“I’m sorry I don’t agree with you”
Can we teach nonnative students pragmatic competence when expressing disagreement?
Disagreement has been relatively less studied than other speech acts such as requests or compliments, especially as produced by nonnative speakers of English. The present study aims to analyze the production of disagreement by an international group of Master students who use English as lingua franca in an online collaborative project. More specifically, the study tries to answer the following research questions: (1) does linguistic proficiency entail pragmatic competence? and (2), what is the effect of explicit instruction on pragmatic competence? To this purpose, two subcorpora (prior to and post instruction) were gathered by means of two online collaborative activities, rendering a total of 25,347 words. The analysis of the data reveals that high linguistic proficiency plays a crucial role in pragmatic competence. On the other hand, explicit instruction seems to benefit students to different extents, with intermediate B1 students improving their expression of disagreement and lower level students still remaining far from pragmatic and linguistic competence.
References (39)
Al Khatib, M.A. (2006). The pragmatics of invitation making and acceptance in Jordanian society. Journal of Language and Linguistics, 51, 272–294.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Angouri, J., & Marra, M. (2012). “OK one last thing for today then”: Constructing identities in corporate meeting talk. In J. Angouri & M. Marra (Eds.), Constructing identities at work (pp. 85–100). Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bardovi-Harlig, K. (1999). Exploring the interlanguage of interlanguage pragmatics: A research agenda for acquisitional pragmatics. Language Learning, 49(4), 677–713. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bardovi-Harlig, K., & Salsbury, T. (2004). The organization of turns in the disagreements of L2 learners: A longitudinal perspective. In D. Boxer & A.D. Cohen (Eds.), Studying speaking to inform second language learning (pp. 199–227). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Beebe, L.M., & Takahashi, T. (1989). Sociolinguistic variation in face-threatening speech acts. Chastisement and disagreement. In M.R. Eisenstein (Ed.) The dynamic interlanguage: Empirical studies in school language variation (pp. 199–218). New York: Plenum. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bell, N. (1998). Politeness in the speech of Korean ESL learners. Working Papers in Educational Linguistics, 14(1), 25–47.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bolander, B. (2012). Disagreements and agreements in personal/diary blogs: A closer look at responsiveness. Journal of Pragmatics, 44(12), 1607–1622. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Bond, M.H., Zegarac, V., & Spencer-Oatey, H. (2000). Culture as an explanatory variable: Problems and possibilities. In H. Spencer-Oatey (Ed.), Culturally speaking: Managing rapport through talk across cultures (pp. 293–315). London: Continuum.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Briz, A. (2005). Atenuación y cortesía verbal en la conversación coloquial: Su tratamiento en la clase de ELE.
Actas del programa de formación para profesorado de ELE 2006
.
Brown, P., & Levinson, S.C. (1987). Politeness: Some universals in language use. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Díaz Pérez, F.J. (2003). La cortesía verbal en inglés y en español: Actos de habla y pragmática intercultural. Jaén: Universidad de Jaén.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
García, C. (1989). Disagreeing and requesting by Americans and Venezuelans. Linguistics and Education, 11, 299–322. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Georgakopoulou, A. (2001). Arguing about the future: On indirect disagreements in conversations. Journal of Pragmatics, 33(12), 1881–1900. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Grimshaw, A.D. (1990). Conflict talk: Sociolinguistic investigations in conversations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Gruber, H. (2001). Questions and strategic orientation in verbal conflict sequences. Journal of Pragmatics, 331, 1815–1857. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Holmes, J., & Marra, M. (2004). Relational practice in the workplace: Women’s talk or gendered discourse? Language in Society, 33(3), 377–398. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kakavá, C. (1993). Negotiation of disagreement by Greeks in conversations and classroom discourse. Doctoral dissertation. Washington: Georgetown University.
Kakavá, C. (2002). Opposition in Modern Greek discourse: Cultural and contextual constraints. Journal of Pragmatics, 341, 1537–1568. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kotthof, H. (1993). Disagreement and concession in disputes: On the context sensitivity of preference structures. Language in Society, 22(2), 193–216. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Koutsantoni, D. (2005). Greek cultural characteristics and academic writing. Journal of Modern Greek Studies, 231, 97–138. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Kreutel, K. (2007). “I’m not agree with you.” ESL learners’ expressions of disagreement
. TESL-EJ, 11(3), 1–35.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Lakoff, G. (1972). Hedges: A study in meaning criteria and the logic of fuzzy concepts. Chicago Linguistic Society Papers, 81, 183–228.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Langlotz, A., & Locher, M.A. (2012). Ways of communicating emotional stance in online disagreements. Journal of Pragmatics, 44(12), 1591–1606. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Lawson, A.J. (2009). From the classroom to the bar-room: Expressions of disagreement by Japanese speakers of English. MA dissertation. Birmingham: University of Birmingham.
Liang, G., & Han, J. (2005). A contrastive study on disagreement strategies for politeness between American English & Mandarin Chinese. Asian EFL Journal, 7(1), 1–12.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
LoCastro, V. (1986). “Yes, I agree with you. But…”: Agreement and disagreement in Japanese and American English. Paper presented at the
Japan Association of Language Teachers’ International Conference on Language Teaching and Learning
, University of Japan.
Locher, M.A. (2004). Power and politeness in action: Disagreements in oral communication. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Muntigl, P., & Turnbull, W. (1998). Conversational structure and facework in arguing. Journal of Pragmatics, 29(3), 225–256. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Nakajima, Y. (1997). Politeness strategies in the workplace: Which experiences help Japanese businessmen acquire American English native-like strategies? Working Papers in Educational Linguistics, 13(1), 49–69.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Pomerantz, A. (1984). Agreeing and disagreeing with assessments: Some features of preferred/dispreferred turn shapes. In M. Atkinson & J. Heritage (Eds.), Structures of social action: Studies in conversation analysis (pp. 57–103). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Rees-Miller, J. (2000). Power, severity, and context in disagreement. Journal of Pragmatics, 32(8), 1087–1111. ![DOI logo](https://benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Santamaría-García, C. (2006). La negociación de acuerdo en la conversación coloquial: Estudio contrastivo español-inglés. Doctoral dissertation. Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
Sifianou, M. (1992). Politeness phenomena in England and Greece: A cross-cultural perspective. Oxford: Clarendon Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Tannen, D. (1994). The relativity of linguistic strategies: Rethinking power and solidarity in gender and dominance. In D. Tannen (Ed.), Gender and discourse (pp. 19–52). Oxford: Oxford University Press.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Thomas, J. (1995). Meaning in interaction: An introduction to pragmatics. Harlow: Longman.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Wolfson, N. (1990). The bulge: A theory of speech behavior and social distance. Penn Working Papers in Educational Linguistics, 2(1), 55–83.![Google Scholar](https://benjamins.com/logos/google-scholar.svg)
Cited by (1)
Cited by one other publication
Czerwionka, Lori & Gerrard Mugford
2020.
Cultural meaning-making in challenging interactions in L2 Spanish: language teachers’ perceptions.
Journal of Spanish Language Teaching 7:2
► pp. 123 ff.
![DOI logo](//benjamins.com/logos/doi-logo.svg)
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 16 july 2024. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers.
Any errors therein should be reported to them.