Accommodation Theory

Accommodation Theory, first proposed by sociolinguist Howard Giles (1973) as Speech Accommodation Theory (SAT) and later expanded into Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT), explains how and why speakers adjust their speech during interaction. The core claim is that speakers modify their linguistic behaviour — accent, speech rate, vocabulary, syntax, and even non-verbal features — to either reduce or increase the social distance between themselves and their interlocutors.

Core Strategies

Convergence

Speakers shift their speech patterns toward those of their interlocutor. A teacher might simplify vocabulary when speaking with a beginner learner (see Modified Input); an immigrant might adopt the local accent over time. Convergence is typically motivated by:

• Desire for social approval
• Need to increase communicative efficiency
• Wish to signal group membership or solidarity
• Identification with the interlocutor's social group

Divergence

Speakers accentuate differences between their own speech and that of their interlocutor. A speaker might emphasise their regional accent when speaking with someone from a different region, or code-switch into their L1 to mark in-group identity. Divergence is motivated by:

• Desire to maintain social identity and distinctiveness
• Disapproval of the interlocutor or their group
• Assertion of cultural or ethnic identity
• Resistance to assimilation pressure

Maintenance

A third strategy, sometimes distinguished from divergence: the speaker simply continues using their current speech patterns without adjusting. This can be perceived as divergence by the interlocutor, even though no active change has occurred.

Theoretical Foundations

Giles drew on two main frameworks:

1. Similarity-attraction theory (Byrne, 1971) — people are attracted to those who are similar to them, motivating convergence
2. Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) — people derive self-esteem from group membership, motivating divergence when group identity is salient

The integration with Social Identity Theory (from Giles, 1978 onward) transformed SAT from a purely interpersonal model into an intergroup theory of communication.

Application to SLA

Accommodation Theory has several implications for SLA:

• Motivation to learn the L2 can be understood as a form of long-term convergence — learners converge toward the target language community's speech norms. This connects to Acculturation models (Schumann, 1978): learners who seek social integration with the target language community are more motivated to converge linguistically.
• Resistance to acquisition — learners who wish to maintain their L1 identity may unconsciously diverge from target language norms, limiting their L2 development. This can explain why some immigrant communities maintain strong L1 accents across generations despite extensive L2 exposure.
• Willingness to Communicate — a learner's willingness to engage in L2 interaction may depend partly on whether they perceive the social context as inviting convergence or triggering divergence.
• Native speaker behaviour matters — if native speakers diverge from (or fail to converge toward) L2 learners, this reduces the quality of input and interaction available to learners.
• Accent and identity — the persistence of a foreign accent in L2 may reflect not just phonological difficulty but also an identity choice — divergence as a way of maintaining distinctiveness.

Criticisms

• The theory is primarily descriptive — it identifies convergence and divergence but does not predict with precision when each will occur
• It focuses on social and psychological motivation but has less to say about the linguistic mechanisms of accommodation
• The boundary between convergence, divergence, and maintenance is not always clear in practice
• Application to SLA has been more conceptual than empirical — relatively few SLA studies have directly tested accommodation predictions

Significance

Despite these limitations, Accommodation Theory has enriched SLA by foregrounding the social and identity dimensions of language learning. It provides a bridge between sociolinguistics and SLA, complementing cognitive models that treat the learner as an individual processor detached from social context.