The experiential structure of dialect writing in new media: a mixed-methods study combining qualitative analysis and experimental perception evaluation

With the proliferation of social media and digital platforms, dialects are increasingly moving beyond traditional oral contexts into networked writing and digital interaction spaces. Compared to standard languages such as Mandarin, dialectal expressions on social media typically carry stronger emotional valence, interactivity, and regionally specific cultural features. However, existing research has mostly addressed digital dialect phenomena from sociolinguistic or cultural semiotic perspectives, and systematic empirical analyses of how users experientially perceive dialectal expressions and how these perceptual structures are formed remain scarce. Focusing on Xinjiang Chinese dialect expressions in social media, this study employs a combination of qualitative textual analysis and quantitative perception evaluation to examine the core experiential structures underlying digital dialect interactions. Drawing on dialect-interaction corpora from platforms such as Douyin and Bilibili, the study first conducts reflexive thematic analysis to identify key linguistic practices in digital dialect writing. Based on ten "dialect-Mandarin" stimulus pairs, an experimental perception evaluation was administered to 149 participants. The resulting perceptual patterns were examined through exploratory factor analysis (EFA), repeated measures analysis, correlation analysis, and demographic difference analyses. Results indicate that participants showed more favorable evaluations of Xinjiang Chinese dialect expressions compared to their Mandarin counterparts, particularly in terms of emotional contagion, vividness, and interactive proximity. Exploratory factor analysis further revealed that participants' perceptions of digital dialect expressions are best captured by two interrelated experiential dimensions: "emotional contagion and expressive intensity" and "social identity and interaction propensity." A significant positive correlation was found between these two dimensions. suggesting a strong association between emotional experience and perceived social connectedness in digital dialect interactions. In addition, dialect familiarity and usage frequency exhibited weak correlations with certain experiential dimensions, while gender differences were not statistically significant. This study demonstrates that dialectal expressions on digital platforms are no longer merely markers of regional identity; they have become digital expressive resources that carry both emotion-transmission and relationship-building functions. These findings provide new empirical evidence for understanding the relationships among dialect communication, emotional interaction, and social identity in digital media environments.