Code-Switching Among Kuwaitis in the Social Context: Attitudes and Practices

Abstract

This paper investigates the Kuwaiti attitudes and code-switching practices between the two most common languages used: Arabic and English. Additionally, it discusses which factors may affect how Kuwaitis code-switch, as well as their attitudes toward this phenomenon. In this study, a qualitative approach was used to collect data by conducting one-on-one interviews with seven participants. The study results showed that four of the seven participants had positive attitudes toward code-switching, whereas the remaining few had either neutral or negative attitudes. The thematic analysis of the qualitative narratives revealed that all of the participants habitually employed code-switching in their social interactions, despite their different attitudes. Being a bilingual speaker is an advantage—it can widen users’ horizons and open new socioeconomic opportunities thanks to globalization and English as a lingua franca. Therefore, parents, teachers, and policymakers are encouraged to work and help create bilingual speakers who are competent users of their mother tongue and their second language, English.