An investigation into pragmatic failure in spoken discourse made by the first year students at hue university college of foreign languages

DUONG HUU PHUOC MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DUONG HUU PHUOC * MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING AN INVESTIGATION INTO PRAGMATIC FAILURE IN SPOKEN DISCOURSE MADE BY THE FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS AT HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING * HUE - 2014 HUE, 2014 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DUONG HUU PHUOC AN INVESTIGATION INTO PRAGMATIC FAILURE IN SPOKEN DISCOURSE MADE BY THE FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS AT HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 60.14.01.11 SUPERVISOR: Assoc Prof Dr PHAN VAN HOA HUE, 2014 BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ DƯƠNG HỮU PHƯỚC KHẢO SÁT THẤT BẠI NGỮ NGHĨA TRONG PHÁT NGÔN CỦA SINH VIÊN NĂM THỨ NHẤT ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SỸ: LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 60.14.01.11 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: PGS.TS PHAN VĂN HÒA HUE, 2014 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby acknowledge that this study is mine The data and findings discussed in the thesis are true, used with permission from associates and have not been published elsewhere Author Duong Huu Phuoc i ABSTRACT In order to communicate effectively in the target language, the learner needs to acquire both linguistic competence and pragmatic competence In present English language classrooms, teachers often overlook pragmatics, due to the difficulty of its teaching, and instead of focusing on the grammatical aspects Learners' lack of pragmatic knowledge can lead to pragmatic failure Pragmatic failure is a problematic issue that tends to cause misunderstanding, embarrassment and even insult between native speakers and language learners Finding out and minimizing pragmatic failure is an essential prerequisite for a successful communication Therefore, it is crucial that researchers should carry out a detailed investigation on the nature of pragmatic failure so as to gain a deeper insight into the cross-cultural pragmatic differences and enhance learners‟communicative competence This research aims to investigate the root cause of pragmatic failure that college English learners tend to produce in cross-cultural communication by focusing specifically on the speech acts of refusals, compliment responses and apology-making through questionnaires, discourse completion tests and interviews Additionally, to identify the pragmatic competence of learners of English at Hue College of Foreign Languages and to provide constructive suggestions about how to improve their pragmatic competence Then, building on the analysis of the collected data, it provided suggestions for college English teaching Hopefully, these suggestions can help to develop students‟communicative competence ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis would have been unsuccessful without the support, help and suggestions of my supervisor, friends, colleagues and family I would like to sincerely thank them who helped me to achieve this study First of all, no one has been more influential than my supervisor Assoc Prof Dr Phan Van Hoa during the thesis writing process I would like to express my deep gratitude to him for his whole-hearted assistance and expert instruction Secondly, I am very grateful to the staff of Hue University College of Foreign Languages, who facilitate our training process and assist us in the course of writing and conducting the thesis Thirdly, I also wish to thank all the teachers of MA class 2012-2014 They imparted valuable knowledge of English to me and offered me opportunities to improve language teaching skills Last but not least, I would like to thank my family, especially my parents who always encourage me to study and give me useful support iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents Pages STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP i ABSTRACT ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF TABLES vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS viii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Research Aims 1.3 Research Questions 1.4 Research Scope 1.5 Structure of the thesis .3 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW .5 Pragmatics .5 2.1.1 Introduction to pragmatics 2.1.2 Definitions of pragmatics 2.1.3 Features of pragmatics 2.2 Interlanguage pragmatics 2.3 Pragmatics and Foreign/Second Language Teaching 2.4 Speech act theory 11 2.4.1 Austin's speech act theory .11 2.4.2 Searle's speech act theory 12 2.4.3 Speech act of refusals 13 2.4.4 Previous studies on the speech act of refusals 13 2.4.5 Speech act of compliment responses 14 2.4.6 Previous studies on the speech act of compliment responses 15 2.4.7 Speech act of apologies 16 2.4.8 Previous studies on the speech act of apologies .17 iv 2.5 Definitions of Pragmatic Failure 20 2.5.1 Jenny Thomas's Definition 20 2.5.2 He Ziran‟s Definition 21 2.5.3 Qian Guanlian‟s Definition .21 2.6 Classification of Pragmatic Failure 23 2.6.1 Thomas‟s Classification 23 2.6.2 He Ziran‟s Classification 23 2.7 Summary 24 CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHOD 25 3.1 Research approach 25 3.2 Respondents 25 3.3 Research Site 26 3.4 Research instruments .26 3.4.1 Questionnaire 26 3.4.2 Discourse Completion Test .27 3.4.3 Interview 27 3.5 Data collection .28 3.6 Data analysis 28 3.7 Summary 29 CHAPTER IV: FINDING AND DISCUSSION 30 4.1 Findings from the discourse completion test 30 4.2 Discussion on data of the discourse completion test 33 4.2.1 The Use of Direct Strategies 33 4.2.2 The Use of Indirect Strategies 33 4.3 Findings from the questionnaire 34 4.3.1 Findings from responses to compliments 34 4.3.2 Findings from apology-making .37 4.4 Discussion on compliment response data 41 4.5 Discussion on apology-making data 41 4.6 Findings and discussion of the interview .42 v CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATION .45 5.1 Conclusion 45 5.2 Potential causes of pragmatic failure .45 5.2.1 Cultural difference 45 5.2.2 Pragmatic Transfer 46 5.2.3 Inadequate pragmatic competence 47 5.2.4 Teaching-induced errors 48 5.3 Constructive suggestions for English learning and teaching 49 5.3.1 Recommendations for students and teachers 50 5.3.2 Recommendation for English course design 51 5.3.3 Recommendation for teaching activities 51 5.3.4 Recommendation for more authentic teaching material development 52 5.4 Limitation and suggestion for further research 53 5.4.1 Limitation of the study 53 5.4.2 Suggestion for further research .53 Appendix 54 REFERENCES 61 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1: Semantic formula 30 Table 4.2: Refusal 1- made to a boss's request .31 Table 4.3: Refusal 2- made to a classmate's request 31 Table 4.4: Refusal 3- made to an employee's request 32 Table 4.5: Refusal 4- made to a friend's invitation .32 Table 4.6: Refusal 5- made to a student's suggestion 33 Table 4.7: Herbert‟s Taxonomy of Compliment responses (Herbert, 1986, p 79) 35 Table 4.8: Compliment response - made to someone's compliment 35 Table 4.9: Compliment response - made to a friend's compliment 36 Table 4.10: Compliment response - made to a teacher's compliment 37 Table 4.11: Compliment response - made to a student's compliment 37 Table 4.12: Apology 1-made to a friend 39 Table 4.13: Apology 2-made to an older person 39 Table 4.14: Apology 3-made to a librarian 40 Table 4.15: Apology 4-made to a secretary 40 Table 5.1: Interchange (Richards, Hull & Proctor, 1991, p 36) .49 vii Appendix B Questionnaire Instructions: As part of a research project on pragmatic failure investigation, I would like you to help me complete the questionnaire by writing your answers in the space provided to the following situations according to your own understanding The answers to the questions will ensure the accuracy of the data Thank you very much for your cooperation ! When someone compliments the watch you are wearing, you might say: You have just had your hair cut in a fashionable style, and a friend of yours came across you and said that "you look beautiful with that hair style" You might respond: You were a representative of your group and presented the topic about the causes of environmental pollution Just after finishing your presentation, your teacher commented that "your English speaking skill has improved a lot" You might respond: You are a teacher at a language school You have invited a group of students to your house for a meal After the meal, one of you students came and said to you "you are a talented cook" "The food is wonderful" You might respond: You borrowed a magazine from your best friend, and you ripped the cover page by accident You are giving the magazine to your friend and say: In a cafeteria, you accidentally bump into an older person The coffee spills all over the person, scalding his/her arm and soaking his/her clothing You might say: The librarian lent you several books Today is the deadline for returning the books to the library but you left them at home As you meet him/her, you might say: 56 You are having an important interview at a company You got up late this morning and hurried to the company When you got there, you slammed against a secretary and dropped her files You might say: 57 Appendix C Interview Questions Have you ever produced pragmatic failure while interacting with English native speakers? If yes, what you think were the causes of pragmatic failure? How you get information about cultural background and pragmatic knowledge in English? Can you learn much about cultural background and pragmatic knowledge in English classes? Do you think it is important to teach culture and pragmatics in class? Do you have any advice on how to approach cultural and pragmatic pedagogy in class? Do you think that the current College English teaching will help you to communicate effectively with English native speakers? Why or Why not 58 APPENDIX D Classification of Refusal Strategies a Direct strategies: Direct denial of compliance without reservation „No‟ Negative willingness/ability (e.g., „I can‟t‟; „I won‟t‟; „I don‟t think so‟) b Indirect strategies Regret: Utterances expressing regret (e.g., „I‟m sorry‟; „I feel terrible‟) Positive opinion/feeling or agreement (e.g., „That‟s a good idea‟; „I wish I could help you but…‟) Excuse, reason and explanation: Explaining a reason for noncompliance Statement of alternative: Suggesting other alternatives or possibilities in order to maintain a positive relationship with the interlocutor (e.g., „I can X instead of Y‟; „Why don‟t you X instead of Y?‟) Future acceptance: Using the promise to delay acceptance (e.g., „I‟ll it next time‟; „I promise I‟ll…‟) Statement of negative consequences (e.g., „It‟s your grade, not mine‟) Criticism (e.g., „That‟s a terrible idea!‟) Letting interlocutor off the hook (e.g., „Don‟t worry about me You go and have fun‟) Self-defence (e.g., „It is not because I don‟t want to listen to your opinion‟) 10 Acceptance that functions as refusal: Unspecific or indefinite reply or lack of enthusiasm (e.g., „I‟ll that when I have time‟) 11 Avoidance: Avoiding direct response to proposed act 11.1 Topic switch (e.g., „Now let‟s go back to Chapter One‟) 11.2 Hedging (e.g., „Gee, I don‟t know‟; „I‟m not sure‟) 11.3 Joke (e.g., „I like walking in the rain‟) 11.4 Questioning (e.g., „How you expect me to answer you?‟) 11.5 Postponement (e.g., „I‟ll think about it‟) 11.6 Pause fillers: Use of fillers to fill a moment between the end of the interlocutor‟s utterance and the beginning of the speaker‟s refusal utterance (e.g., 59 „well…‟; „oh…‟; „wow‟) 12 Gratitude (e.g., „Thank you for inviting me‟) 13 Asking for approval (e.g., „Is that possible?‟) 14 Sarcasm (e.g., „I forgot you almost got “A” last term‟) 60 REFERENCES Al-Kahtani, S A W (2005) Refusal realizations in three different cultures: A speech act theoretically-based cross-cultural study Language & Translation, 21, 30-48 Armour, W S (2004) Becoming a Japanese language learner, user and teacher: Revelations from life history research Journal of language, Identity, and education, 3(2), 101-125 Austin, J.L (1962) How to Do Things with Words Oxford: Oxford University Press Austin, J.L (1975) How to Do Things with Words Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press Bach, K (2004) Pragmatics and the philosophy of language In L Horn & G Ward (Eds.), The Handbook of Pragmatics (pp.463-487) Oxford: Blackwell Bachman, L (1990) Fundamental considerations in language testing Oxford: Oxford University Press Bardovi-Harlig, K (2001) Evaluating the empirical evidence: Grounds for instruction in pragmatics In G Kasper, & K Rose (Eds.), Pragmatics in Language Teaching (pp 13-32) Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press Bardovi-Harlig, K (2010) Exploring the pragmatics of interlanguage pragmatics: Definition by design In A Trosborg (Ed.), Pragmatics across Languages and Cultures (pp 219-259) Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter Bataineh, R F., & Bataineh, R.F (2006) Apology strategies of Jordanian EFL university students Journal Pragmatics, 38(11), 1901-1927 Beebe, L M., & Takahashi, T (1989) Do you have a bag?: Social status and pattern variation in second language acquisition In S Gass, C Madden, D Preston, & L Selinker (Eds.), Variation in Second Language Acquisition: Discourse, Pragmatics, and Communication (pp.103-125) Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters 61 Beckers, A (1999) How to Say “No” without Saying “No”: A study of the refusal strategies of Americans and Germans.Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Mississippi Belz, Z (2002) The myth of the deficient communicator Language Teaching Research, 6(1), 59-82 Bilmes, J (1986) Discourse and behavior New York, Lon Don: Plenum Blum-Kulka, S (1982) Learning how to say what you mean in a second language: A study of Hebrew as a second language Applied Linguistics, 3, 29-59 Brown, H (2006) Principles of Foreign Teaching and Learning (5th Ed.) Hillsdale, NJ: L Erlbaum Associates Brown, H D (2001a) Using surveys in language programs Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Brown, P., & Levinson, S.C (1978) „Universals in Language Usage: Politeness Phenomena‟, in E.N Goody (ed.), Questions and Politeness: Strategies in Social Interaction Cambridge: Cambridge University Press: 56-289 Brown, P., & Levinson, S.C (1987) Politeness Some Universals in Language Usage Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Brown, S., & Attardo, S (2000) Understanding Language Structure, Interaction and Variation: An Instruction to Applied Linguistics and Sociolinguistics for Nonspecialists Michigan: Michigan University Press Canale, M & Swain, M (1980) Theoretical bases of communicative approaches to second language teaching and testing Applied Linguistics, 1, 1-47 Canale, M (1983) From communicative competence to language pedagogy In J Richards & R Schmidt (Eds.), Language and Communication (pp 2-27) London: Longman Cedar P (2006) Thai and American Responses to Compliments in English The Linguistics Journal, June, Vol No 2, pp 6-28 Chen, R (1993) Responding to compliments: A contrastive study of politeness strategies between American English and Chinese speakers Journal of Pragmatics, (20), 49-75 62 Chen, X., Ye, L., & Zhang, Y (1995).Refusing in Chinese In G Kasper (Ed.) Pragmatics of Chinese as native and target language (pp 119-163) Manoa, HI: University of Hawaii Press Chen, H J (1996) Cross-cultural comparison of English and Chinese metapragmatics in refusals Indiana University (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No ED 408 860) Cheng, D (2011) New insights on complement responses: A comparison between native English speaker and Chinese L2 speakers Journal of pragmatics, 43(8), 2204-2214 Cohen, A D., & Olshtain, E (1994) Researching the production of speech act In E Tarone, S M Gass, & A D Cohen (Eds.), Research Methodology in Second Language Acquisition (pp.143-156) Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Cordella, M (1992) Travels, cultures and speech acts: A pragmatic study in apology Melbourne: Dept of Romance Languages, Monash University Coulmas, F (1981) Poison to your soul: Thanks and apologies contrastively viewed In F Coulmas (Ed.), Conversational Routine (pp 69-91) The Hague: Mouton Denscombe, M (1983) Interviews, accounts and ethnographic research on teachers In M Hammersley (ed.), The Ethnography of Schooling: Methodological Issues (pp.105-128) Driffield: Nafferton Books Denscombe, M (2007) The good research guide (3rd ed.) Berkshire: Open University Press Doohan, E M., & Manusov, V (2004) The communication of compliments in romantic relationships: An investigation of relational satisfaction and sex differences and similarities in complement behavior Western Journal of Communication, 68(2), 170-194 Dörnyei, Z (2007) Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies Oxford: Oxford University Press Ellis, R (1985) Understanding second language acquisition Oxford: Oxford University Press 63 El Samaty, M (2005) Helping foreign language learners become pragmatically competent Proceedings of the 10th TESOL Arabia Conference, 9, 341-351 Erickson, E (1991) Advantages and disadvantages of qualitative research design on foreign language research In B F & Freed (Eds.), Foreign Language Acquisition Research and The Classroom (PP.338-353) Lexington, MA: DC Health Eslami-Rasekh, Z., (2004) Learning the Pragmatic Awareness of Language Learners ELT Journal 59(3) 199 -208 Félix-Bradsefer, C (2004) Interlanguage refusals: Linguistic politeness and length of residence in the target community Language Learning, 54(4), 587-653 Félix-Brasdefer, J.C (2006) Linguistic politeness in Mexico: Refusal strategy among male speakers of Mexican Spanish Journal of pragmatics, 38(12), 2158-2187 Fraser, B (1990) Perspectives on politeness Journal of Pragmatics, 14, 219-236 Fries, C (1945) Teaching and learning English as a foreign language Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press Gass, S., & Houck, N (1999) Interlanguage refusals: A cross-cultural study Japanese English New York: Mouton de Gruyter Ghawi, M (1993) Pragmatic transfer in Arabic learners of English El Two Talk, 1(1), 39-52 Gooder, H., & Jacobs, J (2000) On the border of the unsayable: The apology in post-colonizing Australia Interventions, 2, 229-247 Harlow, L L (1990) Do they mean what they say? Sociopragmatic competence and second language learners The Modern Language Journal, 74(3), 328-351 Hassall, T (2003) „Requests by Australian Learners of Indonesian‟, Journal of Pragmatics 35: 1903-28 He Ziran (1988) A Survey of Pragmatics Changsha: Hunan Education Press He Ziran (1997) Pragmatics and English Learning Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press 64 He Ziran, & Chen Xinren (2004) Contemporary Pragmatics Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press He, W (1998) „Issues in Second Language Teaching: Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language‟ (Unpublished doctoral dissertation: Clark University) Herbert, R (1986) Say "thank-you" or something American Speech, 61(1), 76-88 Holmes, J (1988) Paying complements: A sex preferential positive politeness strategy Journal of pragmatics, 12(3), 445-465 Holmes, J (2001) An introduction to sociolinguistics Essex, England: Pearson Education Limited Huth, T (2006) „Negotiating Structure and Culture: L2 Learners‟ Realization of L2 Compliment-Response Sequences in Talk-in-interaction‟, Journal of Pragmatics 38: 2025-50 Ji, P (2008) Pragmatics and Pedagogy in College English Teaching Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press Jung, E H S (2004) Interlanguage pragmatics: Apology speech acts In C L Moder & A Martinovic-Zic (Eds.), Discourse across languages and cultures (pp 99-116) Philadelphia: John Benjamins Kasper, G and Schmidt, R (1996) Developmental issues in interlanguage pragmatics Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 18, pp 149-169 Kasper, G (1989) Variation in interlanguage speech act realization In S Grass, C Madden, D Preston, & L Selinker (Eds.), Variation in Second Language Acquisition: Discourse and Pragmatics (pp.37-58) Clevedon and Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters Kasper, G (1992) Pragmatic transfer Second Language Research, 8, 203-231 Kasper, G (1998) Interlanguage Pragmatics In H Byrnes (Ed.), Learning Foreign and Second Languages: Perspectives in Research and Scholarship (pp.183-208) New York: Modern Language Association Kasper, G., & Blum-Kulka, S (Eds.) (1993) Interlanguage Pragmatics New York: Oxford University Press 65 Kim, D., & Hall, J.K (2002) The role of an interactive book reading program in the development of second language pragmatic competence The modern language journal, 86(iii), 332-348 Knapp, M., Hopper, R., & Bell, R A (1984) Complements: A descriptive taxonomy Journal of communication, 34, 12-31 Leech, G (1983) Principles of Pragmatics Lon Don: Longman Leech, G (1990) Principles of Pragmatics New York: Longman Levinson, S (1983) Pragmatics Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Liu, S (2005) What is pragmatics? Retrieved March 24, 2010 Márquez-Reiter, R (2000) Linguistic politeness in Britain and Uruguay: A contrastive study of requests and apologies Philadelphia: John Benjamins Mey, J L (2001) Pragmatics: An introduction (2nd ed) Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Mir, M (1992) Do we all apologize the same? - An empirical study on the act of apologizing by Spanish speakers learning English Pragmatics and Language Learning, 3,1-19 Mott, B L (2003) Introductory semantics and pragmatics for Spanish learners of English Barcelona: Edicions Universitat Barcelona Nelson, G., Carson, J., Al Batal, M., & El Bakary, W (2002) Cross-cultural pragmatics: Strategy use in Egyptian Arabic and American English refusals Applied Linguistics, 23(2), 163-189 Omaggio-Hadley, A (2000) Teaching Language in Context: Proficiency-Oriented Instruction Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle Parvaresh, V., & Tavakoli, M (2009) Discourse completion tasks as elicitation tools: How convergent are They? The Social Sciences, 4(4), 366-373 Pavlenko, A., & Lantolf, J P (2000) Second language learning as participation and (re)construction of selves In J P Lantolf (Ed.), Sociocultural theory and second language learning (pp 157-177) Oxford: Oxford University Press Qian Guanlian (2002) Pragmatics in Chinese Culture Beijing: Tsinghua University Press 66 Richards, J.C., Hull, J., & Proctor, S (1991) Interchange 2: English for international communication New York: Cambridge University Press Riley, P (1984 ) 'Understanding Misunderstandings : Cross-cultural Failure in the Language Classroom' in Journal of Teacher Education,Volume 7/2, pp.127-44 Rizk, S (2003) Why say “NO!” when you refuse? TESOL Arabia 2002 Conference Proceedings, 7, 401-431 Roever, C (2010) Researching pragmatics In B Paltridege & A Phakiti (Eds.), Continuum Comparison to Research Methods in Applied Linguistics (pp.240-255) Rose, K.R and G Kasper (2001) Pragmatics in Language Teaching pp.1-9 in Rose, K.R and G Kasper (eds) Pragmatics in Language Teaching New York: Cambridge University Press Rose, K.R, and Kasper, G 2002 Pragmatic Development in a second Language: Blackwell Publishing Lon Don, New York: Continuum International Publishing Group Rueda, Y.T (2006) Developing Pragmatic Competence in a Foreign Language in Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal (8) pp 172-182 Sandelowski, M (2003) Tables of tableaux? The challenges of writing and reading mixed method studies In A Tashakkori & C Teddlie (Eds.) Handbook of Mixed Methods in Social and Behavioral Research (pp.321-350) Thousands Oaks, California: Sage Savignon, S (1997) Communicative Competence: Theory and Classroom Practice (2nd Ed.), McGraw Hill Schauer, G A (2009) Interlanguage Pragmatics Development: The study abroad context Lon Don: Continuum Searle, J L (1969) Speech acts Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Searle, J L (1971) What is a speech act? In J R Searle (Ed.), The Philosophy of Language (PP.39-53) Lon Don: Oxford University Press 67 Searle, J L (1975) Indirect Speech Act In P Cole & J L Morgan (Ed.), Syntax and semantics vol.3: Speech acts (pp.59-82) New York, NY: Academic press Searle, J L (1976) The classification of illocutionary acts Language in Society, 5, 1-24 Searle, J L (1977) A classification of illocutionary acts In A Rogers, B Wall, & J Murphy (Eds.), Proceedings of the Texas Conference on Performatives, Presupposition, and Implicatures (pp.27-45) Washington DC: Center for Applied Linguistics Searle, J L (1979) A taxonomy of illocutionary acts In J R Searle (Ed.), Expression and Meaning (pp.1-29) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Selinker, L (1972) Interlanguage IRAL, 10, 209-231 Shaul, D L., & Furbee, N L (1998) Language and Culture Illinois: Waweland Silverman, D (1985) Qualitative methodology and sociology Aldershot: Gower Skinner, B.F (1957) Verbal Learning New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts Teichler, U & Steube, W (1991) The logics of study abroad programs and their impacts Higher Education, 21(3), 325-349 Smith, C (1998) Can adults 'Just Say No?': How gender, status and social goals affect refusals Unpublished doctoral dissertation University of South Florida Takaku, S., Weiner, B., & Ohbuchi, K (2001) A cross-cultural examination of the effects of apology and perspective taking on forgiveness Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 20, 144-167 Tamanaha, M (2003) Interlanguage speech act realization of apologies and complaints: The performances of Japanese L2 speakers in comparison with Japanese L1 and English L1 speakers Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, California Tang, C H., & Zhang, G Q (2009) A contrastive study of complement responses among Australian English and Mandarin Chinese speakers Journal of pragmatics, 41(2), 325-345 68 Terrell, T.D (1977) A natural approach to the acquisition and learning of a language Modern Language Journal, 61, 325-336 Thomas, J (1983) Cross-cultural pragmatic failure Applied Linguistics, 4, 20-39 Thomas, J (1995) Meaning in interaction: An introduction to pragmatics Lon Don: Longman Tinto, V (1995) Discovering the sources of student success from vision to reality: Student affair agenda for the '90s Iowa: ACT Tran, G (2006) The nature and condition or pragmatic and discourse transfer investigated through naturalized role-play Muenchen: Lincom Europa Trosborg, A (1987) Apology strategies in natives/non-natives Journal of Pragmatics, 11(2), 147-167 Retrieved March 20, 2005, from Science Direct Urano, K (1998) Negative pragmatic transfer in compliment responses by Japanese learners of English Unpublished manuscript, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu Retrieved May 1, 2006 Vasquez, C., & Sharpless, D (2009) The role of pragmatics in the master's TESOL curriculum: Findings from a nationwide survey TESOL Quarterly, 43(1), 5-28 Vygotsky, L (1978) Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes Lon Don: Harvard University Press Widdowson, H.G (1978) Teaching Language as Communication London: Oxford University Press Wierzbicka, A (2010) Experience, evidence, and sense: The hidden cultural legacy of English Oxford: Oxford University Press Wittgenstein, L (1953) Philosophical investigations Oxford: Wode, Henning Woodfield, H (2008) Problematising discourse completion tasks: Voices from verbal report Evaluation & Research in Education, 21(1), 43-69 Wolfson, N (1983 ) 'Rules of Speaking ' in Richards and Schmidt, Language and Communication, London: Long man Wolfson, N (1989).Perspectives: Sociolinguistics and TESOL Boston: Heinle &Heinle 69 Yamagashira, H (2001) Pragmatic transfer in Japanese ESL refusal Kagoshima Immaculate Heart College, English Department, 259-275 Yang, J (2008) How to say No in Chinese: A pragmatic study of refusal strategies in five TV series Proceedings of the 20th North American Conference on Chinese Linguistics, Ohio 2, 1041-1058 Yu, M (2003) On the university of face: Evidence from Chinese complement response behavior Journal of Pragmatics, 35(10-11), 1679-1710 Yu, M C (1999) Cross-cultural and interlanguage pragmatics: Developing communicative competence in a second language Unpublished doctoral thesis Cambridge: Harvard University Yu, M C (2004) Interlinguistic variation and similarity in second language speech behavior The Modern Language Journal, 88(1), 102-119 Yule, G (1996) Pragmatics Oxford: Oxford University Press Zuskin, R D (1993) Assessing L2 sociolinguistic competence: In search of support from pragmatic theories: Pragmatics and Language Learning, 4, 166-182 70