Recently the two-cultures theory, which is based on the differences model, has drawn attention for explaining the gender differences appearing in linguistic behavior. This theory explains that different discourse styles in gender can be categorized into sub-cultures, which is characterized as "report talk" for male and "rapport talk" for female. The topic related to the male-female differences in linguistic behavior has been dealt mainly through a socio- cultural approach. However, in recent days, the biological approach has become more popular. According to the interpretation of the new biologism, the gender-related variation in language can be explained by the biological features. This theory explains language variations on the basis of evolution- ary psychology; hence, it ignores the gender-related sociolinguistic elements. Aiming to explain the complicated linguistic behaviour, the two approaches should be complementary. Not only do these theories need to be considered but cognitive science should be considered as well.

• 권영수(대구가톨릭대학교) | Young Su Kwon