How we got here: Short-scale change in identity labels for trans, cis, and non-binary people in the 2000s

Though understudied in research on language variation and change, the lexicon is a crucial domain for sociopolitical transformations of language. This paper presents a corpus-based sociolinguistic analysis of changes in terms for transgender, cisgender, and non-binary individuals in four online communities on the social media blogging site, LiveJournal.com – one for trans women, one for trans men, one for non-binary people, and another for transgender people in general – that were popular in the 2000s. Using innovative corpus methods that utilize general purpose cloud computing tools, we focus on changes in the popularity of labels for trans, cis, and non-binary people, the factors that impact the variable use of these terms, and what kinds of differences can be observed across the four LiveJournal communities of practice studied. It thereby contributes both to the study of language and identity in trans and queer communities and to the development of methods for studying large datasets of technologically-mediated communication

Lexical Change as Sociopolitical Change in Trans and Cis Identity Labels: New Methods for the Corpus Analysis of Internet Data

This paper uses corpus linguistic methods and general purpose computing tools to explore short-scale lexical change in the identity terminology used in an online community for transgender men and other transmasculine people. It focuses on the rapidly changing landscape of labels for trans people, cis people, and non-binary people in a trans community on LiveJournal.com, which was a popular social media venue among trans people in the 2000s. We consider a number of questions about lexical change, including when currently popular forms (e.g. cisgender, non-binary, transmasculine, etc.) were introduced; the decline of labels that have been problematized (e.g. transgendered, transsexual); and the sociocultural discourses that contextualize and account for these changes. We also describe novel methods for social media data collection, which rely on simple custom software, which we call livecorpus. Livecorpus was built for use with widely-available cloud computing tools, meaning that it is serverless (i.e. does not require the provisioning of the analyst’s own servers) and offers flexible configuration that can be modified as data collection progresses. These methods can be applied to other social media sources that are not pre-formatted in ways that facilitate automated analysis, which in practice means we can reach further back into the history of social media-based language use. While scholars of language variation and change have tended to focus on phonological and morphosyntactic variables in unselfconscious vernacular speech rather than the lexicon, we argue that speakers’ awareness of – and metalinguistic discourses about – lexical choices makes this level of language an ideal site for considering linguistic manifestations of sociopolitical change. Far from an unfortunate exception to the normal, non-conscious process of structural linguistic transformation, these types of intentional interventions into lexical usage must be recognized as a critical component of language change

Lexical Change as Sociopolitical Change in Trans and Cis Identity Labels: New Methods for the Corpus Analysis of Internet Data

This paper uses corpus linguistic methods and general purpose computing tools to explore short-scale lexical change in the identity terminology used in an online community for transgender men and other transmasculine people. It focuses on the rapidly changing landscape of labels for trans people, cis people, and non-binary people in a trans community on LiveJournal.com, which was a popular social media venue among trans people in the 2000s. We consider a number of questions about lexical change, including when currently popular forms (e.g. cisgender, non-binary, transmasculine, etc.) were introduced; the decline of labels that have been problematized (e.g. transgendered, transsexual); and the sociocultural discourses that contextualize and account for these changes. We also describe novel methods for social media data collection, which rely on simple custom software, which we call livecorpus. Livecorpus was built for use with widely-available cloud computing tools, meaning that it is serverless (i.e. does not require the provisioning of the analyst’s own servers) and offers flexible configuration that can be modified as data collection progresses. These methods can be applied to other social media sources that are not pre-formatted in ways that facilitate automated analysis, which in practice means we can reach further back into the history of social media-based language use. While scholars of language variation and change have tended to focus on phonological and morphosyntactic variables in unselfconscious vernacular speech rather than the lexicon, we argue that speakers’ awareness of – and metalinguistic discourses about – lexical choices makes this level of language an ideal site for considering linguistic manifestations of sociopolitical change. Far from an unfortunate exception to the normal, non-conscious process of structural linguistic transformation, these types of intentional interventions into lexical usage must be recognized as a critical component of language change

Agent-Based Financial Modeling with Stock-Flow-Consistent Microfoundations

The recession following 2008\u27s financial crisis led many economists to search their souls: few economic models had predicted what would transpire, and the relative macroeconomic tranquility of previous years had inspired some academics to declare the period the Great Moderation. In order to better understand the world in which we live and avert future calamity, we need not depart radically from economic principles as we currently understand them. We ought, however, to incorporate them more thoroughly into our models. Economic activity consists of human behaviors moderated and amplified through institutions: previous modeling paradigms have sacrificed detail and made assumptions in order to render economic models tractable. Advances in computing power mean that we need make fewer tradeoffs in this respect than we once did, but the progress of computer science may not automatically result in improved economic models. This thesis examines financial dynamics and their underlying economic principles, describes a novel software framework (globe) for agent-based modeling, and models a simple financial system using that framework. In doing so, it suggests that a better way forward is not merely plausible but, in fact, possible

You just got transgendered! : Lexical change and language ideologies in discourse about identity labels for trans, cis and non-binary people

The analysis of identity terminology has been a central part of queer linguistics from its inception, focusing variably on homophobic slurs (e.g., Armstrong 1997), the reclamation of such epithets (e.g., Chen 1998), and the agency to choose one’s own identity labels (e.g., Zimman 2017), among other topics. However, the fact that the lexicon remains “above the level of awareness” (Silverstein 1981) has made it a less attractive domain for quantitative sociolinguists, who tend to prioritize the analysis of not-fully-conscious linguistic practices at the level of phonetics, phonology, morphology, or syntax. However, quantitative, computational, and corpus methods can be useful for identifying patterns of lexical change that might not be apparent from qualitative analysis alone (e.g. Baker 2010). At the same time, the politically charged nature of identity labels makes a purely quantitative analysis untenable, leaving us with little sense of why changes are taking place. This talk takes a mixed-methods approach to lexical change in terms for trans, cis, and non-binary people in three online communities hosted by LiveJournal.com that were popular in the 2000s (one for trans women, another for trans men, and a third for genderqueer people). First, we present quantitative findings regarding change over time in the most popular terms for trans, cis, and non-binary people. Next, we delve into the metalinguistic analyses produced by members of this community, focusing on 1) the problematization of transgendered and shift away from this form in favor of transgender or trans, 2) the introduction of cisgender and its alternatives, and 3) the emergence of non-binary as an umbrella label. In each case, we consider the language ideologies invoked by speakers to explain and justify their stance to these changes. We note that speakers employ a variety of strategies, including appeals to Standard Language Ideology (Lippi-Green 2012) and the citation of linguistic authorities. However, we also highlight instances of speakers resisting these ideological frames and instead promoting a harm-based model of linguistic oppression in which outcomes, rather than power-laden judgements of linguistic “validity,” shape the path of linguistic activism