Wei Li
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 287] 2018
► pp. 7–64
This chapter begins with an overview of the theoretical underpinnings of the present study, namely, the concept of pragmatic competence, speech act theory and theories of politeness. Following this is a select review of empirical studies on speech acts, including cross-cultural studies on requests and refusals, interlanguage requests and refusals, requests and refusals by Chinese speakers, and speech acts in emails. Then research on pragmatic transfer, which is the central focus of the study, is presented. The definition and types of pragmatic transfer are introduced first, followed by studies on pragmatic transfer in different speech acts. Previous research findings pertaining to the relationship between pragmatic transfer and language proficiency are reported next. This chapter concludes with a discussion of data collection methods.