The Impacts of Linguistic Regulation in School for Civility on Chinese Gen Z's Communication with Gen X — A Case Study of Guangxi Province of China

Abstract

This study investigates the impacts of school-based linguistic regulation on Chinese Generation Z’s (Gen Z) communication with Generation X (Gen X), the intergenerational communication challenges that faced, and Gen Z’s responses to swearing in the context of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. A total of ten Gen Z participants (N=10, aged 24–26) were interviewed and their perspectives were compared with findings from a Gen X group (N=6, aged 46–69) to reveal intergenerational contrasts. Date analyzed by content analysis. The results show that linguistic regulation in schools significantly shapes Gen Z’s language practices, fostering heightened sensitivity to swear words and reinforcing habits of self-monitoring. Unlike Gen X, who interprets swearing primarily through semantic context, Gen Z tends to adopt keyword-based monitoring, classifying words as offensive regardless of intent. This divergence often leads to misunderstandings: for Gen X, habitual or filler swearing may not be perceived as profanity, whereas Gen Z regard such expressions as inappropriate. Moreover, school regulation broadened Gen Z’s repertoire of “sensitive words,” producing generational asymmetries in tolerance and communicative evaluation. In response to Gen X’s swearing, Gen Z frequently employ indirect strategies such as sarcastic “yinyang” discourse or psychological distancing, though these approaches often fail to bridge generational gaps. While Gen Z prioritizes rationality in conflict, Gen X’s lower sensitivity reflects formative sociopolitical contexts rather than deliberate linguistic choices. The study demonstrates that intergenerational differences in swearing are rooted not merely in language variation but in institutionalized regulation and sociohistorical experience. These findings contribute to understanding how linguistic ideologies, school policies, and cultural contexts shape communication across generations in contemporary China.4 ABBREVIATIONS Gen X = Generation X Gen Z = Generation Z Up to the Mountains, = Send-Down Policy Down to the Villages = Send-Down Movement