MAQSUT NARIKBAYEV UNIVERSITY

Why do people value Kazakh, but not use it every day?

A study of why students value Kazakh, yet do not always use it daily. In plain language.

Bibianar Absattarova, MA Applied Linguistics, 2026

Main findings See the data

3.70

Perceived prestige

on a 1-5 scale

3.38

Social use

on a 1-5 scale

2.37

Digital practices

on a 1-5 scale

0.49

Effect on daily use (β)

strongest predictor

The idea

Prestige is respect plus usefulness, modernity, and comfort.

Daily language choice depends on friends, school, social media, confidence, and convenience, not only on respect.

Prestige

How people see Kazakh

Is it respected, modern, and something to be proud of?

Daily use

Where Kazakh appears

Friends, university, public places, messages, social media, and search.

Barriers

What makes it harder

Fear of mistakes, limited content, and switching to Russian or English for speed.

The sample

Positive attitudes, weaker digital habits.

All scales run from 1 to 5. Higher means more agreement or more frequent use.

149

Survey responses

collected.

N = 140

Analysis sample

valid cases.

81.4%

Kazakh ethnicity

of the sample.

71.2%

Female respondents

of the sample.

Key variables

Prestige is high, digital use is low.

Attitudes are positive, but digital use lags behind. Hover or tap a bar for details.

SD = 1.08, α = .92

Perceived prestige and promotion 3.70 / 5

Positive image is visible.

SD = 1.21, α = .93

Social use of Kazakh 3.38 / 5

Used, but not everywhere.

SD = 1.18, α = .93

Academic support 3.27 / 5

Exists, but more is needed.

SD = 1.18, α = .92

Digital language practices 2.37 / 5

The main weak point.

1 = rarely 5 = often

Main findings

What drives daily Kazakh use?

Three things move daily use the most.

Prestige predicts use

See Kazakh as more prestigious, use it more.

β = 0.22, p = .005

Digital habits are powerful

Online use is the strongest driver of daily use.

β = 0.49, p < .001

Useful initiatives work

It is believing campaigns work, not just knowing them.

r = .49, p < .001

What moves together with daily use?

Correlation (r) shows how strongly two things rise together.

.66r

Digital practices and social use

.51r

Prestige and social use

.49r

Effectiveness and social use

.39r

Awareness and social use

Tested together, effectiveness predicts use more strongly (β = 0.40, p < .001) than awareness (β = 0.19, p = .028).

Analysis tables

The key numbers, simplified.

The important figures from the thesis.

Regression model

Predicting social use of Kazakh

Predictor	What it means	β	p
Digital practices	Using Kazakh online	0.49	p < .001
Prestige	Seeing Kazakh as respected and valuable	0.22	p = .005
Academic support	University support and materials	0.05	p = .468
Barriers	Pressure to switch languages	0.09	p = .200

β = strength of the link. p below .05 is significant.

Prestige items

Average agreement, 1-5 scale

Survey item	Mean
I feel proud using Kazakh in public.	4.06
Using Kazakh makes a person more respected.	4.04
Confident Kazakh looks educated and cultured.	3.94
Kazakh sounds modern and relevant.	3.94
Kazakh is linked to social status.	3.02
My peers think Kazakh is outdated. (reverse)	2.88

Education background

Mean social use by language of instruction

Group	N	Mean use	Note
By school background
Kazakh-medium school	89	3.64	Highest school group
Russian-medium school	34	2.28	Lower use
English-medium school	3	3.28	Small group
Mixed-language school	14	3.00	Moderate
By university language
Kazakh university language	12	4.18	Highest overall
Russian university language	21	2.67	Lower use
English university language	99	3.25	Large group
Mixed university language	8	3.21	Moderate

Survey design

Real situations, not only opinions.

It covered four areas of everyday language life.

Background

Age, gender, year, school, upbringing, and language background.

Prestige and initiatives

How modern, respected, visible, and effective promotion feels.

Support and barriers

Peer support, content, fear of mistakes, and switching.

Everyday use

Friends, messages, posting, search, and device settings.

✦

It connects feelings to behavior

It compares what people think with what they actually do.

So what?

It is not that people do not care. The environment has to make Kazakh easy to choose.

If Kazakh is respected but missing from digital tools and daily life, people still switch. Prestige grows when it is useful and comfortable.

Main takeaway

Support Kazakh by creating spaces where people use it naturally, confidently, and without judgment.