Panel Studies of Variation and Change

The relationship between the individual and the community is at the core of sociolinguistic theorizing. To date, most longitudinal research has been conducted on the basis of trend studies, such as replications of cross-sectional studies, or comparisons between present-day cross-sectional data and ‘legacy’ data. While the past few years have seen an increasing interest in panel research, much of this work has been published in a variety of formats and languages and is thus not easily accessible. This edited volume brings together the major researchers in the field of panel research, highlighting connections and convergences across and between chapters, methods and findings with the aim of initiating a dialogue about best practices and ways forward in sociolinguistic panel studies. By providing, for the first time, a platform for key research on panel data in one coherent edition, this volume aims to shape the agenda in this increasingly vibrant field of research.

Suzanne Evans Wagner is an Associate Professor of Linguistics at Michigan State University. She focuses on post-adolescent sociolinguistic modification, particularly with respect to community language change. She has published in Language Variation and Change and Language in Society. She is a co-editor of the Routledge Studies in Language Change series.

Isabelle Buchstaller is professor for varieties of English at Leipzig University. Her research investigates language variation and change, including the mechanisms of intra-speaker instability. Her monograph "Quotatives: New trends and sociolinguistic implications" appeared in 2014. She is a co-editor of the Routledge Studies in Language Change series.