Cover not available

Article In: Applied Pragmatics: Online-First Articles

Foreign language learners responding to thanks

A developmental study

ORCiD logo with link | National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
This study sets out to investigate the extent to which proficiency enhances FL learners’ pragmatic competence in responding to thanks. Drawing on data from Greek FL learners of two proficiency levels (lower-intermediate and advanced) and supplemented by verbal reports, it compares the learners’ production of thanks responders with that of native speakers in different thanking situations. The analysis of the data indicates that proficiency level has no significant effect on the learners’ ability to produce thanks responders in a context-sensitive fashion. It is suggested that the foreign language environment is far from ideal for the development of culturally specific and conventionalised speech acts.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Theoretical background
  • 3.Method
    • 3.1Participants and procedures
    • 3.2Data analysis
  • 4.Results and discussion
    • 4.1DCT: Head acts and supportive moves
    • 4.2Verbal reports
    • 4.3Learners’ pragmatic development
    • 4.4Limitations of the study
  • 5.Conclusions and implications for teaching
  • Author queries
  • References
References (51)
References
Aijmer, K. (1996). Conversational routines in English: Convention and creativity. Longman.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Al-Gahtani, S., & Roever, C. (2018). Proficiency and preference organization in second language refusals. Journal of Pragmatics, 1291, 140–153. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Al-Zubaidi, A. G. (2017). Thanks giving and responding among Iraqi EFL learners of English: An inter language pragmatics study. The International Journal of Humanities and Social Studies, 5(1). Retrieved November 2, 2022, from [URL]
Bardovi-Harlig, K. (2001). Empirical evidence of the need for instruction in pragmatics. In K. Rose & G. Kasper (Eds.), Pragmatics in language teaching (pp. 13–32). Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2009). Conventional expressions as a pragmalinguistic resource: Recognition and production of conventional expressions in L2 pragmatics. Language Learning, 59(4), 755–795. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2010). Exploring the pragmatics of interlanguage pragmatics: Definition by design. In A. Trosborg (Ed.), Pragmatics across languages and cultures (pp. 219–260). De Gruyter Mouton. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2014). Awareness of meaning of conventional expressions in second-language pragmatics. Language Awareness, 23(1–2), 41–56. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Beebe, L., & Waring, H. Z. (2005). Pragmatic development in responding to rudeness. In J. Frodeson & C. Holten (Eds.), The power of context in language teaching and learning: Festschrift in honor of Marianne Celce-Murcia (pp. 67–79). Heinle & Heinle.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bella, S. (2009). Invitations and politeness in Greek: The age variable. Journal of Politeness Research, 5(2), 243–271. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2012). Pragmatic awareness in a second language setting: The case of L2 learners of Greek. Multilingua, 31(1), 1–33. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bella, S., & Moser, A. (2018). What’s in a first? The link between impromptu invitations and their responses. Journal of Pragmatics, 1251, 96–110. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bella, S., Sifianou, M., & Tzanne, A. (2015). Teaching politeness? In B. Pizziconi & M. Locher (Eds.), Teaching and learning (im)politeness (pp. 23–52). De Gruyter Mouton. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bialystok, E. (1993). Symbolic representation and attentional control in pragmatic competence. In G. Kasper & S. Blum-Kulka (Eds.), Interlanguage pragmatics (pp. 43–63). Oxford University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bieswanger, M. (2015). Variational pragmatics and responding to thanks — revisited. Multilingua, 34(3), 527–546. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Billmyer, K., & Varghese, M. (2000). Investigating instrument-based pragmatic variability: Effects of enhancing discourse completion tests. Applied Linguistics, 21(4), 517–552. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Brinton, L. (2021). Responding to thanks: From you’re welcome to you bet. Journal of Historical Pragmatics, 22(2), 180–201. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Brown, P., & Levinson, S. (1987). Politeness: Some universals in language usage. Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cohen, A. (1996). Developing the ability to perform speech acts. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18(2), 253–267. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Council of Europe. (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment. Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Coulmas, F. (1981). “Poison to your soul”: Thanks and apologies contrastively viewed. In F. Coulmas (Ed.), Conversational routine: Explorations in standardized communication situations and prepatterned speech (pp. 69–91). Mouton. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Culpeper, J., Mackey, A., & Taguchi, N. (2018). Second language pragmatics: From theory to research. Routledge. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Economidou-Kogetsidis, M. (2008). Internal and external mitigation in interlanguage requests production: The case of Greek learners of English. Journal of Politeness Research, 4(1), 111–138. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Edmondson, W., & House, J. (1981). Let’s Talk and Talk About It: A Pedagogic Grammar of English Discourse. München: Urban & SchwarzenbergGoogle Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ericsson, A., & Simon, H. (1993). Protocol analysis. MIT Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Farenkia, B. M. (2012). Face-saving strategies in responding to gratitude expressions: Evidence from Canadian English. International Journal of English Linguistics, 2(4), 1–11. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Félix-Brasdefer, C. (2010). Data collection methods in speech act performance: DCTs, role plays and verbal reports. In A. Martínez-Flor & E. Usó-Juan (Eds.), Speech act performance: Theoretical, empirical and methodological issues (pp. 41–56). John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gass, S., & Houck, N. (1999). Interlanguage refusals: A cross-cultural study of Japanese — English. Mouton de Gruyter.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kasper, G. (1997). Can pragmatic competence be taught? University of Hawai‘i, Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center. [URL]
(2000). Data collection in pragmatics research. In H. Spencer-Oatey (Ed.), Culturally speaking (pp. 316–341). Continuum. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kasper, G., & Rose, K. R. (2002). Pragmatic development in a second language. Blackwell.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Leech, G. (1983). Principles of pragmatics. Longman.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2014). The pragmatics of politeness. Oxford University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Moyer, A. (2004). Age, accent, and experience in second language acquisition: An integrated approach to critical period inquiry. Multilingual Matters. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2018). Discourse completion tasks. In A. H. Jucker, K. P. Schneider, & W. Bublitz (Eds.), Methods in pragmatics (pp. 229–255). De Gruyter Mouton. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ogiermann, E., & Bella, S. (2020). An interlanguage study of request perspective: Evidence from German, Greek, Polish and Russian learners of English. Contrastive Pragmatics, 1(2), 180–209. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ouafeu, Y. T. S. (2009). Thanking responders in Cameroon English. World Englishes, 28(4), 491–500. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Plonsky, L., & Zhuang, J. (2019). A meta-analysis of L2 pragmatics instruction. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition and pragmatics (pp. 286–307). Routledge. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Ren, W. (2022). Second language pragmatics. Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Savić, M. (2014). Politeness through the prism of requests, apologies and refusals: A case of advanced Serbian EFL learners. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Savić, M., Economidou-Kogetsidis, M., & Myrset, A. (2021). Young Greek Cypriot and Norwegian EFL learners: Pragmalinguistic development in request production. Journal of Pragmatics, 1801, 15–34. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schmidt, R. (1993). Consciousness, learning and interlanguage pragmatics. In G. Kasper and S. Blum-Kulka (Eds.), Interlanguage pragmatics (pp. 21–42). Oxford University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(1995). Consciousness and foreign language learning: A tutorial on the role of attention and awareness in learning. In R. Schmidt (Ed.), Attention and awareness in foreign language teaching (pp. 1–63). University of Hawai‘i, Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Schneider, K. P. (2005). No problem, you’re welcome, anytime: Responding to thanks in Ireland, England and the USA. In A. Barron & K. Schneider (Eds.), The pragmatics of Irish English (pp. 101–139). De Gruyter Mouton. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Searle, J. R. (1976). Classification of illocutionary acts. Language in Society, 5(1), 1–24. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Taguchi, N. (2015). Instructed pragmatics at a glance: Where instructional studies were, are, and should be going. Language Teaching, 48(1), 1–50. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
(2019). Second language acquisition and pragmatics: An overview. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition and pragmatics (pp. 1–14). Routledge.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Taguchi, N., & Roever, C. (2017). Second language pragmatics. Oxford University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Usó-Juan, E. (2010). Requests: A sociopragmatic approach. In A. Martínez-Flor & E. Usó-Juan (Eds.), Speech act performance: Theoretical, empirical and methodological issues (pp. 237–256). John Benjamins. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Vellenga, H. (2004). Learning pragmatics from ESL and EFL textbooks: How likely? The Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language, 81, 1–13.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue