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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Linguistics|Communication'
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Harvey, Kevin. "Adolescent health communication: a corpus linguistics approach." Thesis, University of Nottingham, 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.491000.
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This study reports on a corpus analysis of a one million word collection of adolescent health emails submitted to an online health forum, the Teenage Health Freak, a UK-based website which provides evidence-based health advice and information for young people. The corpus approach to linguistic analysis integrates both quantitative and qualitative techniques, affording a reliable means of identifying trends and patterns of communication. By examining the common ways in which adolescents construct their health concerns to professionals online, this study aims to describe commonalities in young people's accounts of health, specifically sexual and mental health, thereby giving voice to an age group whose subjective experiences of health and illness nave often been overlooked in favour of older generations.
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Rubenbauer, Franz. "Linguistics and flight safety : aspects of oral English communication in aviation /." Aachen : Shaker, 2009. http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/F?func=service&doc_library=BVB01&doc_number=017649384&line_number=0002&func_code=DB_RECORDS&service_type=MEDIA.
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Fowler, Weeks Frederick. "Linguistics in vessel traffic services : an investigation of the communication problems in inshore waters." Thesis, University of Exeter, 1987. http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/2355.
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The ever-increasing sophistication of petroleum derivatives and dangerous and noxious chemicals carried by sea has resulted in a corresponding increase in the precautions taken by coastal states. High in importance amongst these precautions has been the introduction of Vessel Traffic Services, constituting shore-based organizations fulfilling a variety of functions, often based on advanced radar techniques. The kernel of any such system is communication, chiefly between shore and ship, ship and shore, but including communication ship to ship. Without such communications information cannot be passed, and advice and instructions cannot be given. This thesis describes the theoretical and practical linguistic research and application that has taken place in the field of Vessel Traffic Services. It offers solutions to existing and predicted communication events, chiefly by voice, but including concepts embodying VDU techniques. Further, it describes practical trials that have been carried out, and procedures which have been instituted as a result of the overall research detailed herein.
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Bogdewiecz, Sarah E. "Hard Science Linguistics and Nonverbal Communicative Behaviors: Implications for the Real World Study and Teaching of Human Communication." University of Toledo / OhioLINK, 2007. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1177956267.
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Bhatti, Joanna. "The communication of emotions in England and Poland : compliments and refusals." Thesis, University of Bedfordshire, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10547/575283.
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Previous research has shown some significant differences in the way speech acts are made and responded to in different cultures and languages. This study investigates two speech acts in particular, compliments and refusals, in two specific cultures, England and Poland. The project investigates the role of emotions in communication and social interaction with reference to these speech acts, which are particularly interesting due to their opposite emotional valence: compliments are perceived as positive and refusals are negative. English and Polish compliments and refusals are investigated as the two cultures are often perceived as proximate, which suggests that the observed differences will be particularly interesting as they have the potential to shed light on important and yet intractable distinguishing features of the two cultures. The research has two lines of investigation: theoretical and empirical. The theoretical aspect of research aims to bring together insights on the role of emotions in communication and a cognitive perspective on communication to explain the functions of compliments and refusals in social interaction and the relation between the cognitive and affective aspects of the production and reception of these speech acts. The empirical part of the research is based on an original study that presents new insights into complimenting and refusing behaviour in English and Polish culture. The comparison of English and Polish findings reveals many similarities in complimenting behaviour and some striking differences in refusing behaviour (most notably, Polish speakers tend to be less congruent than English speakers when making refusals and their refusals tend to be more detailed and more elaborate). The pragmatic analysis of the data has some interesting implications for the classification of compliment responses, suggesting that the classification should be based on appreciation, rather than on acceptance or rejection.
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Takigawa, Yuzuru. "Language Expertise as a Source of Dispute in Bilingual Couple Talk." Diss., Temple University Libraries, 2010. http://cdm16002.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p245801coll10/id/74228.
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CITE/Language Arts<br>Ed.D.<br>This study explores dispute sequences in talk between bilingual couples communicating in Japanese. Specifically I examine naturally occurring face-to-face talk between Japanese wives and their American husbands who communicate primarily in Japanese at home. Conversation analysis (CA) is employed to document occasions where the talk between these couples evolves into problematic talk such as disputes. The analytical focus is on sequences where problematic talk is related to the participants' orientation to such contrasting identities as native/non-native speaker and expert/novice categories.
A total of 16 hours of conversations were audio-recorded in the couples' homes while they were engaged in everyday activities such as eating meals. The analysis of the data revealed several separate but related issues. First, the couples made their language expert and novice identities relevant in their talk when they conducted metalingual talk, i.e., talk about the Japanese language. Specifically, these identities emerged through repair sequences on occasions when one person had difficulty understanding or producing a lexical item and his or her spouse provided assistance with the problematic item. Second, problematic episodes, such as dispute sequences, were often occasioned by metalingual talk. Third, Japanese native and non-native speaker identities were sometimes separated from differential language expertise. When this happens, the native speaker disputes it and problematic talk occurs.
The findings indicated that language expertise should be thought of as something that is independent to being a "native speaker" of a language. Being a language expert is locally situated in and negotiated through the ongoing talk and non-native speakers can be language experts as well. However, the data in this study show that the native speakers of Japanese, Japanese wives, sometimes perceived their non-native American husbands as disputing their expertise when they were engaged in metalingual talk. The American husbands occasionally displayed their expertise and argued against their Japanese wives on linguistic issues or did not acknowledge the expert information provided by the wives. When that happened, their talk became problematic, as the native speaker wives claimed that they were the experts and not the non-native husbands.
In sum, this study revealed that dispute in intercultural marriage is in some cases due to language expertise displayed in the interactions. Dispute emerges through the on-going talk and is not determined based on the second language speaker's disfluency or differences between the speakers' cultural backgrounds, a claim that is frequently made in other fields such as intercultural communication, second language studies, and sociolinguistics. This newly identified phenomena based on language expertise is at the root of dispute in bilingual couple talk.<br>Temple University--Theses
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Curran, Georgia R. "The Right to Remain Silenced: Non-Native English-Speaking Students and the American Justice System." Ohio University Honors Tutorial College / OhioLINK, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1587743860600109.
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Poltavtchenko, Elena. "Engineering design reports in upper-division undergraduate engineering courses and in the workplace." Thesis, Northern Arizona University, 2013. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3562160.
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<p> The workplace success of new engineering graduates is ultimately affected by their oral and written communication skills. However, engineering students' academic preparation for industry's needs in terms of written communication has been widely acknowledged as inadequate. The present study is intended to improve our understanding of a prominent engineering genre, the engineering design report (EDR), and provide support for students learning to write this genre. The goals of this study are to (a) conduct a corpus-based register comparison between student and professional EDRs and (b) provide a more detailed description of professional EDRs, by determining their rhetorical organization and identifying linguistic features associated with this organization. </p><p> This research is based on two EDR corpora (N of texts=262, with approximately 1,119,186 words), one with upper-division engineering students' EDRs and the other with professional engineers' EDRs. The study examines both non-linguistic and linguistic features of student and professional EDRs. First, non-linguistic characteristics of EDRs are examined using the EDR situational framework developed for the study. Then, corpus-based methodologies are used to analyze core grammatical features and features associated with grammatical complexity in both corpora. Finally, to determine conventional discourse structures of professional EDRs, the study draws on the English for Specific Purposes tradition of genre analysis and then uses register analysis to investigate linguistic features associated with particular rhetorical structures. </p><p> The register analyses revealed complex patterns of linguistic variation, frequently influenced by the registers' situational characteristics. The results of these analyses indicate that two EDR registers fill different positions on the spoken-to-written continuum, with reports produced in the workplace being closer to professional written registers and student reports using more speech-like features. The genre analysis of professional EDRs uncovered the highly variable nature of this genre. Despite considerable variation in EDR rhetorical organization, 12 common moves were identified that cluster in specific ways to form EDR organizational units and rely on particular sets of linguistic features. A streamlined template of the EDR genre is introduced as are linguistic features associated with its organization. Study results may have pedagogical implications for teaching features of professional EDRs to students.</p>
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Segovia, Sherri Dawn. "Contributing to a literacy of the body in videogame interaction." Thesis, The University of Texas at Dallas, 2015. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=3706679.
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<p> This study deems that to play a videogame is to gain a literacy of the body. The motor aspect of human interaction with videogames has largely escaped analysis in hand-held controller interactions, yet this is a mass cultural phenomenon in which human movement is technologized and uniquely, digitally expressive. Videogames are motor imperative in some form or another; it is a condition of interaction with this medium that symbolically transposes human movement into far-flung digital action. Contrary to the assumption that full-body interactions present richer embodied experiences in videogame technology, the data reveal that subtle motoric phenomena have aesthetically significant substructures that are imaginatively unbounded, like high literacy. The subtlety of player hand-motor effort is difficult to observe and therefore describe, yet encompasses a constellation of observable dual phenomena expressed in the ties between human and digital processes. In order to better understand this human engagement with technology, this study uses a phenomenological frame as a first person research method combined with principles of linguistics and Rudolf Laban's system of movement transcription and analysis. The intention of this project is to provide a methodology for describing and analyzing this remarkable, complex human interaction with technology in order to discuss its interdisciplinary implications for designers and theorists interested in the phenomena of videogames, as well as to anchor this interactive complexity in the humanities.</p>
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Burleson, Deborah. "Training segmental productions for second language intelligibility." [Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University, 2007. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3255507.
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Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Linguistics, 2007.<br>Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Nov. 19, 2008). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-03, Section: A, page: 0977. Advisers: Robert Port; Kenneth de Jong.
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Oglesbee, Eric Nathanael. "Multidimensional stop categorization in English, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, and Canadian French." [Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University, 2008. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3330811.
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Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Linguistics, 2008.<br>Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Jul 21, 2009). Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-10, Section: A, page: 3930. Adviser: Kenneth de Jong.
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Wang, Yang. "A Pedagogy of Leave-Taking in Chinese." The Ohio State University, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1406654379.
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Lee, Amanda Savio. "Communication Behaviour in Adults with Stuttering." Thesis, University of Canterbury. Department of Communication Disorders, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/9466.
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Purpose: Adults with stuttering (AWS) commonly demonstrate verbal avoidance behaviours as a result of speech-related anxiety. This can result in an experience of ‘communication restriction’. By nature, verbal avoidance and communication restriction are difficult to evaluate objectively, and existing evidence consists primarily of self-report data from qualitative interviews. However, recent preliminary evidence indicates the potential utility of systemic functional linguistics (SFL; Halliday, 1985) to this area of research. The SFL framework provides quantitative analyses for the objective examination of language use in sociolinguistic contexts. Recent data also suggest that the confrontation naming paradigm may be a second possible means for quantitatively evaluating aspects of functional linguistic behaviour in AWS. The purpose of the present study was to identify specific patterns of conversational language and confrontation naming behaviour in AWS using an objective methodology, and to explore these behaviours within the context of stuttering intervention and with reference to the experience of communication restriction.
Method: Twenty AWS (14 males, 6 females) and 20 matched controls (AWNS), aged between 16 and 56 years, were recruited for this study. All participants were native speakers of English with no cognitive, language, motor speech, or hearing impairment (with the exception of stuttering in AWS). All participants completed: (a) self-rating scales of general and communication-related attitudes and anxiety; (b) the UC Picture ID (O’Beirne, 2011) picture naming task, designed to objectively evaluate verbal avoidance behaviour; and (c) 10 minutes of spontaneous conversation with an examiner, loosely structured around a range of set topics. For the AWS participants, these procedures were completed pre- and post-attendance at either the Naturalness Intensive Programme in Christchurch, New Zealand (NZ), or the Intensive Stuttering Clinic (Blomgren, 2009) in Salt Lake City, USA (US). All conversational samples were analysed using both conventional and SFL-based analyses. Specifically, the quantity and complexity of verbal output, as well as the frequency of use of transitivity, modality, appraisal, and thematic resources, were examined.
To identify group differences on all measures between AWNS and AWS at both pre- and post-treatment, two-tailed independent samples t-tests and Mann-Whitney U-tests were conducted. To compare the performance of AWS between pre- and post-treatment, two-tailed paired t-tests and Wilcoxon matched pairs signed ranks tests were used. Group comparisons were conducted for the full participant group, as well as separately for the NZ and US subgroups. Pearson correlation matrices were also constructed, to identify linear relationships between measures. Correlations between conventional and SFL analyses of linguistic behaviour were of particular interest.
Results: Group differences for each subgroup were generally consistent with those for the full participant group. (a) AWS demonstrated higher social anxiety than AWNS at pre-treatment, but self-reported anxiety levels and stuttering impact decreased following treatment. (b) No differences were found across comparisons for confrontation naming performance on the UC Picture ID task. (c) In conversation, AWS produced consistently less language than AWNS, and produced less complex language than AWNS at pre-treatment, as shown by conventional and SFL indices. Specific SFL measures revealed fewer politeness-marking modal operators, more frequent comment adjuncts, and reduced expression of appraisal in the spontaneous language of AWS. Improvements in most of these areas were seen following treatment.
The results of the correlational analyses showed that self-report scale outcomes were not linearly correlated to actual performance on any linguistic measures. However, positive correlations were observed between basic linguistic indices (i.e., language productivity and complexity) from the conventional and SFL approaches. An interesting negative correlation between language productivity and frequency of use of comment adjuncts was also seen.
Conclusions: The current study extends available preliminary evidence on language use in AWS. Linguistic patterns identified in the conversational language of AWS suggest a reduced openness to interpersonal engagement within communication exchanges, which may restrict the experience of such exchanges. The data indicate that conventional and SFL analyses are interchangeable at a basic level, but also exemplify the unique utility of the SFL framework for examining specific aspects of language functionality within social context. Although AWS and AWNS were not found to differ in performance on the UC Picture ID task, the observations provide insight into the conditions under which verbal avoidance behaviours may be prone to occurring. Finally, the lack of straightforward correlations between self-reported anxiety and avoidance on the one hand, and various linguistic-behavioural indicators on the other, highlights the importance of a multidimensional, holistic approach to clinical stuttering evaluation.
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Wrege, Alexander. "Nonverbal Communication in the Real World." See Full Text at OhioLINK ETD Center (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing), 2004. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=toledo1083962967.
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Thesis (M.A.)--University of Toledo, 2004.<br>Typescript. "A thesis [submitted] as partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in English." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 34-35).
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Lin, Tzu-Chun. "Communicative patterns in the discussion meetings of a Buddhist society." Thesis, University of Aberdeen, 2011. http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=186212.
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The study develops an interpretative theory to explain the communicative processes underlying the Discussion Meetings of a Buddhist group, SGI-UK, in Aberdeen, using the inductive strategies of grounded theory. The primary data comprised recorded interactions among group members in the meetings. In the process of the analysis, conceptual codes and categories emerged from the data, and the relationships between them were established, thereby creating the theory. After further elaboration, the theory identified the underlying dynamic process: the continuous interaction between ritualised discourse and religious schemata. Ritualised discourse signifies convergent communicative tools and behaviours that centre on narratives. Religious schemata are individual members' mental representations which construct event in a range of social, ideological and cultural ways. Ritualised discourse both maintains and, in turn, is shaped by, these schemata, and thus manifest the ecological nature of the linguistic interactions
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Diaz, Leanna Marie. "Usage of Emotes and Emoticons in a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game." University of Toledo / OhioLINK, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1533228651012048.
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Swanepoel, Lehahn Searle. "Positioning in Somali narratives in the Saldanha bay municipality area on the west coast of South Africa." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/17879.
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Thesis (MPhil )--Stellenbosch University, 2011.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study is interested in discourses of displacement in which migrants articulate the experience of
seeking improved life chances in a community considerably removed from their place of origin. Not
only physical and environmental distance, but also distance related to cultural, linguistic and
religious differences distinguish the (im)migrants from the local indigenous population, which is
already a culturally and linguistically diverse community. This study investigates how histories of
displacement and experiences of alienation or integration may be discursively managed among a
group of young Somali males aged between 15 and 35 who entered South Africa in their late teens
or early twenties.
Specifically, this thesis considers how young Somali men who relocated to a rural Western Cape
town and make a living through trading, present themselves in English-language narratives elicited
during informal interviews. The study was conducted in Vredenburg, the administrative centre and
economic hub of the Saldanha Bay Municipal area on the West Coast of South Africa. The data for
the study was collected by means of audio recorded interviews. To supplement this data and gain
more perspective on the situatedness of the discourses, the researcher further relied on field notes as
well as additional informal conversations with the participants. The data was collected over a period
of five months in 2007.
To analyse the data, the researcher draws on the theoretical frameworks of Labov's structural
analysis of narratives and Wodak and Reisigl's (2001) discourse-historical approach, and Bamberg's
(1997) narrative constructivist perspective. The research aims to determine (i) how the narrators
construct themselves in their narratives, and (ii) how speakers position themselves towards the
content of their narratives, and towards their actual and imagined audiences.
This study shows that displacement brings about new contexts characterised by uncertainty, conflict
and inequalities, and this influences the way narrators orient themselves. The Somali narrators, in
interviews conducted in English with a community outsider, position themselves as displaced and
marginalised. During their narratives, the participants used several linguistic strategies to present
themselves in various ways to actual or imagined audiences, which lead to negative otherpresentation
and positive self-presentation and construction of in-group and out-group membership.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie fokus op diskoerse van ontworteling waarin migrante hul ervaring verwoord van ’n
soeke na beter lewensgeleenthede in ’n gemeenskap ver verwyderd van hul plek van herkoms.
Buiten vir die fisiese en omgewingsafstand, is daar ook afstand daargestel deur kulturele,
linguistiese en godsdiensverskille, wat die (im)migrante onderskei van die plaaslike bevolking – op
sigself ’n kultureel en linguisties diverse gemeenskap. Hierdie studie doen ondersoek na hoe
geskiedenisverhale oor ontworteling en ervarings van vervreemding of integrasie diskursief bestuur
kan word binne ’n groep jong Somaliese mans van 15 tot 35 jaar wat Suid-Afrika in hul laat
tienerjare of vroeë twintigerjare binnegekom het.
Die tesis fokus spesifiek op hoe jong Somaliese mans wat na ’n plattelandse Wes-Kaapse dorp
migreer het en ’n handelsbestaan voer, hulself voorstel in Engelstalige narratiewe wat ontlok is
tydens informele onderhoude. Die studie is gedoen in Vredenburg, die administratiewe en
ekonomiese kern van die Saldanhabaai Munisipale Area aan die Weskus van Suid-Afrika. Die data
vir die studie is ingesamel deur middel van klankopnames van onderhoude. Ten einde dié data aan
te vul en meer perspektief te verkry ten opsigte van die plasing van die diskoerse, het die navorser
verder gesteun op veldnotas sowel as bykomende informele gesprekke met die deelnemers. Die data
is oor ’n tydperk van vyf maande in 2007 versamel.
In die ontleding van die data maak die navorser gebruik van die teoretiese raamwerke van Labov se
strukturele analise van narratiewe en Wodak en Reisigl (2001) se diskoers-historiese benadering,
asook Bamberg (1997) se narratief-konstruktivistiese perspektief. Die navorsing het ten doel om vas
te stel (i) hoe die vertellers hulself in hul narratiewe konstrueer, en (ii) hoe sprekers hulself
posisioneer ten opsigte van die inhoud van hul narratiewe en ten opsigte van hul werklike en
denkbeeldige gehore.
Hierdie studie toon dat ontworteling nuwe kontekste skep wat gekenmerk word deur onsekerheid,
konflik en ongelykhede en ’n invloed het op die wyse waarop vertellers hulself orienteer. Tydens
onderhoude met ’n gemeenskapsbuitestaander, uitgevoer in Engels, posisioneer die Somaliese
vertellers hulself as ontwortel en gemarginaliseer. In hul narratiewe gebruik hulle verskeie
linguistiese strategieë om hulself op verskillende maniere voor te stel aan werklike en denkbeeldige
gehore wat lei tot ’n negatiewe voorstelling van die Ander, ’n positiewe voorstelling van die Self
en die daarstelling van binne- en buite-groep lidmaatskap.
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Reid, Monte B. "Paralinguistic cues and their effect on leader credibility." Thesis, Gonzaga University, 2013. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=1537255.
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<p> Paralinguistic cues are powerful non-verbal communication elements that have the ability to make even good news sound horrible or bad news more palatable. Drawing upon the hermeneutical phenomenology communication theory of Dilthey (1961) and Shannon's (1949) communication channel model, this thesis targeted the six primary paralinguistic cues of <i>fluidity, articulation, sonority, tempo, emotion, and dynamic intensity</i> to discover how these cues interact and affect the credibility and palatability of a leader's message. To facilitate remembrance of these cues, the acronym F.A.S.T.E.D. was coined and used. Three different groups consisting of managers, non-managers, and media and public relations professionals were surveyed to provide a triangulation of the data that helped identify these relationships. Research showed that these vocal cues were every bit as essential to an accurate understanding of the message as the actual words the leader employed to explain and compel both internal and external stakeholders. Further, the study indicates the importance of learning and applying these skills as well as a universality of their existence that transcends language barriers and cultural differences. </p>
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Ho, Miu-chun Michelle. "The application of systemic functional linguistics to teaching individual brief narrative speaking to junior secondary students Xi tong gong neng yu yan xue zai chu zhong ji shi duan jiang jiao xue de ying yong /." Click to view the E-thesis via HKUTO, 2006. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkuto/record/B37520350.
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VanDam, Mark. "Plasticity of phonological categories." [Bloomington, Ind.] : Indiana University, 2007. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3277973.
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Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Linguistics, 2007.<br>Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 3830. Adviser: Robert F. Port. Title from dissertation t.p. (viewed May 1, 2008).
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Clarke, Constance Margaret. "Processing time effects of short-term exposure to foreign-accented English." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280404.
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Non-native speech can cause perceptual difficulty for the native listener, but experience can moderate this difficulty. This study explored the perceptual benefits of brief exposure to non-native speech. A cross-modal word matching paradigm was used to investigate perception of foreign-accented speech by native English listeners during the first moments of exposure. In 5 experiments, processing speed was tracked by measuring reaction times to visual probe words following English sentences produced by non-native speakers. In Experiment 1, RTs decreased significantly over the course of 16 Spanish-accented utterances and by the end were equal to RTs to a native voice. Control groups in Experiments 1 and 2 who heard a native voice for the first 12 trials were significantly slower than the experimental groups in the final 4 trials, ruling out practice and general strategy explanations for the rapid adaptation. The adaptation effect was replicated with a Chinese-accented voice in Experiment 3. Surprisingly, the control groups also adapted to the accented voice when they heard it at the end of the experiment. Post hoc analyses showed the difference between the control and experimental groups' means was large for the first 2 accented sentences, but attenuated as more sentence trials were included in the means, suggesting adaptation can occur within 2 to 4 sentence-length utterances. In Experiment 4, adaptation to one Spanish-accented voice improved perception of a new Spanish-accented voice, indicating that abstract properties of accented speech are learned during adaptation. In Experiment 5, adaptation to a Spanish-accented voice was as large whether the utterances consisted of English words or mostly legal nonwords. This finding suggested that some characteristics of accented speech can be learned without feedback from lexical knowledge. Overall, the results emphasize the flexibility of the human speech processing system and the need for a mechanism to explain this adaptation in models of spoken word recognition.
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Polcar, Leah Elizabeth. "Towards understanding the processing of indirect speech acts: Reconsidering the standard pragmatic model of processing." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280495.
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This investigation tests whether a stage-type model of the processing of indirect speech acts is a fully explanatory model. A stage model, like the Standard Pragmatic Model (SPM), proposes that listeners understand the meaning of an indirect speech act by first determining direct meaning and then checking this meaning against context for sufficiency. It is only when direct meaning is found not to fully capture context that a listener proceeds to understand the meaning of an indirect speech act. This sort of model has been heavily criticized in the extant theoretical and empirical research, though this investigation shows much of this criticism to be faulty and/or irrelevant to indirect speech act processing. Here, minor revision of the SPM is proposed through the introduction of Cdirect and C indirect meanings that makes the modified SPM sensitive to issues of conventionality. Two experiments test this modified model (the MSPM). Results of the first experiment showed that the MSPM is the most explanatory model in explaining the processing of non-conventional indirect speech acts. The second experiment was designed to replicate an earlier experiment by Shapiro and Murphy (1993) and to investigate the influence of conventionality on the processing of indirect speech acts. The results of the conventionality analysis allow no clear conclusions about how conventional indirect speech acts are processed, but do call the results of the Shapiro and Murphy (1993) investigation into question. Additionally, some indirect proof is found that shows that conventionality influences the processing of indirect speech acts by making judgments of direct meaning difficult when conventional cues are present. Implications of these results are discussed and overall, the MSPM is found to be the best model for describing indirect speech act processing.
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Liu, Si. "Pragmatic strategies and power relations in disagreement: Chinese culture in higher education." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280559.
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This dissertation investigates pragmatic strategies and power relations related to disagreement in Mandarin Chinese using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, in which both statistic analyses of data from DCT and discourse analyses of data from ethnographic approach were conducted. The data were collected in the People's Republic of China at six universities in the north and the south of the nation as well as at a big conference. The total subjects for the DCT were 360, and the natural data were obtained from (1) surveys and interviews with a total of 45 participants, (2) 49 odd hours of recordings, and 86 valid oral discourses, both long and short. This study explores and answers three general questions. The first question is whether power relations in Chinese university settings influence pragmatic strategies in disagreement. A null hypothesis is rejected with statistic evidence. Further exploration of the ways in which the strategies are significantly different shows that the students use lower power-level strategies when disagreeing with the professors and administrators than vice versa. The students are addressed with highest level of all. However, the professors and administrators use more polite strategies to the students than the students to them. The statistic data also show no significant effect on the strategies by the two variables: gender and area. The second question asks what the pragmatic strategies in disagreement reflect regarding Chinese cultural dynamics in the higher education of contemporary China. The findings support the author's presumption that Confucianism may not still be the "guiding principle" of the norms and values in the university settings of modern China. A new cultural orientation of Chinese people is characterized with new features. The third probe of the question how the concept of relevance in Grice's CP dominates the analysis of communicative interactions involving power obtains an outcome in consistent with Kitis' "Global Relevance" as a Supermaxim of CP. Through Chinese discourse analyses, this study proves that the Maxim of Relevance of CP explicates conversational cooperation with the connection of the frame of discourse type and the social structure involving power, and the intention and comprehension of the implicature in conversations.
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Sell, Jared Benjamin. "Taking the "Foreign" Out of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2017. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/6876.
Full textAbstract:
Anxiety in the language classroom is an important issue because it affects student performance (Woodrow, 2006). The majority of research conducted has focused on anxiety or apprehension that language learners experience in a foreign language classroom, including students learning English as a foreign language (EFL) context. Only a few studies have been done, however, that address the needs of learners experiencing anxiety in an ESL setting. Data were gathered from 179 students attending a university sponsored intensive English program using a modified version of the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) (Horwitz, Horwitz & Cope, 1986) and focus groups. Initial scores on the FLCAS were obtained via student survey responses. In addition to the survey results, students also identified additional factors affecting their anxiety in the ESL classrooms in the areas of student beliefs (Price, 1991) and communication with peers. Furthermore, statistically significant results were found when comparing the students' first language (L1) with the survey results. Different types and levels of anxiety were shown to occur for Spanish and Portuguese students as well as Chinese, Korean, and Japanese students. The data gathered from the focus groups and open-ended questions provided clarity too to the overall scores obtained on the FLCAS.
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Lyons, Agnieszka. "Self-presentation and self-positioning in text-messages : embedded multimodality, deixis, and reference frame." Thesis, Queen Mary, University of London, 2014. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/8566.
Full textAbstract:
Texting has often been treated as verbally minimalist, notionally transactional, and, consequently, expressively impaired due to its text-only (mono-modal) character. Despite this, even with the development of new modes of electronically mediated communication (EMC) which made available a wide range of rich (multi-modal) communicative possibilities, texting has maintained its well-established position. This thesis approaches texting as communicatively rich and explores its expressive possibilities in the context of establishing texters’ deictic centres and representing aspects of physicality. Based on the analysis of nearly two thousand text-messages written by British and Polish native speakers and subsequent semi-formal interviews with the senders, I argue that senders position themselves discursively at one of four locations: their own physical deictic centre, the deictic centre of their communicative partner, a mutually agreed space distinct from either of their deictic centres, or a joint (virtual) communicative location with the recipient. I recognise the existence of social location and negative location, as well as location expressed through actions and motion. Additionally, I establish that physicality and body are represented through a variety of enacted (rather than described) sensory information, including auditory, visual, and kinaesthetic. Through the employment of these discursive tools, which follow certain presentation rules, texters create their alterae personae through which actions are performed in virtual space. I argue that text-messages should not be treated as monomodal, but as characterised by embedded multimodality, a term which I introduce. Methodologically, I draw on interactional sociolinguistics (e.g., Gumperz 1982; Tannen semantics (e.g., Lyons 1977; Talmy 1985; Fauconnier 1985), text-grammar (Nunberg 1990), mediated discourse analysis (e.g., Scollon and Levine 2004), and multimodal discourse analysis (e.g., Norris 2004). This interdisciplinary study advances current knowledge about discursive self-positioning and self-presentation in EMC, and provides insights about texting as a mode of communication that offers wide expressive possibilities despite its physical restrictions. As well as adding to theoretical discussion about motion verbs and performativity, the study contributes to research on deixis, physicality, and place, the expression of which is manifested in text-messages. 1989), performativity and speech act theory (e.g., Austin 1962; Searle 1975, 1979).
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Van, Der Merwe Joanie. "The discursive construction of the concepts organisational communication and organisational culture in a merged South African company." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/96138.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigates the manner in which the concept of communication is discursively
constructed in a South African insurance company. The company recently underwent a
merger which, according to the literature, should increase its awareness of communicative
practices. The thesis builds on recent theoretical developments in organisational studies,
more specifically, the linguistic turn. The focus falls on the way in which organisational
communication is constructed by implementing the analytical tools of thematic analysis and
discourse analysis.
All of the participants in this study were involved with the merger that the company
underwent. The sample of twenty-three participants included eighteen employees who took
part in an electronic survey questionnaire and five employees who were individually
interviewed. Additionally, documents concerning the merger were analysed to reveal the
way in which the company’s organisational communication is constructed by managers.
During the data collection, participants were questioned about their perspectives of
organisational communication and organisational culture with regard to the merger. The data
strongly shows that communication is generally not considered an important aspect in an
organisation during the merging process. Interestingly, when participants’ attention is,
however, drawn to specifically the concept of communication, a mechanistic view of
communication is presented with only selected communicative practices considered as
‘communication’. The analysis further indicates changing communicative practices in the
newly merged company. In conclusion, this study argues that organisations, especially in a merging context, can
benefit from a greater awareness regarding the importance of organisational communication.
Further linguistic research in the form of organisational studies in this regard is suggested.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die wyse waarop die konsep van kommunikasie deur diskoers
gekonstrueer word in ʼn Suid-Afrikaanse versekeringsmaatskappy. Hierdie organisasie het
onlangs ʼn amalgameringsproses ondergaan wat volgens die literatuur behoort te lei tot ʼn
toename in bewustheid van kommunikatiewe praktyke en veroorsaak dat die konteks ʼn
kardinale element in die navorsing is. Hierdie tesis bou op onlangse teoretiese ontwikkelings
in organisatoriese studies, met ‘n spesifieke fokus op diskoers en taal (die ‘linguistic turn’).
Die fokus val op die manier waarop organisatoriese kommunikasie gekonstrueer word deur
die analitiese metodes van tematiese analise en diskoersanalise te implementeer.
Al die deelnemers in hierdie studie was betrokke by die amalgamering van die maatskappy.
Die steekproef van drie-en-twintig deelnemers sluit agtien werknemers in wat aan die
elektroniese opname deelgeneem het en vyf werknemers waarmee individuele onderhoude
gevoer is. Dokumente aangaande die amalgamering is addisioneel geanaliseer om sodoende
die wyse waarop die maatskappy se organisatoriese kommunikasie gekonstrueer word deur
bestuurders, aan die lig te bring. Gedurende die data-insameling is deelnemers ondervra
aangaande hulle perspektiewe op organisatoriese kommunikasie en organisatoriese kultuur
ten opsigte van die amalgamering. Die data dui daarop dat kommunikasie oor die algemeen
nie beskou word as ʼn belangrike aspek van ʼn organisasie tydens die amalgameringsproses
nie. Tog, wanneer die deelnemers se aandag daarop gevestig word en hul gevra word om
spesifiek te fokus op die konsep van kommunikasie, word ʼn meganiese uitkyk van
kommunikasie voorgestel met slegs geselekteerde kommunikatiewe praktyke wat as
‘kommunikasie’ beskou word. Die analise lig verder die idee van veranderlike
kommunikatiewe praktyke in die nuwe geamalgameerde maatskappy uit. Ter opsomming voer hierdie studie aan dat organisasies, veral in ʼn amalgameringskonteks,
baat kan vind by ʼn groter bewustheid omtrent die belangrikheid van organisatoriese
kommunikasie. Verdere linguistiese navorsing in organisatoriese studies in hierdie verband
word voorgestel.
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Postica, Adina M. "Changing Focus: From Second / Foreign Language Teaching to Communication Learning." See Full Text at OhioLINK ETD Center (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing), 2006. http://www.ohiolink.edu/etd/view.cgi?toledo1147275010.
Full text
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Kowalik, Natalie. "The engagement of top management in IT discourse." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/20072.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: In small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) top management is responsible for the risk management in their company. In today‟s world, businesses are relying more and more heavily on IT and often this can be seen as a huge risk. As a potential risk factor and an integral part of any business, IT therefore falls under the portfolio of top management. However, there is a general perception, especially among dedicated IT professionals, that there is a gap between business, that is top management, and IT and that successful communication is not always achieved. The lack of successful communication between top management and IT role players could have a negative impact on a business‟ ability to operate fully. This study is therefore concerned with the investigation of how top management (the IT decision makers in a company) engage in the discourse of IT. It aims to identify whether a communication gap between business (top management) and IT truly does exist and, if so, why.
The data for this study takes the form of recorded, semi-structured interviews with IT role-players and directors/managers who have IT as part of their portfolio, from ten SMEs in the greater Cape Town area.
This study is undertaken in the framework of semantic discourse analysis, concentrating on two notions of coherence, that of van Dijk‟s (1985) model of macrostructures and Brown and Yule‟s (1983) notion of „discourse topic‟. This approach is used in order to analyse the transcribed interviews with both top management and IT role players in order to determine whether the perception of a communication gap between business (top management) and IT is true and if so, what the reasons for this communication gap are. The analysis of the transcriptions allows the researcher to confirm the perception that a communication gap does exist and to identify two possible reasons as to why this communication gap exists, firstly, that there seems to be a lack of communication between IT and top management and, secondly, that top management‟s interpretation of what IT means to their company differs from that of their IT role players.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSMOMMING: In klein tot mediumgrootte ondernemings (KMOs) is topbestuur verantwoordelik vir die risikobestuur in hul maatskappy. In vandag se wêreld, maak besighede meer en meer staat op IT en dit kan dikwels beskou word as 'n groot risiko. As 'n potensiële risikofaktor en' n integrale deel van enige besigheid, val dit dus onder die portefeulje van die top bestuur. Daar is egter 'n algemene persepsie, veral onder toegewyde IT-profesionele, dat daar' n gaping tussen die besigheid, in ander woorde die topbestuur, en IT bestaan en dat suksesvolle kommunikasie nie altyd bereik word nie. Die gebrek aan suksesvolle kommunikasie tussen topbestuur en IT kan 'n negatiewe impak op' n onderneming se vermoë om ten volle te funksioneer he. Hierdie studie is dus gemoeid met die ondersoek van hoe topbestuur (die IT-besluitnemers in 'n maatskappy) betrokke raak in die diskoers met IT. Die doel is om vas te stel of 'n kommunikasie gaping tussen die besigheid (topbestuur) en IT werklik bestaan, en indien wel, waarom te identifiseer.
Die data vir hierdie studie neem die vorm van aangetekende, semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude met rolspelers en direkteure / bestuurders wat IT as deel van hul portefeulje het in tien KMOs in die groter Kaapstad-gebied.
Hierdie studie is onderneem met die raamwerk van`n semantiese diskoers-analise, en konsentreer op die twee begrippe van samehang, dié van Van Dyk (1985) se model van makrostrukture en Brown en Yule (1983) se idee van `n 'diskoers onderwerp'. Hierdie benadering word gebruik om die getranskribeerde onderhoude met beide topbestuur en IT-rolspelers te analiseer en ten einde te bepaal of die persepsie van 'n kommunikasie gaping tussen die besigheid (topbestuur) en IT-rolspelers waar is en indien wel, wat die redes vir hierdie kommunikasie gaping is. Die ontleding van die transkripsies stel die navorser in staat om die persepsie dat 'n kommunikasie gaping bestaan te bevestig en om twee moontlike redes daarvoor te identifeer, in die eerste plek dat dit lyk asof daar' n gebrek aan kommunikasie tussen IT-rolspelers en die topbestuur bestaan, en tweedens, dat die topbestuur se interpretasie van wat IT beteken vir hul maatskappy verskil van dié van hul IT-rolspelers.
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Warren, Joseph Rizal. "Linguistic constructions of identity in the discourse of American international students studying at Stellenbosch University : a positioning theory account." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/71827.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The number of students studying outside of their country of birth is growing rapidly. While the United States of America only sends a small number of students abroad every year, high profile institutions and individuals have argued that studying abroad has become an important developmental experience in the globalized world. This effects (and will continue to effect) countries that send students as well as those that accept such students. While it is recognised that study abroad is both a business and an educational endeavour, the relative importance accorded each facet is disputed by those working and researching in the field. Some argue that to reduce study abroad to a ‗business endeavour‘ would be to remove the quintessential benefits of the experience. Nevertheless, the field (along with all education) is moving to embrace neoliberalisation. Research into the effect of this mass movement is sparse, scarcer still is research into the actual effects on students participating in this movement. This study is an analysis of the linguistic identity construction of American students shortly after a semester abroad at Stellenbosch University. Forty seven surveys were analysed to demonstrate how the way in which students construct their identities is influenced by broader practices in the field. The research shows how identities are co-constructed and suggests that the field of study abroad needs to be critically self-reflective in order to mitigate the potential negative effects of the practices they use.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die aantal studente wat buite hul land van geboorte studeer is vinnig besig om toe te neem. Alhoewel die Verenigde State van Amerika jaarliks slegs ʼn klein aantal studente oorsee stuur, beweer hoë profiel institute en individue dat ʼn buitelandse studiegeleentheid ʼn belangrike ontwikkelingsondervinding is in ʼn toenemend geglobaliseerde wêreld. Dit beïnvloed (en sal aanhou om te beïnvloed) beide die lande wat studente stuur en die lande waarnatoe die studente gestuur word. Hoewel dit algemeen erken word dat ʼn buitelandse studiegeleentheid beide ʼn besigheid en ʼn opvoedkundige aangeleentheid is, betwyfel navorsers en die wat in die praktyk werk die mate waartoe beide aspekte bydra tot die praktyke wat gebruik word. Sommige beweer dat om ʼn buitelandse studie geleentheid te reduseer tot ʼn besigheidsaangeleentheid, die ervaring van sy wesenlike voordele ontneem. Ten spyte van die kritiek word toenemend meer waarde geheg in die veld van 'buitelandse studie geleenthede' (saam met ander opvoedkundige kontekste) aan neoliberalisme. Navorsing wat die invloed van neoliberalisme op onderrigpraktyke ondersoek is raar, nog raarder is navorsing wat die effek van neoliberalisme op studente ondersoek. Hierdie studie analiseer die linguistiese identiteitskonstruksie van Amerikaanse studente kort na hul ʼn buitelandse studiegeleentheid van ʼn semester by Stellenbosch Universiteit voltooi het. Sewe en veertig opnames is geanaliseer om te demonstreer hoe die manier waarop studente hul identiteit konstrueer deur die praktyke in die veld beïnvloed word. Die studie dui aan dat identiteite saam gekonstrueer is en beveel aan dat die veld van 'buitelandse studiegeleenthede' krities en self-reflektief moet wees om potensiële negatiewe effekte van die praktyke wat gebruik word teen te werk.
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Blankenship, Kevin L. "Linguistic power and persuasion : an analysis of various language style components." Virtual Press, 2001. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1221304.
Full textAbstract:
This study examined the effect of tag questions, hesitations, and hedges on participants' attitudes toward an advocacy, perceptions of the speaker, message, and cognitive responses regarding the message. Results from 351 participants showed that although linguistic power markers affected attitudes when participants were motivated to process the message, the markers did so through different processes. The use of hesitations in an advocacy affected influenced attitudes by affecting participants' perceptions of the speaker, whereas the use of hedges influenced attitudes by affecting participants' perceptions of the message. The use of tag questions in a message influenced attitudes, but this study failed to find the mechanism this effect. The overall finding suggest a more complex relation among linguistic power components and aspects of a persuasive appeal than once thought and researchers should consider the different aspects underlying the effects of linguistic power components on persuasion.<br>Department of Psychological Science
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Zeng, Tao. "An organizational communication protocol based on speech acts : design, verification and formal specifications." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/29410.
Full textAbstract:
Current technologies are not sufficient to support the full spectrum of organizational communications because organizations are open systems and organizational communication is rather complex (e.g., involves negotiations). Speech Acts is a branch of Linguistics which views speaking to be the same as acting. Recently, Speech Acts theory has been introduced into the design of computer systems, like organizational information systems (OISs), that require complex interactions among themselves. By doing so, it is hoped that actions can be incorporated into man-machine and machine-machine communications. In this thesis, one tractable portion of the speech act theory
was identified which can provide a basis for the automation of a class of semi-structured communications (e.g., simple negotiations) in a distributed organizational environment. This portion of rather abstract Linguistics theory
was transformed into a concrete application layer communication protocol
(namely, the SACT protocol), which was then validated using a protocol
validation tool (i.e., VALIRA), specified in a standard formal specification
language LOTOS, and simulated using a protocol development toolkit (i.e., the Ottawa University LOTOS Toolkit). This protocol can be used by computer-based organizational systems to automate simple negotiations, as well as recurring tasks of collecting information in an organizational environment.
In addition, a communication scheme (called SACT network) was added to the Woo and Lochovsky's MOAP (Micro Organization Activity Processor)
model to automate inter-micro-organizational communications using the SACT protocol. The usefulness of this scheme is demonstrated through an example application.<br>Science, Faculty of<br>Computer Science, Department of<br>Graduate
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Kohonen, Susanna Aliisa. "Turn-taking and overlaps in native-nonnative talk-in-interaction : comparing observable and reported differences in French and British English communication styles." Thesis, University of Bedfordshire, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10547/323240.
Full textAbstract:
Participants in an intercultural situation of communication, trying to understand the intentions of their co-Iocutors from their own cultural perspective, can frequently commit misinterpretations that lead to misunderstandings of intention and meaning. Intercultural communication studies, for the majority, focus on unveiling and discovering differences that they believe to be at the core of such misunderstandings. Such studies have probed the varying cultural values, to mention a few, on the levels of individualism versus collectivism, of low-context versus high-context, of varying concepts of time or of silence (e.g. Hofstede 1980, Hofstede 1991, Hall 1959, Hall & HaU1990). The present study suggests that the perspective of one's primary socialisation culture should be studied on a more specific level if one is aiming to discover possible cultural differences. The level that is proposed to be studied is the production and interpretations of patterns of talk-in-interaction such as pauses, overlaps, speaker changes, simultaneous talk, prosody and intonation patterns, and so on. It is the stance of the present inquiry that these above-mentioned turntaking patterns play a key role in the processes through which the participants interpret each other's meanings and intentions, although the processes themselves remain mostly entirely subconscious. The present study was inspired by a case study that was conducted comparing the turn-taking behaviour between Americans and French conversing in French (Wieland 1991). Wieland conducted recordings of ordinary dinner table conversations, and later interviewed the participants in order to elicit insights into their interpretations of the interaction. However, little work has been done to further compare the culturally varying interaction patterns and the participants' reactions to them. The majority ofstudies into intercultural communication remain on more abstract levels of cultural values rather than addressing the actual arena of talk-in-interaction, although some have broken this unploughed ground, e.g. Moerman (1988) in his combination of conversation analysis and ethnography. The stance of the present study is that it is this very level of talk-in-interaction that holds the key to understanding what exactly happens in possible misunderstandings in situations of intercultural communication. Studies on talk-in-interaction focus on conversational turn-taking (Psathas 1995, Ten Have & Psathas 1995, Sacks, Schegloff & Jefferson 1974, Schegloff 2000). They therefore bring to light behavioural patterns - and their respective interpretations - that most of the time remain subconscious in the minds of the interactants, as those patterns are learned and internalised early on in the primary socialisation process (Berger & Luckmann 1966). Sample analyses on the conversational overlaps of French speakers carried out previously by the researcher (Kohonen 2000) served as a basis for the hypothesis development. These earlier analyses made evident the importance of gaining access to participants' perceptions on the interaction, as well as the access into parameters that allow a comparative approach. The present research is an exploratory, qualitative case study that allowed comparisons to be made between the overlap patterns of the native French and the native British English participants conversing in native and mixed groups, furthermore gaining access to participants' perceptions of the interaction. The present study is not intended to be taken as a strictly conversation analytical research, as the Literature Review will show. The aim of the present study is on the contrary to explore the possible theoretical and methodological triangulations available in the field of social sciences, and to discover how the triangulation of theories and methods could enhance the study of talk-in-interaction, in both native and intercultural settings.
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Greenhall, Owen F. R. "The semantics/pragmatics distinction : a defence of Grice." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2006. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:00db9bdd-143d-4900-b564-3af9d002f1ea.
Full textAbstract:
The historical development of Morris’ tripartite distinction between syntax, semantics and pragmatics does not follow a smooth path. Examining definitions of the terms ‘semantic’ and ‘pragmatic’ and the phenomena they have been used to describe, provides insight into alternative approaches to the semantics/pragmatics distinction. Paul Grice’s work receives particular attention and taxonomy of philosophical positions, roughly divisible into content minimalist and maximalist groups, is set up. Grice’s often neglected theory of conventional implicature is defended from objections, various tests for the presence of conventional implicature are assessed and the linguistic properties of conventional implicature defined. Once rehabilitated, the theoretical utility of conventional implicature is demonstrated via a case study of the semantic import of the gender and number of pronouns in English. The better-known theory of conversational implicature is also examined and refined. New linguistic tests for such implicatures are devised and the refined theory is applied to scalar terms. A pragmatic approach to scalar implicatures is proposed and shown to fare better than alternatives presented by Uli Sauerland, Stephen Levinson and Gennaro Chierchia. With the details of the theory conversational implicature established, the use made of Grice’s tool in the work of several philosophers is critically evaluated. Kent Bach’s minimalist approach to quantifier domain restriction is examined and criticised. Also, the linguistic evidence for semantic minimalism provided by Herman Cappelen and Ernie Lepore is found wanting. Finally, a content maximalist approach to quantifier domain restriction is proposed. The approach differs from other context maximalist theories, such as Jason Stanley’s, in relying on semantically unarticulated constituents. Stanley’s arguments against such theories are examined. Further applications of the approach are briefly surveyed.
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Aljuran, Aidah N. "“LISTENING WITH AN ATTITUDE”: THE ROLE OF ATTITUDE ON NATIVE AND NON-NATIVE INTERGROUP COMMUNICATION." UKnowledge, 2018. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/ltt_etds/25.
Full textAbstract:
People tend to draw their own conclusions about similarities and differences between who they are and the “other.” Having perceptions of being similar to the in-group and being different from the out-group “satisfies psychological needs” (Robbins & Krueger, 2005). Based on this social perception, individuals show communication variations as a way of expressing their identities (Giles 1973). This study implements quantitative and qualitative methods in order to examine the attitude of native speakers (NSs), as well as the potential impact of these attitudes on their communication with non-native speakers (NNSs). The potential impact of NSs’ interactions on NNSs’ interactions was also analyzed. First, this study elicits NSs’ attitudes by implementing the matched-guise technique (adopted from Lindemann’s work, 2000). Then, NSs and NNSs’ interaction variations were analyzed through the implementation of the map task model. The result reveals that (a) there is no consistent alignment between NSs’ attitudes and their interaction variations and that, (b) NNSs’ interaction variation was dynamic and affected by NSs’ interactions.
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Alexander, Muneer. "Intercultural communication and the community of practice in a South African sport team." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/96110.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study aims to investigate the impact of individual sociocultural and linguistic differences
on the creation of a successful sports team on and off the field. The specific team of interest
for this particular study is the Western Province amateur cricket team, based in Cape Town,
South Africa. The sociocultural and linguistic differences of the participants were examined
using theories focusing on intercultural communication and the various strategies that can be
put in place to overcome the barriers of intercultural difference within a sports team. To this
end the linguistic repertoires of participants were captured through the use of language
biographies. The study further investigates how participants consider themselves to be a part
of the team’s community of practice (CofP), and seeks to identify obstacles in terms of
acquiring and maintaining membership of this CofP. The data is analysed with the use of
thematic analysis (TA) methodology. In total 17 members of the Western Province amateur
cricket team participated in the study, two coaches and 15 players. They are speakers of
English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa. Questionnaires which elicit both personal and linguistic
background information, as well as information on perceived linguistic competence, were used
for data collection. Along with the questionnaires, structured interviews which aimed to
determine language preferences in receiving feedback and level of comfort when
communicating with speakers of different languages and from different cultures, were
conducted. The questionnaire and interview data reflect the linguistic preferences of the
participants, however also show that all participants conform to the team’s lingua franca in
order to understand and communicate openly without misunderstanding. The study shows that
sociocultural and linguistic differences can act as a barrier to a sports team’s dynamic and
environment, but these barriers can be overcome to create a successful and cohesive
community of practice on and off the field.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie het ten doel om die impak van individuele sosiokulturele- en taalverskille op die
skep van 'n suksesvolle sportspan, beide op en van die veld af, te ondersoek. Die spesifieke
span van belang in hierdie studie is die Westelike Provinsie amateur-krieketspan, gebaseer in
Kaapstad, Suid-Afrika. Die sosiokulturele- en taalverskille tussen die deelnemers word met
behulp van teorieë wat op interkulturele kommunikasie fokus en die verskeie strategieë wat
ingestel kan word om die hindernisse van interkulturele verskille binne 'n sportspan te oorkom,
te ondersoek. Vir hierdie doel is die taalrepertoires van deelnemers ingesamel met behulp van
taalbiografieë. Die studie ondersoek ook hoe deelnemers hul lidmaatskap tot praktyk
gemeenskappe beskryf, en poog om struikelblokke in terme van die verwerwing en
instandhouding van hierdie lidmaatskap te identifiseer. Die data is ontleed met die gebruik van
die tematiese analise (TA) metode. In totaal het 17 lede van die Westelike Provinsie amateurkrieketspan
deelgeneem in die studie, twee afrigters en 15 spelers. Hulle is sprekers van
Afrikaans, Engels en isiXhosa. Vraelyste wat beide persoonlike- en taalagtergrondinligting,
asook inligting oor waargenome taalvaardigheid, ontlok, is gebruik vir datainsameling. Saam
met die vraelyste, is gestruktureerde onderhoude, wat daarop gemik is om inligting oor
taalvoorkeure in verband met terugvoer ontvang en vlak van gemak in kommunikasie met
sprekers van ander tale en van ander kulture te ontbloot, gevoer. Die vraelys- en onderhouddata
het die taalvoorkeure van die deelnemers getoon, maar dit het ook getoon dat al die deelnemers
toegang het tot die span se omgangstaal, wat hulle in staat stel om te verstaan en openlik te
kommunikeer sonder enige misverstande. Die studie toon dat sosiokulturele- en taalverskille
as hindernisse tot 'n sportspan se dinamiek en omgewing kan optree, maar ook dat hierdie
hindernisse oorkom kan word om 'n suksesvolle en samehangende praktyk gemeenskap, op en
van die veld af, te skep.
36
Kavetsky, Jennifer A. "Men Behaving (not so) Badly: Interplayer Communication in World of Warcraft." Bowling Green State University / OhioLINK, 2008. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1213989105.
Full text
37
Cuffari, Elena Clare. "Co-Speech Gesture in Communication and Cognition." Thesis, University of Oregon, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1794/12145.
Full textAbstract:
xv, 256 p. : ill.<br>This dissertation stages a reciprocal critique between traditional and marginal philosophical approaches to language on the one hand and interdisciplinary studies of speech-accompanying hand gestures on the other. Gesturing with the hands while speaking is a ubiquitous, cross-cultural human practice. Yet this practice is complex, varied, conventional, nonconventional, and above all under-theorized. In light of the theoretical and empirical treatments of language and gesture that I engage in, I argue that the hand gestures that spontaneously accompany speech are a part of language; more specifically, they are enactments of linguistic meaning. They are simultaneously (acts of) cognition and communication. Human communication and cognition are what they are in part because of this practice of gesturing. This argument has profound implications for philosophy, for gesture studies, and for interdisciplinary work to come.
As further, strong proof of the pervasively embodied way that humans make meaning in language, reflection on gestural phenomena calls for a complete re-orientation in traditional analytic philosophy of language. Yet philosophical awareness of intersubjectivity and normativity as conditions of meaning achievement is well-deployed in elaborating and refining the minimal theoretical apparatus of present-day gesture studies. Triangulating between the most social, communicative philosophies of meaning and the most nuanced, reflective treatments of co-speech hand gesture, I articulate a new construal of language as embodied, world-embedded, intersubjectively normative, dynamic, multi-modal enacting of appropriative disclosure. Spontaneous co-speech gestures, while being indeed spontaneous, are nonetheless informed in various ways by conventions that they appropriate and deploy. Through this appropriation and deployment speakers enact, rather than represent, meaning, and they do so in various linguistic modalities. Seen thusly, gestures provide philosophers with a unique new perspective on the paradoxical determined-yet-free nature of all human meaning.<br>Committee in charge: Mark Johnson, Chairperson;
Ted Toadvine, Member;
Naomi Zack, Member;
Eric Pederson, Outside Member
38
Wardlow, Lane Liane Christine. "Not saying what's on your mind how speakers avoid grounding references in privileged information /." Connect to a 24 p. preview or request complete full text in PDF format. Access restricted to UC campuses, 2007. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ucsd/fullcit?p3258707.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2007.<br>Title from first page of PDF file (viewed June 5, 2007). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.
39
McKay-Cody, Melanie Raylene 1962. "Plains Indian Sign Language: A comparative study of alternate and primary signers." Thesis, The University of Arizona, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/278590.
Full textAbstract:
An extensive literature review has been undertaken to create an accurate portrayal of North American Indian Sign Language as used by both deaf and hearing American Indians. Historical accounts are stressed as the primary source for understanding the extent of signed language use among the American Indians of North American and its decline to the present status as an endangered language. This sign language has functioned in two significant ways: (1) primarily (for hearing tribal members) as an alternative to the spoken language and (2) as a primary, or first language for deaf tribal members. It is critical to bear this distinction in mind for future investigations into the linguistic status of North American Indian Sign Language. Additional historical accounts related to American Indians' encounters with the signed language use among Deaf Anglos are also included. An ongoing research project involving the preservation of old film in which North American Indian Sign Language has been documented in 1930s and the current data collection of deaf NAISL signer is discussed as a potential source for future research and as a viable access to the heritage of American Indians.
40
Saunders, Shelly. "A study in the language acquisition styles of language delayed toddlers." PDXScholar, 1990. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/4106.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of the present study was to determine if language delayed toddlers, 18 to 30 months of age, were at one end of the referential/expressive continuum. It was this researcher's hypothesis that due to the restricted vocabulary of children who use an expressive language style, that the delayed toddlers would tend to be more expressive speakers.
41
Al-Khawaldeh, N. N. "Politeness orientation in the linguistic expression of gratitude in Jordan and England : a comparative cross-cultural study." Thesis, University of Bedfordshire, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10547/344604.
Full textAbstract:
The thesis investigates ways of communicating gratitude are perceived and realised in Jordan and England. It focuses on the impact of several variables on the expression of gratitude and examines the differences between the data elicited by pragmatic research instruments (DCT and role-play). Data were collected from native speakers: 46 Jordanian Arabic, 46 English natives using DCTs, role-plays and interviews. Slight similarities and significant cross-cultural differences were revealed in terms of gratitude expressions’ perception, number and strategy type. This cultural contrast reveals differences in the sociolinguistic patterns of conveying gratitude in verbal and nonverbal communication. The most important theoretical finding is that the data, while consistent with many views found in the existing literature, do not support Brown and Levinson’s (1987) claim that communicating gratitude intrinsically threatens the speaker’s negative face. Rather, it is argued that gratitude should be viewed as a means of establishing and sustaining social relationships. The findings suggest that cultural variation in expressing gratitude is due to the high degree of sensitivity to the interplay of several social and contextual variables. The findings provide worthwhile insights into theoretical issues concerning the nature of communicative acts, the relation between types of communicative acts and the general principles of human communication, especially rapport between people in social interaction, as well as the relation between culture-specific and universal features of communicative activity types. Differences were found between pragmatic research instruments. The outcomes indicate that using a mixture of methods is preferable as long as this serves the aim of the study as it merges their advantages by eliciting spontaneous data in controlled settings. The ramifications of this study for future multi-dimensional investigations of the contrasts between Arabic and English speaking cultures are expected to prove particularly significant in virtue of corroborating or refuting existing findings and in this way paving the way for new research.
42
Coertze, Salome. "Aviation English in South African airspace." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/80386.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A lack of English proficiency and failure to use standard phraseology played a role in
two of the world’s largest aviation disasters in South Germany and Tenerife,
respectively. As a result, the crucial role of effective pilot-ATC (air traffic controller)
communication came under scrutiny and measures were put in place to ensure that
aviation safety is not jeopardised by language-related problems. For example, the
International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) implemented English language
proficiency standards and testing. The study reported in this thesis investigated the
use of Aviation English and standard phraseology, which is used in radiotelephony
communication by the operational aviation community. Aviation English consists of a
range of operationally-relevant language functions and dialogue management, e.g.
orders, requests, and offers to act; a blend of formulaic standard phraseology and
plain or everyday speech if and when a non-routine situation occurs. Data on pilots’
and ATCs’ perceptions of the role of language in air traffic communication, their
perspectives on English as lingua franca in aviation, and English language
proficiency standards and testing were collected by means of a questionnaire. The
respondents included full-time professional pilots (domestic and international flights),
part-time professional pilots and pilots who fly for leisure, and ATCs in Air Traffic
Navigation Service units that handle domestic and/or international flights. Recordings
of on-site air traffic communication from two airport towers were obtained and were
used to study the use of Aviation English and standard phraseology in pilot-ATC
communication in South Africa. The results indicated that the majority of pilots and
ATCs believe that language-related problems can cause fatal accidents and serious
incidents. Pilots and ATCs in South Africa do experience threatening and potentially
hazardous situations as a result of communication problems, however, they are
confident that communication problems are resolved quickly and successfully in order to avoid accidents. The analysis of the voice recordings correlated with the
pilots’ and ATCs’ perceptions that in spite of communication problems (languagerelated
and non-language-related) occurring in South African airspace, pilots and
ATCs have strategies in place to resolve them effectively and they are also able to
use plain English to negotiate understanding and meaning. The majority of the
respondents indicated that they agree that English should be used as the lingua franca in aviation around the world and they regard the English language proficiency
of South African pilots and ATCs as satisfactory. The majority support ICAO’s
English language proficiency standards and testing. The recordings presented a
small percentage of transmissions with read-back/hear-back errors, but a substantial
number of instances of radio distortions and background noise which interfered with
the intelligibility of the transmissions, correlated with the results of the questionnaire.
A small percentage of transmissions contained deviations from Aviation English and
standard phraseology and/or the use of plain English. The researcher is of the
opinion that this initial investigation into Aviation English serves to indicate some
avenues for fruitful linguistic investigations into Aviation English and pilot-ATC
communication in South Africa.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Ontoereikende taalvaardigheid in Engels en nalating om standaard frases te gebruik,
het bygedra tot twee van die ernstigste vliegongelukke in lugvaartgeskiedenis,
naamlik in Suid-Duitsland en Tenerife, onderskeidelik. As gevolg van die ongelukke,
het die kritieke rol van effektiewe kommunikasie tussen vlieëniers en
lugverkeerleiers onder die loep gekom, en maatreëls is ingestel om te verseker dat
lugvaartveiligheid nie deur taalverwante probleme benadeel word nie. Die
Internasionale Burgerlugvaartorganisasie (IBLO) het byvoorbeeld, onder andere,
taalvaardigheidsstandaarde en -toetsing vir vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers ingestel.
Die studie in hierdie tesis ondersoek die gebruik van Lugvaart-Engels (“Aviation
English”) en standaard frases wat in radiokommunikasie deur die operasionele
lugvaartgemeenskap gebruik word. Lugvaart-Engels bestaan uit ’n reeks
operasioneel-toepaslike taalfunksies en gespreksbestuurmiddels, bv. instruksies,
versoeke en ander handelinge; ’n mengsel van formele standaard frases en
alledaagse Engels vir gevalle waar buitengewone of nie-roetine situasies hulle
voordoen. ’n Vraelys is gebruik om inligting oor vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers se
sienings van die rol van taal in lugverkeerleiding in te samel, asook sienings oor die
gebruik van Engels as lingua franca in lugverkeer en die IBLO se
taalvaardigheidsstandaarde en toetsing vir vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers. Die
deelnemers sluit vlieëniers (voltyds en deeltyds, asook private en beroepsvlieëniers)
in en lugverkeerleiers in lugverkeernavigasie-eenhede wat binnelandse en
internasionale verkeer hanteer. Lewendige opnames wat van twee lughawetorings
bekom is, is gebruik om taalverwante en ander kommunikasieprobleme tussen
vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers te ondersoek. Die resultate dui daarop dat die
meerderheid vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers van mening is dat taalverwante probleme
tot noodlottige ongelukke en ernstige insidente kan lei. Daar is verder deur die
deelnemers bevestig dat hulle dikwels in gevaarlike situasies beland waar kommunikasieprobleme tot die gevaar bygedra het, maar hulle is van mening dat
kommunikasieprobleme in die Suid-Afrikaanse lugruim tydig en effektief opgelos
word om ongelukke te vermy. Die opnames het met die bevindings van die vraelys
ooreengestem en het aangedui dat, ten spyte van kommunikasieprobleme
(taalverwant en nie-taalverwant) in die Suid-Afrikaanse lugruim, vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers oor die vermoë beskik om sodanige probleme vinnig en suksesvol
op te los. Dit het ook aan die lig gekom dat vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers in Suid-
Afrika daartoe in staat is om in alledaagse Engels te kommunikeer om enige
onduidelikheid of buitengewone versoeke en instruksies te hanteer. Die meeste van
die deelnemers meen dat vlieëniers en lugverkeerleiers in Suid-Afrika se
taalvaardigheid in Engels bevredigend is en taalvaardigheidstandaarde en -toetsing
word sterk ondersteun. Die lewendige opnames het ’n klein persentasie
terugleesfoute bevat, maar ’n groot aantal gevalle van radiosteurings en
agtergrondgeraas het met die hoorbaarheid en verstaanbaarheid van die
kommunikasie ingemeng, wat met die resultate van die vraelys ooreengestem het. ’n
Klein persentasie van die uitsendings het afwykings van Lugvaart-Engels en
standaard frases en/of die gebruik van alledaagse Engels bevat. Die navorser is van
mening dat hierdie studie die weg baan vir potensiële navorsing binne linguistiek ten
opsigte van Lugvaart-Engels en die kommunikasie tussen vlieëniers en
lugverkeerleiers in Suid-Afrika.
43
Kiseliou, Ivan. "Better cooperation through communication in multi-agent reinforcement learning." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för lingvistik och filologi, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-412393.
Full textAbstract:
Cooperative needs play a critical role in the organisation of natural systems of communications. A number of recent studies in multi-agent reinforcement learning have established that artificial intelligence agents are similarly able to develop functional communication when required to complete a cooperative task. This thesis studies the emergence of communication in reinforcement learning agents, using a custom card game environment as a test-bed. Two contrasting approaches encompassing continuous and discrete modes of communication were appraised experimentally. Based on the average game completion rate, the agents provisioned with a continuous communication channel consistently exceed the no-communication baseline. A qualitative analysis of the agents’ behavioural strategies reveals a clearly defined communication protocol as well as the deployment of playing tactics unseen in the baseline agents. On the other hand, the agents equipped with the discrete channel fail to learn to utilise it effectively, ultimately showing no improvement from the baseline.
44
Van, Staden Drieka. "Intercultural issues in the translation of parody; or, getting Alice to speak French and Afrikaans in Wonderland." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/6590.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011.<br>Bibliography<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The classic Victorian tale by Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865), has
been enjoyed by adults and children alike in many countries and in many languages. In
this book, Carroll parodies the accepted style of children’s books of the Victorian Age by
mocking the moralistic and realistic expectations. All the poems in the book are parodies
of once familiar nursery rhymes, which often conveyed a moral lesson.
Translating Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is a challenging task, as it poses culturespecific,
text-specific and language-specific problems. Although the book has been
translated into more than 70 languages, it seems to be more popular in some cultures
than in others. At the same time, some cultures seem to be content with “older”
translations, while others need “updated” versions. Cultural differences seem to play a
role in these preferences.
The aim of this study is to examine the French and Afrikaans translations of a parodied
poem (as found in chapter 2 of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland) from an intercultural
perspective. In both cases, the translators seem to have found equivalents in their
respective cultures that would be acceptable to their target readers.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die klassieke Victoriaanse verhaal deur Lewis Carroll, Alice se Avonture in Wonderland
(1865), het plesier verskaf aan volwassenes en kinders in baie lande en in baie tale. In
hierdie boek parodieer Carroll die aanvaarbare styl van kinderboeke van die Victoriaanse
tydperk deur die spot te dryf met die moralistiese en realistiese verwagtinge. Al die
gedigte in die boek is parodieë van eens bekende rympies, wat dikwels ‘n morele les bevat
het.
Die vertaling van Alice se Avonture in Wonderland is ‘n uitdagende taak, aangesien dit
bepaalde kultuur-, teks- en taalverwante probleme inhou. Hoewel die boek in meer as 70
tale vertaal is, blyk dit meer gewild te wees in sekere kulture as in ander. Terselfdertyd is
sommige kulture skynbaar tevrede met “ouer” vertalings, terwyl ander meer “hersiene”
weergawes verkies. Kultuurverskille speel oënskynlik ‘n rol in hierdie voorkeure.
Die doel van hierdie studie is om die Franse en Afrikaanse vertalings van ‘n geparodieerde
gedig (soos dit voorkom in hoofstuk 2 van Alice se Avonture in Wonderland) te ondersoek
vanuit ‘n interkulturele perspektief. Klaarblyklik het die vertalers in beide gevalle
ekwivalente in hulle onderskeie kulture gevind wat aanvaarbaar sou wees vir hulle
teikenlesers.
45
Ndenguino-Mpira, Hermanno. "Pragmatic aspects of making and responding to complaints in an intercultural university context." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/2186.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009.<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The broad topic of this study is the nature and the effects of making and interpreting complaints
in intercultural interactions involving international students and South African administrative
staff in two Stellenbosch University residences. It appears that during these interactions, the
international students are often frustrated by the way their complaints are handled. As a speech
act, the effectiveness of a complaint depends on the way it is expressed and understood and also
on the social context in which it is performed. In this regard, the study examines the influence of
cultural differences on the way complaints are made and responded to in the above-mentioned
intercultural interactions. The study aims to analyse intercultural situations involving the making
and understanding of complaints that may result in misunderstandings.
The complaints data were collected through a discourse completion task, performed by 24
international students belonging to six cultural groups, namely American, Chinese, Dutch,
Gabonese, German and Libyan. All the students were residents in one of two student residences
of Stellenbosch University. The social acceptability judgments data were elicited from three
Afrikaans-speaking South African staff members of these residences, and from an additional six
Afrikaans-speaking South African students who served as informants. All the data were analyzed
within the pragmatic framework of the CCSARP (Cross-Cultural Speech Act Realization
Project), as developed by Blum-Kulka, House and Kasper (1989).
The main findings of the analysis indicate that the six cultural groups differed in the way they
made their complaints. Moreover, these differences influenced the manner in which some
complaints were understood by the staff members. It was also found that the staff members’
responses to the complaints were influenced by their social acceptability judgments of the
international students’ utterances. These findings lead to three main conclusions: (i) the way in
which complaints are made and understood is influenced by factors that relate to cultural
differences; (ii) such cultural differences may lead to misunderstandings; and (iii) conscious
efforts to create greater awareness of cultural differences will lead to a better understanding of
the way in which people of different cultural groups make and respond to complaints.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie handel breedweg oor die aard en effek van klagtes, soos uitgedruk en
geïnterpreteer tydens interkulturele interaksies tussen internasionele studente en Suid-Afrikaanse
administratiewe personeel in twee koshuise van die Universiteit Stellenbosch. Dit blyk dat die
studente dikwels gefrustreerd voel oor die manier waarop hulle klagtes in sulke interaksies
gehanteer word. Die effektiwiteit van ’n klagte, as ’n taalhandeling, word bepaal deur die manier
waarop dit uitgedruk en verstaan word, asook deur die sosiale konteks waarbinne dit uitgevoer
word. Die studie ondersoek in dié verband die invloed van kulturele verskille op die manier
waarop klagtes uitgedruk en op gereageer word in die bogenoemde interaksies. Die doel van die
studie is om ’n analise te maak van interkulturele situasies waar misverstande kan ontstaan by
die uitdruk en interpretasie van klagtes.
Die klagte-data is ingesamel deur die voltooiing van ’n diskoers-taak waarby 24 studente van ses
verskillende kultuurgroepe betrek is: Amerikaans, Chinees, Duits, Gabonees, Libies en
Nederlands. Al die studente was inwoners van een van twee koshuise van Stellenbosch
Universiteit. Die data oor sosiale aanvaarbaarheidsoordele is verkry van drie Afrikaanssprekende
Suid-Afrikaanse personeellede, en van ’n verdere ses Afrikaanssprekende Suid-Afrikaanse
studente wat opgetree het as informante. Al die data is ontleed binne die pragmatiekraamwerk
van die CCSARP (“Cross-Cultural Speech Act Realization Project”), soos ontwikkel deur Blum-
Kulka, House en Kasper (1989).
Die hoofbevindings van die analise dui daarop dat die ses kultuurgroepe van mekaar verskil wat
betref die manier waarop hulle hul klagtes uitgedruk het, en dat hierdie verskille ’n invloed het
op die manier waarop sommige klagtes geïnterpreteer is deur die personeellede. ’n Verdere
bevinding is dat die personeellede se reaksies op die klagtes beïnvloed is deur hulle beoordeling
van die sosiale aanvaarbaarheid van die internasionale studente se uitings. Drie
hoofgevolgtrekkings kan op basis van dié bevindings gemaak word: (i) die manier waarop
klagtes uitgedruk en geïnterpreteer word, word beïnvloed deur faktore wat verband hou met
kulturele verskille; (ii) sulke kulturele verskille kan lei tot misverstande; en (iii) daadwerklike
pogings om ’n groter bewussyn van kulturele verskille te skep, sal lei tot ’n beter begrip van die
manier waarop klagtes uitgedruk en op gereageer word deur mense van verskillende
kultuurgroepe.
46
Dainas, Ashley R. "Keep Calm and Study Memes." Case Western Reserve University School of Graduate Studies / OhioLINK, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1428085991.
Full text
47
Haines, Zachary A. "HUMOROUS JUDGMENT OF INCONGRUITY IN SHORT INTERNET VIDEOS." Kent State University / OhioLINK, 2021. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1627070680501086.
Full text
48
More, Lillian May. "The creation of a core vacabulary for initial lexicon selection for nonspeaking preschool children." PDXScholar, 1990. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/4107.
Full textAbstract:
The selection of the initial lexicon is one of the most important decisions made in the implementation of augmentative communication systems with preliterate, nonspeaking preschool children. If a communication aid is to be adopted by a child, the words available on the device must be interesting to the child and encourage communication. The vocabulary must allow for cognitive growth and foster language development. Ideally, a lexicon would be customized for each nonspeaking child's particular interests, vocabulary needs and developmental level. The reality is that vocabulary selection is a difficult and time consuming process. Parents and clinicians do not always have the time or expertise to develop an individualized lexicon and must depend on a prepared list. These lists are not always appropriate for preschool children. A carefully developed core vocabulary could serve as a framework for the initial lexicon and would ensure that the words available to the children promoted communication and language growth. This would allow caregivers to concentrate on the smaller individualized portion of the lexicon.
49
Freudenberg, Kristy. "Investigating the impact of SMS speak on the written work of English first language and English second language high school learners." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/2052.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))--Stellenbosch University, 2009.<br>This study examined the impact of SMS speak on the written school work of English first
language (L1) and English second language (L2) high school learners. The general aims of
the study were to establish how widespread the use of SMS language is among high school
learners, and to assess whether there is any evidence of the use of features of SMS speak in
the English written work of these learners.
Eighty-eight learners from an English-Afrikaans dual medium school in a middle class
neighborhood in the Western Cape participated in this study. The participants included 43
grade 8s and 45 grade 11s, of which 51 were English L1 speakers and 37 English L2
speakers. The participants completed questionnaires from which the frequency and volume
of their SMS use was determined, as well as the features of SMS speak they reportedly use
while SMSing. In addition, samples of the learners’ English written work were examined
for specific features of SMS speak. These features included (deliberate) spelling errors,
lack of punctuation, over-punctuation, the omission of function words, the use of
abbreviation or acronyms, and the use of emoticons and rebus writing.
The results of this study indicate that high school learners are avid users of SMS and/or
MXit. All participants reported using features of SMS speak in their SMSes, and many
reported using SMS speak in their written school work. Despite this, the samples of written
work did not contain a great number of incidences of SMS speak features. It seems that the
general lack of SMS speak in the written work of these learners is a result of being able to
assess when it is and is not appropriate to use a certain variety of language: These learners
are proficient in SMS speak and use it when chatting to friends on MXit, but they can
produce written work that adheres to the formally approved standards of written high
school English. That said, a number of SMS speak features were indeed present in their
formal written work, which indicates that SMS speak had some impact on the written work
of these learners, which could in turn be attributed to the high frequency of their SMS
usage. However, not all of the non-standard features of their written English could
necessarily be attributed to the influence of SMS speak; specifically some of the spelling
and punctuation errors could be unrelated to SMS speak, as they have been noted in the
written English of high school learners from before the advent of cellphones.
The learners in this study were from a school that has a strict language policy, one which
does not tolerate the use of SMS speak in written work. Seven of the teachers completed a
questionnaire compiled for all teachers at the school in question. Responses to this
questionnaire, especially those of the language teachers, indicated that teachers either
deduct marks for features of SMS speak in written language or refuse to mark written work
that does not conform to the formally approved standards that the school has set in place. It
is possible that the actions of the teachers and the language policy of the school play a
significant role in the lack of SMS speak features in the written language use of the
learners.
50
Kerr, Nicholas Brabazon. "Saved or not? speaker meaning attributed to salvation and Ukusindiswa in a church context." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/2742.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))—University of Stellenbosch, 2009.<br>Members of churches commonly use the English terms salvation/saved and their isiZulu
equivalents insindiso/ukusindiswa. Implied meanings seem to have become attached to these
terms, especially in isiZulu, which could cause miscommunication due to the attitudes of
superiority of the so-called “saved ones” (abasindisiwe) and consequent antagonism amongst
certain ecclesiastical groupings.
The question addressed by this study was whether or not the meaning of the term to be saved
and its isiZulu translation ukusindiswa, as understood by a selection of isiZulu-speaking
Christians, is unambiguous. A further question was whether – should it be the case that these
terms are found to be ambiguous – to be saved and its isiZulu translation ukusindiswa could be
rehabilitated.
Nine people from various denominational backgrounds, both lay and ordained, were
interviewed in order to discover how they understood the terms in question. The interviewees
were asked ten question, including questions on the influence of cultural practices on the
meaning of the terms. These cultural practices were in connection with ancestors, as
experienced in Zulu culture, and the influence of their understanding of the terms on the
permissibility of ancestral practices. The answers given by the interviewees revealed certain
trends. One of them was that, for some isiZulu speakers, the meaning of the terms included the
aspect of laying aside of all contact with the ancestors. Those who understood the terms in this
manner were seen by the interviewees as having an attitude of superiority and as condemning
members of more traditional churches for their adherence to Zulu culture.
A sociolinguistic analysis of the terms salvation/insindiso and to be saved/ukusindiswa is
presented based on the interviewees’ responses. A conclusion is that the terms are often used
in a biased and/or “loaded” way, which is a principal cause of miscommunication and
misunderstanding. Ways of reducing this misunderstanding are proposed, including the
“rehabilitation” of the terms linguistically and theologically. Greater sensitivity to different
ecclesiastical cultures should be shown, involving the use of inclusive language and the
exercising of the skills of intercultural communicative competence.
This study reveals that the church needs to work at the issues surrounding the terms in
question, the use of which can cause a breakdown in intercultural communication.