Style shifting is the process by which speakers adjust their language along a formality continuum depending on the communicative context. Every speaker style-shifts. It is a universal feature of human language use, not a sign of inconsistency or "bad English."
William Labov (1966, 1972) proposed that styles can be arranged on a single dimension measured by the amount of attention paid to speech:
Labov's key insight: as attention to speech increases, speakers shift toward prestige forms. His New York City department store study showed that lower-middle-class speakers often hypercorrected in formal styles, producing more prestige features than the class above them, a phenomenon revealing social aspiration through language.
Labov characterised the vernacular, meaning speech with minimal self-monitoring, as the most systematic and consistent variety, and therefore the most valuable data for linguistic analysis. This is complicated by the Observer's Paradox: the act of observing speech makes speakers more self-conscious, pushing them away from their vernacular.
Later research challenged the one-dimensional attention model:
Labov himself later clarified that attention-to-speech was intended as a "heuristic device" for the sociolinguistic interview, not a complete theory of style.
Speakers adjust multiple features simultaneously:
| Dimension | Informal | Formal |
|---|---|---|
| Phonology | Reduced forms, assimilation, elision | Full forms, careful articulation |
| Grammar | Contractions, ellipsis, non-standard forms | Complete sentences, standard forms |
| Vocabulary | Slang, colloquialisms | Technical, Latinate vocabulary |
| Discourse | Fragmented, interactive | Planned, monologic |
| Pragmatics | Direct, casual | Hedged, polite |