Can the grammatical proficiency of American students of Bangla as a foreign language have a positive effect on their performance in the speech act of greeting in Bangla: a Study

Bangla, also known as Bengali, is a South Asian language taught at some American universities. At Indiana University Bloomington, Madusudan and Dhar India Studies Program offers classes in Bangla at different levels. The Bengali classes at India Studies focus on more on developing learners’ grammatical knowledge and less on learners’ pragmatic knowledge of Bangla. It is found that learners of Bangla often fail to communicate in a pragmatically appropriate way in Bangla, one area of difficulty in terms of pragmatic competence being greetings in Bangla and using the address forms correctly. Thelearners’ failure to properly perform the speech act of greeting in Bangla is one of their pragmatic infelicities. Bangla uses honorifics in address forms and has also honorific pronouns whose use involves grammar.  A study has been done in order to know whether students’ proficiency in Bangla grammar can impact their performance in greeting in Bangla and using the address form appropriately. It is found that students’ command of Bangla grammar has an effect on their performance in the speech act of greeting in Bangla

Bòsò Walikan Malang’s address practices

Address practices in natural conversations are sociolinguistically significant, because they display speakers’ socio-cultural values as well as the community’s social structure and social change. Focusing on Bòsò Walikan Malang1 (/bɔsɔ waliʔan malaŋan/, hereafter referred to as Walikan), a youth language spoken in Malang, this paper examines how address terms and politeness are practiced in a multilingual setting. Walikan is a colloquial variety of local Javanese and Indonesian that features word reversing (mlaku > uklam ‘to walk’; makan > nakam ‘to eat’). The youth language was specifically chosen as the focus of this study because it is an important symbol of the socio-cultural identity of the Arema (Arek Malang; the people of Malang). Looking at the underexplored topic of speech levels in youth language, the current research discusses the value of Walikan’s address terms and how they are currently used to demonstrate the speakers’ linguistic politeness. The analysis compares Walikan’s address terms with those of Javanese and Indonesian, two dominant languages spoken in the area. Data for the current study were drawn from recordings, interviews, and observations conducted in an extensive fieldwork. The results of this study reveal a speakers’ shift of value that is mainly prompted by a compromised common ground and social distance. The study argues that address practices in Walikan show different degree of politeness than that of Javanese and Indonesian

'Would you shut up, man?’ The Translation of forms of address in the Portuguese press

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Interpersonal relationships in medical consultations : Comparing Sweden Swedish and Finland Swedish address practices

This article investigates how interpersonal relationships are expressed in medical consultations. In particular, we focus on how modes of address are used in the two national varieties of Swedish: Sweden Swedish and Finland Swedish, with the aim to compare the pragmatic routines in the two varieties. Thus the study contributes to the field of variational pragmatics, where national varieties of pluricentric languages are recognised as important research objects. Address practices are analysed in two comparable corpora of video recordings from Sweden and Finland using both a quantitative and a qualitative CA-inspired method. There are several differences between the data sets: the Sweden-Swedish data are characterised by exclusive use of the informal T pronoun (du ‘you’) and an overall higher frequency of direct address compared to the Finland-Swedish data. In some medical consultations in the latter Finland-Swedish data the formal V pronoun (ni) is used. The qualitative analysis confirms these differences and the tendency is that the Sweden-Swedish medical consultations are more informal than the Finland-Swedish ones, which are characterised by more formality and maintenance of social distance between the interlocutors. The different pragmatic orientations at the micro level of communication can also be related to socio-cultural preferences at the macro level in society – the development towards greater informality and intimate language is more pronounced in Sweden than in Finland.Peer reviewe

The effect of the use of T and V pronouns in Dutch HR communication

In an online experiment among native speakers of Dutch we measured addressees' responses to emails written in the informal pronoun T or the formal pronoun V in HR communication. 172 participants (61 male, mean age 37 years) read either the V-versions or the T-versions of two invitation emails and two rejection emails by four different fictitious recruiters. After each email, participants had to score their appreciation of the company and the recruiter on five different scales each, such as The recruiter who wrote this email seems … [scale from friendly to unfriendly]. We hypothesized that (i) the V-pronoun would be more appreciated in letters of rejection, and the T-pronoun in letters of invitation, and (ii) older people would appreciate the V-pronoun more than the T-pronoun, and the other way around for younger people. Although neither of these hypotheses was supported, we did find a small effect of pronoun: Emails written in V were more highly appreciated than emails in T, irrespective of type of email (invitation or rejection), and irrespective of the participant's age, gender, and level of education. At the same time, we observed differences in the strength of this effect across different scales

Address practices in academic interactions in a pluricentric language: Australian English, American English, and British English

Following the recent development of address research in pluricentric languages (Clyne et al. 2006), the present study describes address practices in English-speaking academic settings and pursues two main objectives: (a) to provide a profile of address patterns in academic interactions in Australian English; and (b) to compare address practices in higher education across the three dominant varieties of English, namely American English, Australian English, and British English. The data on Australian English are drawn from 235 questionnaires completed by students, who reported on the address strategies adopted by students and teaching staff in classroom interactions in an Australian university. Data on American and British academic settings were retrieved from the research literature on the topic. The findings show a high degree of informality and familiarity in student-teacher relations in Australia, where reciprocal first names are the default pattern of address at all levels. By contrast, in American academia the hierarchical organization of roles and the different professional positions are foregrounded and reinforced through an asymmetrical use of titles, honorifics and first names. Finally, the British university setting displays a non-reciprocal usage of first names and titles between lecturer and students, which gradually evolves into a more generalised reciprocal use of first names, usually after extended contact and collaboration. We argue that the distinctive patterns of address observed in the three varieties of English reflect diverse social and cultural values systems at work in different speech communities

What Portuguese as a Foreign Language tells us about forms of address: an analysis of discourses of legitimation

This study examines how didactic materials of Portuguese as a Foreign Language (textbooks, grammars) describe forms of address in European Portuguese and the discourses they postulate to legitimise verbal addressive behaviour, in particular when it comes to the pronoun você. The main findings are: textbooks and grammars legitimise the usage of você whilst excluding vós, despite the fact that some acknowledge the ambiguous status of você as neither a T nor a V form; the complexity and instability of the system of forms of address means that they are present in textbooks primarily apropos of other linguistic content (grammatical items such as verb conjugations, speech acts such as requests, introductions, greeting), usually precluding the field of Portuguese as a Foreign Language from postulating clear, transparent explanations guiding foreign learners in how to address others.This study examines how didactic materials of Portuguese as a Foreign Language (textbooks, grammars) describe forms of address in European Portuguese and the discourses they postulate to legitimise verbal addressive behaviour, in particular when it comes to the pronoun você. The main findings are: textbooks and grammars legitimise the usage of você whilst excluding vós, despite the fact that some acknowledge the ambiguous status of você as neither a T nor a V form; the complexity and instability of the system of forms of address means that they are present in textbooks primarily apropos of other linguistic content (grammatical items such as verb conjugations, speech acts such as requests, introductions, greeting), usually precluding the field of Portuguese as a Foreign Language from postulating clear, transparent explanations guiding foreign learners in how to address others

O que Português Língua Estrangeira nos diz sobre formas de tratamento: uma análise de discursos de legitimação

This study examines how didactic materials of Portuguese as a Foreign Language (textbooks, grammars) describe forms of address in European Portuguese and the discourses they postulate to legitimise verbal addressive behaviour, in particular when it comes to the pronoun você. The main findings are: textbooks and grammars legitimise the usage of você whilst excluding vós, despite the fact that some acknowledge the ambiguous status of você as neither a T nor a V form; the complexity and instability of the system of forms of address means that they are present in textbooks primarily apropos of other linguistic content (grammatical items such as verb conjugations, speech acts such as requests, introductions, greeting), usually precluding the field of Portuguese as a Foreign Language from postulating clear, transparent explanations guiding foreign learners in how to address others.Este estudo centra-se em materiais didácticos de Português Língua Estrangeira (manuais, gramáticas) de modo a analisar como estes apresentam as formas de tratamento em português europeu, bem como os discursos que estes materiais postulam e que legitimam comportamentos verbais de tratamento do interlocutor, em particular o uso do pronome você. As principais conclusões são: os manuais e gramáticas analisados legitimam o uso de você, excluindo vós, apesar de algum deste material reconhecer a ambiguidade deste pronome, categorizado como nem T, nem V; a complexidade e a instabilidade do sistema de formas de tratamento significa que estas últimas estão presentes nos manuais indiretamente, por via de outros conteúdos linguísticos (áreas gramaticais como conjugação de verbos, atos de fala como pedidos, apresentações, cumprimentos), o que normalmente não permite explicações claras e transparentes sobre o tratamento linguístico.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Doctors talking to doctors in Arthur Schnitzler’s Professor Bernhardi

Arthur Schnitzler has long been regarded as a key figure in the development of Austrian realism, and especially in drama, where the movement was catalyzed by the Viennese ‘Ibsen week’ of April 1891. This chapter investigates four aspects of Schnitzler’s realism: medical hierarchies and structures of authority; doctors talking about their work; factionalization; and the breakdown of professional relations. For its early audiences, especially in Vienna, Schnitzler’s Professor Bernhardi offered realistic insight into an unfamiliar medical milieu within which, regrettably, the more familiar and divisive politics of the larger public sphere were reflected. Setting apart Mrs Emil Pohli’s text and that of William L. Cunningham and David Palmer, which both offer only a taster of the larger work, English-language versions of Professor Bernhardi fall into two categories: complete literary translations, and shorter stage adaptations. The meeting is the structural core and dramatic highpoint of Professor Bernhardi and tends to be only lightly abridged, even when radical cuts are made elsewhere

Are Your Talking to Me? Adressing Consumers in a Globalised World

Het eerste deel van dit proefschrift is gericht op taaleffecten, en meer specifiek op de gevolgen van formele en informele aanspreekvormen voor de reacties van de consument. In de meeste van de belangrijkste talen in het wereld, met uitzondering van het hedendaagse Engels en sommige dialecten van het Arabisch, hebben adverteerders en dienstverleners een keuze: de consument met behulp van een formeel of een informeel voornaamwoord aan te spreken (b.v. u of je in het Nederlands, usted of tu in het Spaans, tu of vous in het Frans). Toch was er tot nu toe geen onderzoek naar het effect van formele en informele aanspreekvormen op de reactie van consumenten. In Hoofdstuk 2 tonen we dat de persoonlijkheid van een merk de voorkeuren van consumenten op het gebied van aanspreekvormen beïnvloedt. In zes studies tonen we aan dat de informele aanspreekvorm vaker de voorkeur krijgt en meer positieve reacties uitlokt wanneer zij gebruikt wordt door een warmere merk, terwijl de formele aanspreekvorm vaker de voorkeur krijgt en meer positieve reacties uitlokt wanneer zij gebruikt wordt door een competenter merk. Dit effect wordt gerepliceerd in verschillende taalcontexten en marketing situaties. Ook tonen we dat dit effect verklaard kan worden door het feit dat consumenten informele en formele aanspreekvormen op verschillende manieren associëren met warmte en bekwaamheid, en dat de context waarin de communicatie plaatsvindt gevolgen heeft voor het effect. Ten slotte bespreken we de betekenis van deze bevindingen voor de praktijk en stellen we andere manieren voor waarop merkpersoonlijkheid en positionering een invloed zouden kunnen hebben op de reacties van consumenten op de aanspreekvormen die merken gebruiken. Het tweede deel van dit werk is gericht op het targeten van minderheden. In hedendaagse multiculturele samenlevingen vindt het targeten van etnische groeperingen steeds meer opgang als marketingstrategie. Er zijn ruwweg twee manieren van het targeten van etnische minderheden. De eerste variant is het benaderen van etnische consumenten als hun etnische identiteit geactiveerd is, bijvoorbeeld tijdens een cultureel festival. De tweede variant is het bereiken van consumenten door het gebruik van endorsers of modellen met dezelfde afkomst als de beoogde doelgroep. In Hoofdstuk 3 laten we zien dat de effecten van deze benaderingen verschillen voor eerste en tweede generaties minderheden. Dit heeft belangrijke praktische implicaties. Met name adverteerders die tweede generatie minderheden willen aanspreken op basis van etniciteit dienen zeer zorgvuldig te zijn in hun keuze van een context. De resultaten van ons onderzoek suggereren dat etnische targeting bij tweede generatie minderheden alleen werkt wanneer hun etnische identiteit geactiveerd is. Ook moeten marketeers zich ervan bewust zijn dat de strategie waarbij een persoon wordt gekozen met dezelfde afkomst als de doelgroep minder effectief of zelfs contraproductief zal zijn bij vertegenwoordigers van de tweede generatie dan bij die van de eerste. In Hoofdstuk 4 bouwen we op de bovenstaande bevindingen en onderzoeken we de invloed van een gedeelde etnische achtergrond tussen klanten en verkopers – een belangrijk aspect van verkoopgesprekken waar slechts weinig over bekend is. In dit hoofdstuk wordt de impact van gedeeld etnische achtergrond op de reacties van consumenten uit minderheden in twee studies onderzocht. Deelnemers zijn consumenten uit allochtone gemeenschappen. We tonen aan dat de aanwezigheid van een dienstverlener met dezelfde afkomst tot een positievere houding leidt ten opzichte van het aanbevolen product, maar meer onder eerste generatie dan onder tweede generatie minderheden. Het effect van een gedeelde afkomst op de reacties van consumenten wordt verklaard door de waargenomen betrouwbaarheid van de verkoper onder eerste, maar niet onder tweede generatie minderheden. Daarnaast tonen we dat het effect van een gedeelde afkomst op de reacties van consumenten sterker is voor hedonistische producten dan voor utilitaire producten. Dit is consistent met eerder onderzoek dat een lagere heterogeniteit van voorkeuren vindt bij utilitaire producten, waardoor een waargenomen gelijkenis in voorkeuren in dit geval minder relevant is. Tenslotte bespreken we de betekenis van dit onderzoek voor de effectiviteit van etnische targeting strategieën in contexten zoals de detailhandel en de persoonlijke verkoop