Discourse Functions & Sociolinguistics of Social Media Language
Social media isn’t just “bad grammar.” It’s a new communicative environment with its own
linguistic rules and social effects. When we post a meme, leave a comment, or update a status,
we aren't just sharing data; we are performing social actions. We’ll analyze it using Jakobson’s
discourse functions and current sociolinguistic theory.
Jakobson’s Functions of Language (1960)
Roman Jakobson proposed 6 functions of language based on the elements of communication.
In daily social media use, 4 dominate because the medium prioritizes connection, emotion,
information, and influence over poetic or metalingual talk.
Functions overlap in one post — “Omg fuel is ₦1,200 now. "Retweet to warn others" =
expressive, referential, and conative.
6.0 Discourse Functions in Social Media
When we talk about "Discourse Functions," we are basically asking: What is this piece of
language actually doing? In social media, we use language for much more than just exchanging
facts. Think about the last time you sent a "Good morning" text or posted a "Checking in!"
status. You weren't necessarily giving someone new information; you were likely just
maintaining a social connection. In linguistics, this is called the Phatic function.
1. Phatic: Maintains social contact, not content. Example:“Good morning fam,” “LOL,” “noted,”
reaction emojis to stories. On platforms like WhatsApp, phatic tokens sustain community ties
when physical copresence is absent. Silence = social absence.
2. Expressive: This is all about the speaker’s feelings. When you use five exclamation points or a
"crying" emoji, you are using the expressive function to show your internal state.
3. Conative: This is directed at the receiver. If you write "Link in bio!" or "Retweet this," you are
using language to influence someone else's behavior.
4. Referential: This is the most straightforward one. it’s used to convey information or describe
a situation (e.g., "The concert starts at 8 PM").
7.0 Sociolinguistic Implications
These discourse patterns don’t stay online. They reshape language and society.
1. Language Change
Traditionally, language took decades or centuries to evolve. Now, because of the internet, a
new slang term or grammatical structure can go global in a weekend. David Crystal, one of the
researchers in your list, calls this "Internet Linguistics." It’s the idea that digital communication
is a completely new medium not quite writing, but not quite speech either Social media
accelerates lexical and syntactic innovation. Clippings: “brb, lmk.”
Neologisms: “japa, sapa.” Syntax: subject dropping “Going to class.” Crystal (2011) argues this is
“Internet Linguistics”: a new variety with norms, not decay.
2. Digital Inequality
Not everyone commands “prestige” online English. Users with limited literacy, data, or
exposure to global norms face gatekeeping. Wardhaugh (2010) & Blommaert (2010): their
communicatively effective local forms get labeled “broken.
In Nigeria, this maps onto class, rural/urban, and education divides. “Proper English” posts get
jobs; Pidgin posts get engagement but less institutional power.
3. Cultural Hybridization
This is where things get really interesting, especially with Pidgin and English. On social media,
users often engage in "code-switching" or "translanguaging." They might start a sentence in
Standard English and end it in Pidgin to add emphasis, humor, or a sense of belonging. This
creates a "hybrid" identity where people don't feel they have to choose one language over the
other. Social media enables translanguaging: “Omo, the economy bad gan. Make we dey pray.”
Users blend Pidgin, English, Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa to signal multiple identities at once. Blommaert
(2010): globalization creates “truncated repertoires” where people pull resources from many
codes. This challenges the idea of “a language.” Online Nigerian English is inherently hybrid.
References
Jakobson, R. (1960)* – Use to define functions. Don’t just list — show how social media data fits
the model.
Crystal, D. (2011). _Internet Linguistics*_ – Cite to defend social media as legitimate linguistic
data, not “corruption.”
Blommaert, J. (2010). _The Sociolinguistics of Globalization*_ – Best for explaining hybrid posts
and “truncated repertoires.”
Wardhaugh (2010) & Holmes (2013)* – Use for general sociolinguistic concepts of variation,
power, and inequality.