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Ruth Kircher
The study presented here is the first empirical investigation of the patterns and predictors of the intergenerational transmission of French in Quebec. An online questionnaire was used to gather data from 274 parents from different mother tongue (L1) groups: L1 French, L1 English, L1 French and English, and L1 Other. The results show that L1 French-and-English-speaking parents and L1 Other parents displayed particularly low rates of French transmission. Three variables were found to be significant predictors of the intergenerational transmission of French: having it as one’s L1, high proficiency, and positive attitudes towards the language on the solidarity dimension. The same three variables were also found to be significant predictors for the intergenerational transmission of English in Quebec, indicating that they may not be merely language-specific. Not significant for either French or English were language used with partner, attitudes on the status dimension, Quebec-based social identity, migration background, and location within Quebec. Further research is needed to ascertain whether the identified predictors are context-specific, and what other variables are at play. The article discusses the implications of this study’s findings for theory as well as for language planning in Quebec, and especially the potential effectiveness of acquisition and prestige planning.
