This cultural post will focus on social factors that affect one's use of formal and informal language register. More specifically, I focus here on the topic of discussion as an influence.
Topic of discussion:
Just like in an American context, the topic of discussion greatly influences one's use of either the formal or informal register. Unlike in the Indonesian context, Americans do not greatly shift in register when transitioning from, say, talking with friends to presenting at a conference. Of course, Americans would speak more coherently (or try to) when at a conference and refrain from incomplete sentences. They shun slouching and irregular intonation.
In Indonesia, however, Indonesians more or less have two different ways of saying a single word -- one considered formal and the other informal. Thus, while gossiping (a mainstay in many circles in Bali, at least) friends or co-workers would generally use the informal register, which denotes a more personal connection. Some words one might hear in a conversation in which gossip is the topic are: Aduh, Kenapa sih, Iya dek, mekasih (oh my gosh, what!?, yeah sister, and thanks, respectively).
At a conference, one would hear a presenter speak in the formal register. Some words that might be used are Bagaimana, iya, terimahkasih, and memaikai (instead of pakai, which is the informal variant) (what/how come, yes (without the use of informal terms of address, like "dek"), thank you, and use (formal), respectively).
Most topics of discussion, however, require a mix of the formal and informal, especially if there is a difference in the social status of the speakers. If there is an extreme social status disparity, one would follow the cue of the person who is considered higher in the hierarchy and would not go off script. However, if it is a lesser disparity, common sense would play a part in determining the parameters of language register use.
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