On the Description of Subcultural Lexicons: a Multidimensional Approach

The purpose of this study was to describe the differences in the multidimensional structure of socialand personality-trait words as a function of experience within a specific subculture. Fifteen freshmen and 15 seniors at Princeton University ascribed 60 trait adjectives, 20 of which belonged to the student slang lexicon, to people they knew. Disassociation measures between pairs of traits were used to provide a multidimensional scaling (MDS) solution. A twodimensional solution provided a satisfactory fit for the freshman data, while a three-dimensional solution was needed to provide a satisfactory fit for the senior data. Axes for these solutions were located by multiple-regression techniques, using data obtained from independent samples of subjects who provided unidimensional scale-ratings of the trait words. For the freshman solution, the two dimensions of intellectual-academic desirability and social desirability provided a satisfactory interpretation of the semantic space. For the senior solution, an additional dimension, Princeton social desirability, was required to provide a satisfactory interpretation. These data, as well as differences between freshmen and seniors in the locations of particular trait names, provide a quantitative description of the acquisition of a specific subcultural lexicon.