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Pragmatics: Online-First Articles

‘Where have you been hiding this voice?’

Judges’ compliments on the TV talent show Arab Idol

ORCID logo | Jordan University of Science and Technology
ORCID logo | Jordan University of Science and Technology
| Jordan University of Science and Technology
This study explores compliments given by judges to contestants on the TV talent show Arab Idol. A total of 120 comments from the third season 2014–2015 were analyzed for compliment types, structures, lexicon, and supportive remarks. Spenser-Oatey’s (2000, 2002, 2005a, 2005b, 2008) rapport management theory was employed to determine how judges managed rapport with contestants through compliments. The analysis shows that the majority of judges’ compliments on the show were explicit compliments that were based on three syntactic patterns and four types of positive semantic carriers conveying complimenting adjectives, verbs, nouns, and adverbs. A smaller category of implicit compliments involved such strategies as comparison/contrast, rhetorical questions, and praising contestant’s country. Both categories were typically qualified by supportive or weakening elements such as repetition, encouragement, and criticism, resulting in a third category of ‘macro-compliments’. The study shows that rapport management accounts to a large extent for the judges’ complimenting behavior.
Keywords: compliments, rapport management, quality face, identity face, sociality rights, interactional roles
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Theoretical background
  • 3.Research on compliments
  • 4.Method and procedures
    • 4.1Data collection
    • 4.2Coding scheme and data analysis
  • 5.Results
    • 5.1Explicit vs. implicit compliments
      • 5.1.1Explicit compliments
      • 5.1.2Implicit compliments
    • 5.2Macro-compliments
  • 6.Discussion
    • 6.1Face management
    • 6.2Interactional goals
  • 7.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • The abbreviations used are as follows
  • References
Published online: 14 March 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/prag.22027.mig
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