DETERMINANTS OF CODE-SWITCHING AMONG LEARNERS OF ENGLISH

Abstract

Code-switching occurs when a speaker alternates between two or more languages in a conversation between bilingual and multilingual individuals. This study examines theories and existing research related to code-switching in order to identify determinants of this phenomenon among learners of English as a second language. The findings show that: (1) code-switching in oral communication always happens from the speaker’s specific intention, communicative context or conversational content; (2) various factors simultaneously cause code-switching in oral communication. Theoretically, this study provides information about the nature of language codeswitching in communication and highlights it as a natural incident among multilingual speakers. Practically, the findings can be used in language teaching and learning, particularly in helping English learners better understand language code-switching and its determinants.