Recognition and Realisation of Elocutionary Force through Intonation by Native Speakers of English : Comparison with the Models in Intonation Studies

This paper examines the recognition and realisation of illocutionary force through intonation by native speakers of English and confirms if the native speakers of English recognise and realise illocutionary force through intonation as the models from the intonation studies do. In the recognition survey, participants were asked to listen to the dialogues and to judge intentions in these dialogues. In the realisation survey, they were asked to read aloud the dialogues with the instructed intentions. The results of the recognition survey illustrated that participants recognised approximately 30 percent of the intentions through intonation and that varieties of English did not affect their judgment of intention. Illocutionary forces of ""implication, possibility"" and ""exclamation"" are recognised easier than other illocutionary force such as ""warning"". The results of the realisation survey showed that participants succeeded in realising approximately 28 percent of the dialogues corresponding to the model tone choice. Again, illoctuionary forces of ""implication, possibility"" and ""exclamation"" are realized easier than other illocutionary force such as ""warning"". Overall results show that even native speakers of English do not recognise and realise illocutionary force through intonation as the intonation studies described. However, some common features with models were observed and although being different from the models, certain tendencies can be detected from the subjects' data. Thus, the results of this survey do not mean that intonation does not contribute to illocutionary force at all, but suggest that to a certain degree intonation definitely plays a role in conveying illocutionary force

Pragmatic Awareness of Japanese EFL Learners in Relation to Individual Differences: A Cluster Analytic Approach

This study investigated the relationships between pragmatic awareness and learner types drawn from pro les of learners’ motivation and pro ciency, thus providing insight into the interplay of learner factors in contrast to previous studies describing the relationships between single variables. In addition to a modi ed replication of Bardovi-Harlig and Dörnyei’s (1998) study in the Japanese EFL context, this study incorporated measures of motivation based on Self-Determination Theory and learners’ pro ciency. Cluster analysis sorted 69 Japanese EFL learners into three distinct subgroups based on their con guration of motivation and pro ciency; in particular, they differed on their levels of intrinsic motivation and pro ciency. Their pragmatic awareness was later compared by use of one-way ANOVA. The results illustrated that two groups with more self-determined motivation showed sharper perception of pragmatic inappropriateness than the group with lower intrinsic motivation, even though its pro ciency was higher. Based on the “noticing hypothesis” (Schmidt, 1995), we propose that intrinsically motivated learners are likely to process L2 pragmatic input at the level of ‘understanding,’ whereas those with lower motivational pro les only ‘notice the form’ but do not process it at the ‘understanding’ level. Proficiency is not in itself a suffcient condition for enabling ‘understanding.

Serial MRI Features of Canine GM1 Gangliosidosis: A Possible Imaging Biomarker for Diagnosis and Progression of the Disease

GM1 gangliosidosis is a fatal neurodegenerative lysosomal storage disease caused by an autosomal recessively inherited deficiency of β-galactosidase activity. Effective therapies need to be developed to treat the disease. In Shiba Inu dogs, one of the canine GM1 gangliosidosis models, neurological signs of the disease, including ataxia, start at approximately 5 months of age and progress until the terminal stage at 12 to 15 months of age. In the present study, serial MR images were taken of an affected dog from a model colony of GM1 gangliosidosis and 4 sporadic clinical cases demonstrating the same mutation in order to characterize the MRI features of this canine GM1 gangliosidosis. By 2 months of age at the latest and persisting until the terminal stage of the disease, the MR findings consistently displayed diffuse hyperintensity in the white matter of the entire cerebrum on T2-weighted images. In addition, brain atrophy manifested at 9 months of age and progressed thereafter. Although a definitive diagnosis depends on biochemical and genetic analyses, these MR characteristics could serve as a diagnostic marker in suspect animals with or without neurological signs. Furthermore, serial changes in MR images could be used as a biomarker to noninvasively monitor the efficacy of newly developed therapeutic strategies

Realisation of illocutionary force through English intonation by Japanese EFL learners

This paper investigates the features of intonation used by Japanese English as a Foreign Language Learners (JEFLLs) in terms of their realisation of illocutionary forces. Recordings of JEFLLs reading dialogues with instructed intentions were analysed and compared with 'standard' models from Brazil, Coulthard and Johns (1980) and Roach (2000). The results showed that, overall, JEFLLs used a falling tone irrespective of intention. This could indicate a blanket inability to realise illocutionary force through intonation. However, some tendencies were also apparent in the data. For example, unlike the models, some JEFLLs used rising or level tone to realise the illocutionary force of ‘'mplication, possibility', whereas, in line with the models, some JEFLLs used rise–fall tone to realise the illocutionary force of 'exclamation'. Evidence also showed that the group of high-proficiency subjects used a wider variety of tones than the low group. These results suggest that teaching and learning the relations between intonation and illocutionary forces are needed and that fundamental elements such as pitch ranges may be the primary need, particularly for low-proficiency groups.18 page(s

L2 speech研究における発音の「明瞭性」の取り扱い―明瞭な評定のために―

本稿の目的は、近年発音の目標としても多く取り上げられるようになった「明瞭性（intelligibility）」を扱う際の留意点を、概念的観点から、方法論的観点からまとめ、提示することである。構成概念としての明瞭性と関連する概念である理解性の定義を、先行研究からまとめた。次に、明瞭性・理解性の評定方法について整理し、その問題点・留意点などを指摘した。最後に、明瞭性という言葉が日常語化する中で、L2 speech 研究における発音の明瞭性を検討する際には十分に注意を重ねて分析・考察を行わなければならないことを強調した

Pragmatic Development of Japanese EFL Learers: What We can See from the Cross-sectional Studies

Numerous studies have strived to describe the characteristics of pragmatic ability including Japanese EFL / ESL learners. Most of them were cross-sectional studies and described only temporal characteristics of learners' pragmatic competence. Since they were not dealing with learner's pragmatic development, longitudinal studies on pragmatic ability have been called for in the field of Interlanguage Pragmatics Research. However, this trend from cross-sectional to longitudinal studies seems to be a swing of the pendulum --in other words, a dichotomous view. Some researchers do cross-sectional studies and others longitudinal. They have not interrelated or complemented with each other. In this paper, we did not look at these previous studies from the dichotomous viewpoint, but attempted to connect cross-sectional studies with longitudinal studies. First, we reviewed previous cross-sectional studies for Japanese learners and considered them as a hypothetical longitudinal study. From the hypothetical longitudinal study, we established a provisional pragmatic development of Japanese EFL / ESL learners. Secondly, we compared the provisional pragmatic development with the existing pragmatic development (Kasper & Rose, 2002) and showed its validity. Finally, we concluded that the hypothetical pragmatic development proposed in this paper will be a scaffolding to establish the pragmatic development of Japanese learners for further research