny`h blogov professional`noj napravlennosti) [Compositional, stylistic and lexical peculiarities of internet communication (by the material of the English professionally oriented blogs)]. Filologicheskie nauki. Voprosy teorii i praktiki [Philology. Theory and practice], 12(6), 368-373 (in Russian).

6. Lushhikov, V.A., & Terskih, M.V. (2018). Zhanrovo-tematicheskie i yazy`kovy`e osobennosti videoblogov [Video blogging genre, thematical and linguistic properties]. Vestnik Tambovskogo universiteta. Seriya: Obshchestvennye nauki [Tambov University Bulletin. Social sciences], 4(14), 57–75 (in Russian).

7. Matveeva, G.G, & Zyubina, I.A. (2018). Pis`menny`j tekst: podkhody` k vy`yavleniyu skry`toj pragmatiki [Written text: approaches to identifying implicit pragmatics]. Science Journal of VolSU. Linguistics, 17(2), 26-32 (in Russian).

8. Matveeva, G.G. (1993). Skry`ty`e grammaticheskie znacheniya i identifikaciya social`nogo licza («portreta») govoryashchego [Hidden grammatical meanings and identification of the social face («portrait») of the speaker] (Doctoral dissertation). St. Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg (in Russian).

9. Matveeva, G.G. (2004). Osobennosti kontent-analiza pri obrabotke dannykh ob``ektivnogo pragmalingvisticheskogo e`ksperimenta v ramkakh skry`toj pragmalingvistiki [Peculiarities of Content Analysis in Processing Data of Objective Pragmalinguistic Experiment within Implicit Pragmalinguistics]. Nauchnaya shkola skrytoi pragmalingvistiki. Yazyk. Diskurs. Tekst. izd. RGPU [Scientific School of Implicit Pragmalinguistics. Language. Discourse. Russian State Pedagogical University], 125–129 (in Russian).

10. Matveeva, G.G. (2022). Osnovy` pragmalingvistiki [Fundamentals of Pragmalinguistics]INFRA-M (in Russian);

11. Myasishchev, G.I. (2021). Perlokutivny`j e`ffekt rechevogo vozdejstviya blogerov (pragmalingvisticheskij aspekt) [Perlocutionary Effect of Bloggers’ Speech Impact (Pragmalinguistic Aspect)] (Doctoral dissertation). Adyghe State University, Maykop (in Russian).

12. Paznij IZh, official website. (2022). Retrieved from https://izhegrad.mozellosite.com/terminy/ (accessed: 20 March, 2023) (in Russian).

13. Shalak, V.I. (2004) Kontent-analiz. Prilozheniya v oblasti: politologii, psikhologii, sociologii, kul`turologii, e`konomiki, reklamy` [Content analysis. Applications in the field of: political science, psychology, sociology, cultural studies, economics, advertising]. Moscow: Omega-L (in Russian).

14. Tameryan,T.Yu.,&Shaipova,A.M.(2022).Mezhprecedentnoesemioticheskoeprostranstvo, ili kogda gremyat pushki, muzy` ne molchat. [Interprecedent semiotic space, or “when the cannons roar, the muses are not silent”]. Aktual’nye problemy filologii i pedagogicheskoi lingvistiki [Topical Issues in Philology and Pedagogical Linguistics], 4, 145–166. doi:10.29025/2079-6021-2022-4145-166 (in Russian).

15. Yelov, I.V. (2011). Metodkontent-analizaprimenitel`nokinternet-stat`yamomuzy`kal`ny`h stilyah [Content analysis method for internet articles about musical styles]. Nauchnaya mysl’ Kavkaza [Caucasus scientific thought], 1, 131-135 (in Russian).

16. Zaslavnov, D.A. (2022). Otlichiya pravdivoj informacii ot lzhivoj v sovremenny`h smi [Distinguishing between the true and false information in modern media]. Russian Linguistic Bulletin, 4 (32) (in Russian). doi:10.18454/RULB.2022.32.1

17. Zyubina, I.A., Dzyubenko, A.I., Borisenko, V.A., Popova, O.V., & Prokopyev, A.I. (2019). Implicit linguopragmatic strategies of speech behavior of English speaking prosecutors. XLinguae, 12(4), 92-102. doi: 10.18355/XL.2019.12.04.08.

18. Zyubina, I.A., Filippova, M.Yu., Minakova, N.A., Krivoshlykova, L.V., & Anikejeva, I.G. (2020). Synchronous personal method of language studying speech behavior in implicit pragmalinguistics. XLinguae, 13(4), 81-90.