Drawing on the positioning theory and the conditions for language use, this article
examines Vietnamese ethnic minority students’ language choice in interactions with their same-ethnicity and majority peers, focusing
particularly on their communication motives underlying this choice. Findings suggest that in regulating their language alternation practices
across peer groups in different contexts, the students shifted their participation status – from aligning (being alike) to
disaligning (being distinct) – to (re)position themselves in relation to their peers. As their desires for alignment or
disalignment were either supported or disrupted by their peers, peer attitudes played a critical role in providing
opportunities and encouraging minority students’ willingness to use their L1 in school and ethnic
community spaces. Implications are suggested for engaging peer support as a resource for maintaining or widening L1 use among young minority
people in both of the domains.
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