The concept of affordances in applied linguistics and multilingualism

Abstract

This chapter continues the line of research on the concept of affordances in applied linguistics and sociology of language, which David Singleton has investigated in recent years (Singleton and Aronin 2007; Aronin and Singleton 2010, 2012a, 2012b; Singleton et al. 2013). The concept of affordances in reference to applied linguistics and multilingualism arouses interest, but studies are still scarce on the ground. The purpose of this chapter is to overview the previous theoretical understanding of affordances, and to expand the perspective further. Along with laying out the significance of this concept for language teaching, learning and use, the chapter will suggest additional practical ways of capitalizing on our understanding of affordances, and look into one particular kind of affordance which material culture offers to language learners, teachers and speakers.