Language Use and Identity in Customer Service Communication: A Case Study of a Tech Company

Thesis Abstract

In an increasingly globalized digital economy, customer service communication acts as a critical interface between organizations and their diverse clientele, shaping perceptions of brand identity and influencing customer loyalty. Despite extensive research on language in service encounters, limited scholarly attention has been dedicated to understanding how language use in customer service within technology firms reflects and constructs organizational and individual identities. This study aims to explore the intricate ways in which language use in customer interactions manifests and reinforces identity, with specific focus on a leading technology company operating in North America. The research seeks to identify linguistic strategies employed by customer service representatives, analyze their alignment with organizational branding, and examine the extent to which language choices convey professional, cultural, and organizational identities. The study adopts a qualitative case study design, integrating ethnographic observation, semi-structured interviews, and discourse analysis. The population comprises 50 customer service representatives and 200 customer interactions recorded over a six-month period. A stratified random sampling technique ensures representative inclusion across departments and shifts, while purposive sampling targets a subset of 15 representatives for in-depth interviews. Data collection instruments include audio recordings of customer interactions, interview guides, and company documentation on communication policies. To enhance validity and reliability, observations and transcripts are cross-verified by multiple researchers, with intercoder reliability measures applied during discourse analysis. Analytical techniques include thematic analysis to uncover recurring linguistic patterns, followed by Foucauldian discourse analysis to interpret how language constructs power relations and identity. The study further employs the communicative framework of the Speech Accommodation Theory to analyze how representatives modify language to align with customer identities and organizational expectations. Expected findings suggest that customer service representatives strategically use a combination of technical jargon, polite politeness strategies, and culturally adaptive language to construct professional and approachable identities. The analysis is anticipated to reveal that language choices are often influenced by organizational policies aimed at branding consistency, yet also reflect individual identities shaped by cultural backgrounds and personal dispositions. Moreover, the research is likely to identify key linguistic markers that signify organizational commitment, cultural sensitivity, and professionalism, which serve to reinforce organizational identities and foster customer trust. The study also expects to demonstrate that language use in customer interactions varies significantly across different types of customer queries, product categories, and customer demographics, thereby influencing the perceived organizational image. This research contributes to existing knowledge by providing an empirically grounded framework linking language use to identity construction within the specific context of customer service in a high-tech organizational environment. It expands discourse analytic applications to the domain of organizational communication in the technology sector, highlighting the role of language as a dynamic tool for identity performance and negotiation. The findings offer practical implications for the development of communication training modules aimed at fostering authentic and identity-aware customer interactions that align with organizational values. The study concludes that effective customer service communication hinges not only on linguistic competence but also on an acute awareness of identity construction processes embedded within contextual language choices. Recommendations include integrating identity-sensitive communication training into customer service curricula, revising organizational communication policies to reflect cultural and professional diversity, and adopting ongoing discourse analysis to monitor alignment with brand identity. Future research is encouraged to examine cross-cultural differences in language use and identity performance across global technology firms, further enriching the understanding of language-based identity management in contemporary organizational settings.