GEOG 482/582: GIS Spatial Analysis Support for Perceptual Dialectology ResearchAt — CSULB Center for Community Engagement

Project Description

The CSULB Language Research Lab is conducting research in perceptual dialectology, a field that examines how people perceive language differences across geographic space. Rather than focusing only on how language actually varies, this project studies how everyday speakers believe language varies across California.

Participants of the reasearch project are asked to draw or describe where they think certain accents, dialects, or language varieties exist. The research team then analyzes these perceptions spatially.

This work is especially meaningful for minority and minoritized language communities. Mapping perceptions can reveal how language, space, and identity intersect, including where communities are recognized, misrecognized, stereotyped, clustered, or erased in the public imagination. The project highlights the spatial dimension of belonging, stigma, and representation.

Students in GEOG 482/582 will use GIS tools to conduct advanced digital mapping and analysis of the qualitative research data. They will create interactive web maps and other spatial visualizations to identify geographic patterns, overlaps, and emerging trends. Students will also contribute to strengthening the project’s existing ArcGIS StoryMap by integrating advanced spatial outputs.

This is a strong interdisciplinary opportunity in which GIS students apply advanced spatial analysis skills to support linguistics research while gaining hands-on experience working with real research data.