Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'L2 pragmatic'

This study examines proposals made during planning talk—a speech act that has received little attention in previous literature—to determine the applicability of the stages of second language (L2) pragmatic development posited by Kasper and Rose (2002). Although Kasper and Rose suggest that formulas play a prominent role in L2 pragmatic development, few studies have considered the applicability of their stages to a non-formulaic speech act. The current study investigated proposal production in the planning talk of 69 participants: 46 learners of Spanish enrolled at five levels of instruction in a seven-week Spanish immersion program, 12 native Spanish speaking instructors in the same program, and 11 native English speaking undergraduate students at the same institution enrolled during the academic year. The L2 learners worked in groups of two or three as they planned three different role-plays during the seventh week of instruction. The native speakers met with the researcher in groups of two or three to complete the same role-plays in their first language (L1). A total of 1809 proposals and 351 supporting moves were produced in approximately four hours of planning talk. Analysis of transcriptions focused on the realization of the head-act strategies, deictic centering, internal and external modification, and the influence of the conversational context on the production of proposals. Results of this cross-sectional analysis suggest that learners do not pass through a formulaic stage when producing proposals in planning talk. The results also suggest that the learners' production of proposals exhibits a u-shaped curve as they adhere to L1 English norms at intermediate levels of proficiency before reflecting L1 Spanish norms at more advanced levels of instruction. L1 English influence was observed in the level of directness of the head-act strategies, the use of deictic centering, internal and external modification, and the influence of the conversational context. Results point to a new framework involving three universal stages of L2 pragmatic development in which L1 influence and pragmatic expansion are more salient.

The present study investigates the effect of study abroad on Chinese learners' L2 pragmatic development longitudinally. Using the Multimedia Elicitation Task (MET) and the Appropriateness Judgment Task (AJT), the study collected data from 20 Chinese graduate students studying abroad (SA) and 20 Chinese graduate students studying at home (A H) at three different points during one academic-year. The SA students also completed a retrospective verbal report (RVR) in each phase of the data collection. Overall the study has evidenced the complexity in the effect of study abroad on learners' L2 pragmatic development. The results revealed that study abroad did not affect the overall frequency of learners' choice of opt-outs, nor did it significantly influence their overall frequency of refusal modifications. However, study abroad did have an impact on the repertoire of pragmatic strategies among the SA students, although the same developmental trend was also observed in the AH students' refusals. Furthermore, a significant decrease in the overall frequency of refusal strategies was only observed in the SA students' data between Phase 2 and Phase 3. This study documented that study abroad did not affect the SA students' overall ratings in the AJT. However, analyses of the SA students' RVR evidenced that their noticing of pragmatic infelicities developed significantly during their study abroad, indicating a positive influence of study abroad in learners' L2 pragmatic perception development. The analyses of the SA students' RVR revealed that the SA students paid increasingly more attention to sociopragmatics when they read the MET, whereas fewer SA students reported employing Ll as the language of thought in fewer instances. The changes of the SA students' preference of directness/indirectness indicated that they became more aware of the social status during social interactions. Furthermore, the study also observed the SA students' pragmatic development across the three phases.

This study investigates the types, frequencies and functions of hedges and boosters employed in L1 and L2 argumentative paragraphs written by Turkish learners of English with pre-intermediate level of proficiency. It aims to uncover whether or not Turkish learners of English writing in L1 and L2 display any transfer in their employment of hedges and boosters. The extent to which the academic writing teaching materials result in any measurable change in the employment of hedges and boosters is also pursued. To this end, the data that is comprised of 104 (52 Turkish and 52 English) argumentative paragraphs written as a response to a TOEFL essay prompt are collected. The analysis of the data is done manually and each paragraph is coded and formatted in CLAN CHILDES. Later, PASW is used to run the descriptive statistics and calculate the frequency and percentages of hedges and boosters. The results show that the types, frequencies, and meanings of hedges and boosters are culture and language-specific and they are topic and genre dependent. Research v findings also reveal that the participants in this study often express appropriate degree of certainty and pragmatic vagueness while writing in L1 and L2. However, there are some cases in which the evidence of rhetorical transfer are observed with respect to functions of certain hedges. The findings further indicate that there is a parallelism between the teaching materials used in academic writing classes and the types, frequencies and functions of hedges and boosters produced in L2 paragraphs.

The research is based on transcultural and interlanguage pragmatics studies and aims at the analysis of five speech acts, namely requests, responces to compliments, protests, apologies and thanks. In this study there are three groups of participants: Italian and Russian speakers who created the baseline for classification of pragmalinguistic recourses which were analyzed together with non-native speech acts collected by Russian speakers of Italian language. As the instrument of data collection the Discourse Completion Task with 30 situations was chosen. In total 900 responses were analyzed in trans-cultural and interlanguage perspective making use of speech act theory and politeness studies. Besides this dissertation has an important insight into how the pragmatics research can be used in teaching practice with Russian native speakers. It contains the description of lessons carried out for a group of Russian learners of Italian language. This work reconciles the inquiry into pragmatic behaviour of Russian and Italian speakers with teaching proposals thus contributing to enhance pragmatic competence of non native speakers.
La ricerca per la tesi di dottorato si colloca nell'ambito della pragmatica transculturale e intelinguistica e si prefigge il duplice scopo di analizzare la realizzazione di cinque atti linguistici di richiesta, risposta al complimento, protesta, scusa e ringraziamento e di fornire i modelli operativi d'insegnamento per apprendenti russofoni. La tesi si articola in due parti, di cui la prima indaga il repertorio pragmalinguistico degli atti linguistici, e la seconda getta le basi per future pratiche d'insegnamento. I partecipanti allo studio sono rappresentati dai tre gruppi di parlanti, ovvero i parlanti nativi italiani, parlanti nativi russi e parlanti non nativi russofoni apprendenti d'italiano L2. I dati sono stati ricevuti grazie alla compilazione del questionario scritto Discourse Completion Task che specifica 30 situazioni comunicative per la sollecitazione degli atti linguistici. In totale sono state analizzate 900 risposte degli informatori in una prospettiva transculturale e interlinguistica applicando la teoria degli atti linguistici e gli studi sulla cortesia. In tal modo è risultato possibile raccogliere il repertorio delle strategie per la realizzazione degli atti linguistici, analizzare la loro frequenza e formulazione in chiave contrastiva transculturale e infine individuare le caratteristiche dell'interlingua dal punto di vista pragmatico. La seconda parte del lavoro si pone l'obiettivo di ipotizzare un percorso d'insegnamento che serva a migliorare la competenza pragmatica degli apprendenti russofoni e illustra i risultati di una sperimentazione svolta in una classe di apprendenti russofoni. Questo lavoro permette di conciliare la ricerca fenomenologica con le proposte in campo glottodidattico auspicando di potenziare l'insegnamento d'italiano L2.

Thesis (MPhil (General Linguistics))—University of Stellenbosch, 2009.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The term "schizophrenia" refers to a psychiatric condition which affects an individual's thought and speech (Eaton and Chen 2006). The verbal expression of schizophrenics can therefore be used as a tool for insight into the nature of schizophrenia as well as the cognitive processes of schizophrenics (Wróbel 1990:1). This thesis reports on a comparative evaluation of three pragmatic assessment tools, namely the Pragmatic Protocol (Prutting and Kirchner 1987), the Profile of Communicative Appropriateness (Penn 1985), and the Framework for Assessing (Children's) Conversational Skills (Rumble 1988), in order to establish which of these tools is most suitable for assessing the first language (L1) and second language (L2) pragmatic abilities of late bilingual schizophrenics. Four late bilingual schizophrenic patients participated in this study. A thirty minute informal interview was conducted with each of the participants in both their L1 and L2 and the speech samples were transcribed and then analysed by means of each of the pragmatic assessment tools. A careful examination of the results yielded by the three assessment tools, showed, firstly, that when presenting the results of a pragmatic assessment of schizophrenic speech, it is crucial that both quantitative and qualitative information be included: if the latter is excluded, a significant amount of information is hidden from the clinicians and/or linguists doing the assessment, as well as the people to whom they report their findings. Secondly, with respect to the characteristics of schizophrenic speech, the three instruments used in this study show that whereas most of the aspects of schizophrenics' linguistic abilities seem intact, their pragmatic skills are definitely impaired. Thirdly, regarding differential symptomatology in bilingual schizophrenics, this study concludes that none of the three assessment tools contributes to a better understanding of this phenomenon, and that, in fact, it is highly unlikely that any pragmatic assessment tool would be able to capture this phenomenon. Finally, it is recommended that clinicians assess bilingual patients in both languages, whenever possible, in order to determine the full range of symptoms experienced by the patient, to gain a better indication of the severity of the illness and to track the progress of the illness.
AFRIKAANS OPSOMMING: Die term "skisofrenie" verwys na 'n psigiatriese toestand wat 'n individu se denkprosesse en spraak beïnvloed (Eaton en Chen 2006). Die verbale uitinge van skisofrene kan dus gebruik word om insig oor die aard van skisofrenie, sowel as die kognitiewe prosesse van skisofrene, te verkry (Wróbel 1990:1). Hierdie tesis lewer verslag oor 'n vergelykende evaluering van drie pragmatiese assesseringsinstrumente, naamlik die "Pragmatic Protocol" (Prutting en Kirchner 1987), die "Profile of Communicative Appropriateness" (Penn 1985), en die "Framework for Assessing (Children's) Conversational Skills" (Rumble 1988), om sodoende vas te stel watter een van hierdie drie die mees gepaste instrument is vir die assessering van tweetalige skisofrene se pragmatiese vaardighede in hul eerstetaal (T1) en tweedetaal (T2), spesifiek in gevalle waar die T2 later (d.w.s. nie binne die eerste sewe lewensjare nie) verwerf is. Vier sulke tweetalige skisofrene het deelgeneem aan die studie. Daar is met elkeen van die deelnemers 'n informele onderhoud gevoer vir 30 minute in hul T1, gevolg deur 30 minute in hul T2. Die onderhoude is getranskribeer en daarna geanaliseer deur middel van elk van die drie assesseringsinstrumente. 'n Noukeurige ondersoek en vergelyking van die resultate van die drie instrumente het eerstens getoon dat dit belangrik is om die resultate van 'n pragmatiese analise van skisofreniese spraak op beide 'n kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe wyse aan te bied: wanneer kwalitatiewe inligting weggelaat word, bly 'n betekenisvolle hoeveelheid van die informasie verborge vir die klinici en/of taalwetenskaplikes wat die assessering doen, asook die mense aan wie hulle hulle bevindinge rapporteer. Tweedens, met betrekking tot die eienskappe van skisofreniese spraak, wys die drie instrumente wat in hierdie studie gebruik is dat alhoewel meeste aspekte van skisofrene se taalvaardighede ongeskonde is, hulle pragmatiese vaardighede ooglopend aangetas is. Derdens, rakende differensiële simptomatologie in tweetalige skisofrene kom hierdie studie tot die gevolgtrekking dat geen van die drie instrumente bydra tot 'n beter begrip van hierdie verskynsel nie, en dat dit selfs hoogs onwaarskynlik is dat enige pragmatiese assesseringsinstrument hierdie verskynsel sou kon vaslê. Uiteindelik word daar aanbeveel dat klinici, wanneer dit ookal moontlik is, tweetalige pasiënte in beide tale behoort te assesseer om sodoende die volledige reeks van simptome wat 'n pasiënt ervaar vas te stel, om 'n beter aanduiding te bekom oor die erns van die siekte, en om die progressie van die siekte te volg.

The study compared 10 fluent second language learners (L2Ls) and 10 heritage learners of Russian (HLs) to monolingual controls (n=20) in their judgments of the subtle nuances of aspectual usage in direct positive and negative imperative structures. The participants were asked to rate the appropriateness of pairs of imperative sentences differing in the aspectual form of the verb against the suggested discourse context. The analysis of the ratings revealed assumed deviations from the baseline in L2Ls. The HLs also revealed deviations, but unexpectedly, did not follow the baseline tendencies of the control monolingual group. Frequency and learning experience are some of the possible explanations of these finding and implications for pedagogy.

ABSTRACT: Puns are short humorous texts that play on structural ambiguity in order to create incongruous scripts. The perception of their humour requires considerable pragmatic manipulation, which may present problems for L2 learners, which is why many scholars agree that they are best reserved for more advanced students. Using a combination of Quantitative and Qualitative analysis of data yielded from a survey containing puns and referential jokes, this study confirms that humour through puns is largely inaccessible to Swedish High School learners of English, with ambiguity being the main obstacle across the test groups. However, since language play has been proven to be facilitative to language learning, and since students themselves express a wish to be able to participate in humorous interaction, learners may well benefit from working with puns and language play in the classroom in order to gain greater linguistic abilities and well-rounded communicative competence.

International teaching assistants (ITAs) are considered advanced English users with relatively high standardized language proficiency test scores. However, they may experience difficulties during their interactions with undergraduate students. Some of these difficulties may arise from affective factors such as ambiguity, stress, and adjustment and can impact language use. From an individual differences perspective, a second language user with high communication anxiety may have difficulty comprehending or producing appropriate pragmalinguistic forms. Using a mixed-methods approach, this study examined the underlying factors in ITAs communication anxiety and willingness to communicate in the US classroom and how these factors explained their pragmatic competence, which refers to the ability to use language in socially appropriate ways. A total of 289 ITAs participated in the study. To measure their judgement of appropriateness, a pragmatic appropriateness test was designed. The speech act production was elicited through a discourse completion test. Two survey instruments were designed to measure ITAs’ classroom communication anxiety and willingness to communicate. The major underlying factors from the exploratory factor analysis performed on the survey responses were ‘ease of communication,’ classroom management anxiety,’ ‘fear of warning,’ and ‘willingness to interact with students’. A six-predictor multiple regression analysis revealed that linguistic competence was the most important factor contributing to pragmatic competence. Other factors such as ease of communication and willingness to communicate positively correlated with pragmatic competence. In addition to quantitative data, qualitative data were collected in the form of classroom observations, field notes, and interviews from a group of ITAs (N = 4) who had also participated in the quantitative part of the study. The analysis of the qualitative data revealed that the situational context of instruction determined the particular communication patterns in different disciplines, specifically the impact of threat posed to the negative and positive face of the discourse participants. Additionally, in conjunction with the quantitative findings, while the ITAs seemed to be generally willing to interact with students, teacher-fronted talk in the form of delivering lectures and self-talk especially in large classes was found to be anxiety-inducing for some of them. Length of residence and opportunities for communication seemed to influence the process of adjustment and acquisition of the classroom pragmatic norms. Finally, ITAs’ perceptions and beliefs about appropriateness seemed to affect their pragmatic performance in the classroom. More specifically, ITAs’ perspectives on education and communication such as moderating the power variable in class and building rapport and interpersonal relationships with students through casual talk seemed to guide their choices of pragmalinguistic forms and politeness strategies. The study offered a number of implications for ITA research and training.

This study focuses on the pragmatic transfers that emerge in the English emails produced byChinese L2 English speakers. Despite doubts about taking Chinese English as a new variety, the study believes there are some common and unique pragmatic features existing in the English text produced by Chinese L2 English speakers. 104 emails written by 13 subjects with different English proficiency and different English exposure were collected. Questionnaires were sent out to the same subjects, trying to find out the factors that affect their pragmatic performance. The study accomplished the following main findings: 1) There are differences in the extent to which pragmatic transfer occurs among different subjects. 2) The individual subject’s pragmatic performance in English is not necessarily decided by the subjects’ English proficiency. 3) The extent of pragmatic transfer in the individual subject’s case seems to be much more complex situation than depending on any single factor of the following: English proficiency, exposure to English, or confidence in using English. 4) Some email writers have different extent of pragmatic transfer in the situations with different levels of tension. 5) However, whether the subjects have different extent of pragmatic transfer or not seems again to be too complex a situation to decide which of the factors (English proficiency, exposure to English, or confidence in using English) plays a decisive role.

The general aim of this study is to investigate the similarities and differences in knowledge and processing of Japanese passive constructions by heritage speakers and second language (L2) learners of Japanese. These groups acquire language differently in terms of age and context/manner of acquisition, and comparing their linguistic behaviour allows us to examine whether heritage speakers have an advantage over L2 learners due to their early exposure and natural context of input. In order to examine this issue, the linguistic knowledge of Japanese passives and the way in which they are processed were compared between the two populations. I tested the two different types of passives that are available in Japanese: the type that involves the syntax-semantics-discourse interface (indirect passive and ni-direct passive), and the one that does not involve that interface (niyotte passive). It has been found that advanced heritage speakers and L2 learners have difficulties with structures involving different structural levels, especially structures at the interface with discourse (Laleko & Polinsky, 2013; Montrul & Polinsky, 2011, among many others), as the interfaces involving an external cognitive domain (e.g., syntax-discourse) require more processing resources than linguistic internal interfaces (e.g., syntax-semantics) (Sorace, 2011). While such representational and processing difficulties have been reported for several languages, previous studies on the acquisition of Japanese passives by both L1 and L2 learners have found the opposite: namylt, that the niyotte passive, which does not involve an external interface, being acquired later than the other two passives, which are discourse dependent (Harada & Fukuda 1998 for L1; Hara 2002 for L2). These results may be attributed to syntax derivation or frequency of use. The niyotte passive is considered to be derived by movement, while the other two are said to be base-generated. Thus, both the complexity of the syntactic derivation and the fact that usage of niyotte passive is usually limited to formal speech or written texts may delay acquisition. Examining the acquisition and processing of Japanese passives allows us to analyse the factors that play a crucial role in determining the difficulty of acquisition. In order to investigate these factors, I used two experimental tasks, an acceptability judgment task (AJT) and a self-paced listening task (SPL). The former investigated heritage speakers’ and Japanese as a foreign language (JFL) learners’ knowledge of each type of Japanese passives. The latter allowed us to test whether there are any differences in the processing of the two types of passives; specifically, whether the passives with an external interface are more difficult for L2 learners and heritage speakers to process. A control group of native speakers and a group of first generation immigrants to Canada were also tested to compare their results to those of the two experimental groups, allowing us to investigate whether heritage speakers have knowledge and processing patterns similar to those of the control group due to their early language exposure to the language and contextualized input. The results of the AJT showed that each experimental group displayed a stronger knowledge of different aspects of Japanese passives. While the heritage speakers recognised the pragmatic features of the ni-direct passive, the JFL learners did not. In contrast, the JFL learners showed syntactic and semantic knowledge of the indirect passive, unlike the heritage speakers. These contrastive results indicate that different manners of input lead to different acquisition outcomes. Furthermore, neither group demonstrated knowledge of the low frequency niyotte passive, and thus input frequency, rather than the discourse-related interface, appear to be more critical for the acquisition of Japanese passives. With respect to the SPL, the speakers’ performance was native-like in the case of the heritage speakers but non-native with the JFL learners, indicating that early age of exposure has an effect on language processing. Taken together, the results from the both tasks showcase the importance of both implicit and explicit manner of input, especially in the case of low frequency structures, as well as the early age of acquisition of a language.

Pragmatic competence is a component of language knowledge; therefore, it is as intrinsic to the ability to successfully communicate for a foreign language (FL) learner as it is for a native speaker, especially where perceptions of politeness may vary between cultures. Despite this, pragmatics is under-represented in FL course materials and assessments, and consequently educators are often left unsure as to how to include it in their classes. The result of this is that learners may achieve proficiency in the linguistic competences (knowledge of lexis, syntax, phonology), but remain pragmatically underdeveloped and susceptible to pragmatic failure. The present study seeks to investigate how second language (L2) pragmatic competence can be comprehensively developed in the ordinary EFL classroom, using an explicit teaching method which fundamentally integrates assessment into the instructional process. To conduct this investigation, a novel method was designed and implemented with the participation of advanced Serbian EFL learners. Data sources, including role-play and video-based assessments, interviews, discussions and observations, were then obtained for the purposes of cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis to address three research questions. The first two questions explore how the components of pragmatic competence develop as a result of the instructional method and the role of pragmatic awareness in this. The third question investigates the practicality (validity and feasibility) of incorporating such a method in the classroom context. Findings suggest that the assessment-integrated instructional method constitutes a practical and effective means of comprehensively developing L2 pragmatic competence in the ordinary EFL classroom, as evidenced by the demonstrable development of participants’ conscious knowledge and ability to apply contextually appropriate Head act and External modification strategies. L2 pragmatic awareness appears to be key to the process of developing particular pragmatic sub-competences. Findings also serve to indicate further implications for pragmatics-related instructional methods, such as the phenomenon of ‘pragmatic fossilisation’.

The present study aims, through an experimentation, to verify the effectiveness of didactic methods and approaches useful for students to initiate dynamics of development of a pragmatic competence in the field of the FL teaching-learning process. For this purpose, we want to observe if a didactic reflection activity integrating both aspects belonging to the pragmalinguistic sphere and to the sociopragmatic sphere, can give rise to a potential awareness and consciousness about verbal behaviors as well as conversational norms and modes observed from the type of contact, that the activity offers students, with the target speech community. Dealing with the encounter of two sociocultural systems, which is what the learning of a foreign language in practical terms is, this type of didactic action becomes imperative, due to the fact that the interpretation of the experiences and situations everyone faces in the world, pass through a primary and automatic filter which determines a cultural-oriented conception of every linguistic and contextual aspect. Regarding the present study, the interpretative differences between the Spanish and the Italian systems, in terms of perception of what is considered as polite/impolite, adequate/inadequate during communicative act, are the main research lines examined with a contrastive approach. The aim is to evaluate to what extent such cultural-oriented conceptions and perspectivizations, resulting from norms which are shared among the members of the same speech community, can affect, and at the same time explain, pragmatic phenomena and socially accepted verbal behavior which characterizes a certain speech act. Testing this hypothesis, on the basis of the analysis of perceptive data related to politeness strategies and related to the concept of verbal behavior adequacy towards a specific situational context, is of particular interest between the Italian and Spanish systems, given a perceived affinity between them, which can lead to misunderstandings and pragmatic “incidents” (Calvi 2004; Guil Povedano 2007; Bailini 2016). This work aims to observe the affinity gradient between the Spanish and the Italian system taking as reference parameters provided by the model proposed by Haverkate (1996; 2003), which relativizes politeness strategies on the basis of two different cultural macro-areas of the world, and by the model proposed by Bravo (1999; 2005), which determines parameters for a reading of in-group interactional modes. If pragmatic issues are a direct consequence of a sociopragmatic perspectivization, it becomes essential to find a didactic approach which can be effective in transmitting the “linguistic form/structure - functional pragmalinguistic value” relation. At the same time, the didactic approach should provide a first contact with the target speech community, which can offer a system of reference of those natural and inborn correspondences between pragmalinguistic resources and sociopragmatic values. Getting closer to the FL-Culture system requires the ability to read the norms of the target speech community and of the contextual situation from an emic perspective (Duranti 1997). The teaching action must set both the transmission of pramalinguistic and sociopragmatic information related to the FL sociocultural system as a goal, to make the student aware of the use of form and structures which result adequate according to the target speech community standards. To reach this goal, the present study seeks to test an input processing mode base on an inductive implicit system, which employs input enhancement techniques as support and guideline for the input processing. As an additional goal, the method aims to reduce negative pragmatic interferences. The audiovisual material completes the prospect, being the source of the sociopragmatic information. We think that working with a sort of “hybrid” material, half-way between an FL linguistic activity and a survey about sociocultural issues, carried out autonomously by student-informers, can lead also to reflections about the potential connection between research and didactic application in the FL teaching-learning field.

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This dissertation has proposed that certain syntactic errors in an L2 learner’s grammar may be more accurately explained in terms of a lack of knowledge about pragmatics and the syntax-pragmatic interface rather than as syntactic deficits per se. In order to contribute to this discussion, an investigation of the L2 acquisition of the grammatical properties of English subjects and objects by Brazilian Portuguese (BP) learners of L2 English was conducted. It was tested whether the L1 discoursepragmatic factors associated with the syntax of these grammatical positions, particularly where deletion of a subject or an object is pragmatically controlled in the L1 (BP) and not in the L2 (English), can lead learners to accept ungrammatical L2 sentences. Subjects were classified as being at one of three levels of linguistic proficiency: Basic (n = 11); Intermediate (n = 15); Advanced (n = 14). L2 Learners were administered grammaticality judgment, and interpretation tasks, presented in two conditions: + and – pragmatic context. Learners´ linguistic development in the L2 and their syntactic and pragmatic knowledge are investigated through regression analysis and the employment of dummies as explanatory variables. The results confirm the hypothesis that the L2 acquisition of the interpretive interface between syntax and pragmatics has a developmental trajectory that extends beyond the acquisition of either of these two individual components. Evidence indicates that (1) learners know certain structural-rule-governed subtleties of the L2 grammar, suggesting that UG is available for them, (2) and that their performance is hindered at points where the pragmatic properties of the subjects and objects in the L1 do not match the L2 pragmatic properties, most likely because interpretive aspects have to be learned, i. e., there is no UG guidance. It is argued that the Strong Continuity model provides an appropriate theoretical framework to account for the mismatches between L2 learners´ syntactic and pragmatic knowledge.
Essa dissertação propõe que certos erros sintáticos na gramática de um aprendiz de L2 podem ser decorrentes da falta de conhecimento sobre a pragmática e a interface sintaxe-pragmática. Para contribuir com essa discussão, conduziu-se uma investigação sobre a aquisição das propriedades gramaticais dos sujeitos e dos objetos em inglês por aprendizes falantes do português brasileiro (PB). A principal hipótese testada foi se os fatores associados com a pragmática dessas posições gramaticais em PB (a L1) podem levar os aprendizes a aceitar frases agramaticais em Inglês (a L2). Os sujeitos foram classificados em três níveis de proficiência lingüística: básico (n=11), intermediário (n=15) e avançado (n=14). Testes de julgamento gramatical e de interpretação foram empregados em duas condições: com e sem contexto pragmático. O desenvolvimento dos aprendizes na L2 e os seus conhecimentos sintático e pragmático foram analisados através do emprego de dummies como variáveis explicativas e de análise de regressão. Os resultados confirmaram a hipótese de que a aquisição da interface interpretativa entre sintaxe e pragmática percorre uma trajetória de desenvolvimento que se estende além da aquisição individual desses dois componentes. As evidências indicam que (1) os aprendizes têm conhecimento sobre certas sutilezas estruturais da gramática da L2, o que sugere que a Gramática Universal (GU) está disponível para eles, (2) e que o desempenho deles é prejudicado em pontos onde as propriedades pragmáticas dos sujeitos e objetos na L1 diferem das propriedades pragmáticas da L2, provavelmente, porque aspectos interpretativos aí envolvidos devem ser aprendidos, i. e., não há orientação da GU. Argumenta-se que o Strong Continuity Model fornece uma fundamentação teórica adequada para explicar os descompassos entre o conhecimento sintático e pragmático dos aprendizes de L2.

Complaining happens in all cultures, and offers a unique insight into the values, taboos, and communicative practices of a given society. The ways in which complaining is viewed and performed vary drastically not only cross-culturally, but across smaller communal groups and between individuals, too. This dissertation approaches complaining from a multilateral perspective to investigate how individuals in three different language groups – monolingual French speakers, monolingual English speakers, and native English speakers enrolled in upper-division university French courses – perceive and produce complaints as well as the influential role played by social context. In the perception study, the researcher explores how individuals within the examined language groups identify the presence of complaints and perceive their naturalness when presented with contextualized scenarios involving native speakers. In the production study, the researcher examines both the frequency with which individuals complain and the strategies they employ to perform a complaint in various social situations. Additionally, within the production study the researcher examines the frequency with which participants opt out from complaining and their provided rationale for doing so. This dissertation not only identifies a variety of universal linguistic and sociocultural features of complaints, it also uncovers several aspects distinctive to the individual language groups. At the core of this dissertation is the argument that to best understand complaint behavior, researchers should acknowledge the essential influence of social context on both the perception and production of complaints. Above all, future research must consider the complex and dynamic interplay that exists between cross-cultural complaint behaviors and social norms of politeness.

Interaction with local speakers of a second language (L2) in a naturalistic setting during study abroad is beneficial to language learning in many respects; particularly in the development of pragmatic competence, or the awareness and ability to use the appropriate language for a specific social context (Kinginger, 2011; Magnan & Back, 2007; Schauer, 2009; Shively, 2011). Service-learning - volunteering in the local community combined with an academic pursuit - during study abroad provides the opportunity for meaningful interaction between language learners and local speakers of the L2 in authentic and collaborative settings (Overfield, 2007). This study examines the interactions of Italian L2 users and local speakers of Italian while engaged in service-learning in Italy. A sociopragmatic framework revealed emergent trends and linguistic norms in this context. Using a discourse analytic approach, this study offers a detailed description of directive use of the L2 learners and the local Italian speakers (Blum-Kulka, et al, 1989; Ervin-Tripp, 1976; Nuzzo, 2007). The study also examines (mis)understandings and relational work (Locher & Watts, 2008) that occur in the interactions. Primary data consists of audio recordings of the naturally-occurring interactions at three service-learning sites during a short-term summer study abroad program in Italy. Secondary data consists of interviews with the L2 users and their interlocutors. The data reveal that the majority of directives came from the local Italian speakers, not the L2 users, likely due to the clear power dynamic and the nature of the activities at each site. The directives were most commonly in the imperative with little or no mitigation for purposes of clarity or urgency of the tasks. Misunderstandings expressed by the L2 users were primarily linguistic, although there were also instances of pragmatic misunderstanding. Relational work emerged in the interactions, yet clear, explicit direction took precedent over face-work and rapport building among interactants. Findings from this study can be used to inform foreign language pedagogical practice in myriad ways; from developing practical applications for situated language use, to using actual transcripts from the data in pre-departure language and cultural activities in U.S. Italian language classrooms. Findings also provide community partners with data regarding the challenges, linguistic and otherwise, that L2 user/volunteers face during service-learning in Italy, and suggest areas for further research.

Much research on requests has been carried out among L1 Chinese adults, L1 Chinese children, L1 children, L2 adults, and L2 children, but no studies to date have simultaneously examined Chinese children's requests in Chinese (L1) and English (L2). The aim of this study is to investigate how Taiwanese elementary school children vary requests according to situation, language, age, and hearer variables, and the level of consistency between the child interview results and the validation results. Semi-structured individual interviews with child participants were used as the major method for data collection. Naturalistic school and home observations, interviews with parents and teachers of the children, audio and video recordings, and field notes were also included to validate and triangulate the child interview data, which were coded and analyzed using a modified version of the CCSARP coding scheme and an excellent level of intercoder reliability was reached.Results indicate that overall: (1) requests made under rights-protecting situations seem to be more direct and reasonableness-based than those made under favor-asking situations, (2) Chinese requests appear to be more direct and elaborate than English requests, (3) older children are more likely than younger children to frame direct, brief, and tactful requests, (4) child hearers are more likely than adult hearers to receive direct requests, and (5) for an individual child, the child interview and validation findings appear to be compatible, except that consistency is low regarding requests given to classmates. The results lend strong support to the claim that language use can be highly context-specific as can the request performance of children. This study may bring new insights into understanding the complexity of Chinese children's requests, thus sensitizing educators and parents to the significance of pragmatic competence in Chinese children's earlier development of language, whether Chinese or English, and helping them provide instructions that better suit children's pragmatic development and ability.

When learning a second language, there are elements of a learner's native language that can transfer and are exhibited during production in the second language. This can extend not only to the way things are said but even to gestures that are language- and speech-act-specific. However, there is evidence that the same can occur backwards, that is to say that elements of a second language can be exhibited during production of one's native language (Pavlenko and Jarvis, 2002). This study focuses on English L1 learners of Japanese who have spent significant time both in country and learning the language to see if they exhibit Japanese tendencies when performing apologies in their native English. Comparisons between those with no Japanese experience were made with those who had extensive Japanese experience. Through video recordings of 45 participants engaging in six apology-induced scenarios (non-Japanese, n=24; Japanese, n=21), the participants showed that backward transfer occurs with repetition of IFIDs and nonverbal cues. Further research through different methods can be more telling.

Pragmatics is part of communicative competence. In order to communicate successfully, pragmatic competence is of vital importance. Although pragmatics has played a significant role in L2 learners' communicative competence, pragmatics still has not been commonly taught in the classroom. The present research investigates the efficacy of instruction in pragmatics in the advanced Chinese language class has on the production and appropriate use of apology strategies, and examines the correlation between exposure in a Chinese Speaking Community (CSC) and pragmatics development. The subjects include 55 students in their third-year of college-level Chinese, divided into four classes at Brigham Young University. The study uses an experimental design in which the participants are assigned either to an explicit instruction group or an implicit instruction group. Participants in both groups also report their experience in a CSC. Results of this study show which as a whole improved their apology performance over the 8-week instruction, as rated by Chinese native speakers. Results reveal no significant difference between the explicit and implicit instruction groups, suggesting that explicit and implicit approaches were both effective methods in facilitating pragmatic competence. In addition, we also found no statistically significant difference between the CSC and Non-Chinese Speaking Community (NCSC) group in their pragmatic development. The findings of the present study indicate that pragmatic knowledge may emerge from classroom instruction, regardless of explicit or implicit instructional approaches; and living in a Chinese speaking communities do not necessary aid or accelerate the development of pragmatic competence.

This Report answers three questions: (a) Why is teaching pragmatic competence important? (b) What are the approaches to teaching pragmatic awareness? Specifically how do instructors teach Spanish requests?, and (c) What role does technology play in pragmatic awareness instruction? The first chapter explains why I chose to write my Report on developing pragmatic awareness through speech act instruction. Chapter two discusses development of pragmatic awareness. Chapter three and four address approaches to teaching pragmatic knowledge and technology’s role in pragmatic instruction. Chapter five proposes a lesson for an intermediate university Spanish class grounded on speech act theory. Materials and a rubric for classroom use accompany the lesson (Appendices A-C). The chapter concludes with a discussion of pedagogical challenges as well as pedagogical recommendations for teachers. Chapter six concludes the Report by answering my guiding questions succinctly, summarizing the pedagogical lesson proposed, and explaining the reasons why I think the lesson is a useful resource for teachers.
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abstract: This investigation's goal was to add to the small body of research on pragmalinguistic acquisition of L2 Spanish. Specifically, it centered on the production of complaints in Spanish. Data was collected via a written Discourse Completion Task (DCT) of a complaint-provoking situation presented in a website voiceboard to two non-native speaker (NNS) students groups of different proficiency levels and to a native speaker (NS) control group. The lower proficiency group was comprised of 11 NNS enrolled in a 200 level beginning/intermediate Spanish grammar class and the advanced proficiency group of 11 NNS enrolled in a 400 level advanced Spanish conversation and composition class. Neither group contained any participants who had studied abroad or lived in a Spanish-speaking country for more than 3 months. The control group consisted of 10 NSs of Spanish who were all natives or current residents of Northern Mexico. Data from the DCT was categorized into strategies which were organized into Head Acts and Supporting Moves, Deference and Solidarity Politeness systems, according to the frameworks of Blum-Kulka, et al. (1989) and Scollon and Scollon (1983), respectively. The results of the analysis revealed that all three groups of participants have overarching similarities in the use of multiple Head Acts, some used several times throughout a response, to realize a complaint and used some Supporting Moves to mitigate these Head Acts. The lower proficiency group diverged from the advanced proficiency group and NS control group in that lower proficiency students not only used a fewer total strategies and strategy types, but also preferred Head Acts and Supporting Moves that expressed discomfort or dislike over strategies that expressed criticism, or requested a solution from the listener, these being the primary strategies preferred by the advanced proficiency and control group participants. It was also found that the percentage of Supporting Moves decreased with the raise in proficiency level, also. After a discussion of the results, pedagogical implications are given based on these results to help students notice and acquire pragmalinguistcally appropriate responses to complaint-provoking situations.
Dissertation/Thesis
M.A. Spanish 2012

Successful use of L2 involves not only mastering the grammatical forms but also knowing how to apply them appropriately in a variety of social settings, which involves so-called „pragmatic competence‟. The variables affecting L2 pragmatic competence are: L1 and culture interference, environment and type of exposure to L2, L2 linguistic competence, and L2 instruction (Bardovi-Harlig 2013). This longitudinal study of eight Saudi and eight Chinese learners of English investigated various components of L2 pragmatic competence, with the aim to analyse the relative contributions of L1 and L1 culture, general linguistic proficiency, attitude to English language and culture, and length of stay in the UK to determining the level of pragmatic competence in English by means of several data collection instruments and over three stages. To measure the predictor variables, the participants completed language background and usage questionnaires, testing their attitudes to English language and culture. Secondly, they took a general language test (essay writing, interview, vocabulary test, grammar and listening tasks). The dependent variable, i.e. pragmatic competence, was assessed using a role play and written completion tasks focusing on apologising in English in a variety of situations, whereby the appropriate level of formality was also evaluated, together with the overall apology success. Their responses were coded qualitatively with regard to the apology strategies employed, while overall pragmatic success was rated by trained English NS judges, and statistical tests were conducted. The challenges included recruitment and retention of suitable subjects, the recruitment and retention of interlocutors and assessors, and the logistics of coordinating numerous face-to-face tests. The main findings revealed that L2 proficiency constitutes the most significant contributor to the development of L2 pragmatic competence, coupled with social familiarity and power. However, attitude, L2 usage, and length of stay in the UK appear to be statistically insignificant contributors to that development.

碩士
國立彰化師範大學
兒童英語研究所
100
L2 pragmatic competence development is influenced by multiple factors. However, previous research on the factors in determining L2 learners’ development of L2 pragmatic competence primarily focuses on extra-learner factors. As far as L1 pragmatic competence development is concerned, learners’ pragmatic competence develops along with their cognition, i.e., L1 learners with high cognition tend to have developed a high level of pragmatic competence. However, studies on the link between L2 learners’ cognitive development and their L2 pragmatic competence development are scant. Therefore, the study was aimed at finding out how young EFL learners’ cognitive development and L2 pragmatic competence development were related. Above that, the subjects’ performance on the eight English speech acts, i.e., denying, suggesting, requesting, inviting, promising, refusing, apologizing, and thanking, was also explored. Three intact classes (n=94) EFL eighth graders in Taiwan participated in the study. Two types of tests, i.e., Piaget’s Cognitive Developmental Test and L2 Pragmatic Competence Test, were administered. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was used to analyze the data. The results revealed that the subjects’ cognitive development and their L2 pragmatic competence development were not significantly correlated. As for their speech act performance, they performed best on requesting, followed by refusing, thanking, suggesting, promising, apologizing, denying, and inviting. The findings of this study suggest that young EFL learners’ pragmatic competence development seems to be independent of their cognitive development.

Transfer theory proposes that language learners rely on knowledge of a previous language to acquire a new language and that they base their learning on past experiences and information. The assumption is that there is transfer of knowledge from adult learners’ L1 to their L2 (Odlin 1989; Kecskes and Papp 2000; Koike and Flanzer 2004). This study analyses the transfer of pragmatic knowledge in request and apology situations from L1 or L2 to L3: here he L1 is English, the L2 is Hindi, the national language of India and the L3 is Spanish. There are three groups of participants in the study: high school students of Spanish in the U.S. who are heritage speakers of Hindi; high school students of Spanish whose L1 is English; and high school students in India whose L1 is Hindi. This study investigates language acquisition patterns of Hindi- and Englishspeaking bilingual students studying Spanish and compares them to those of native English-speaking students learning Spanish to determine if the students’ knowledge of Hindi affects their production of Spanish speech acts. It specifically targets the transfer of pragmatic knowledge in request and apology situations from L1 English or L2 Hindi to L3 Spanish. The results demonstrate that learners perceived a great degree of typological distance between Hindi and Spanish. This perceived distance might be the reason why only scant evidence of transfer of pragmatic knowledge from the L2 of the bilingual speakers to their L3 is evident. However, a greater degree of transfer from the learners’ L1 English to their L3 Spanish was demonstrated by the heritage Hindi speakers. The limited amount of transfer from L2 Hindi to L3 Spanish that is evidenced can be attributed to the fact that Hindi heritage speakers have lived in the US longer than they have lived (if ever) in India, which has led them to be affected by U.S. culture. A strong desire for assimilation, which is often expressed by high school students, could also be an important factor leading to more transfer from learner’s L1 English to their L3 Spanish as they would probably reject their heritage language Hindi in favor of their native or adopted language, English.
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The study sheds light on the interrelations between interlanguage pragmatics and the use of a popular acting method, the Stanislavsky System, for second language (L2) acquisition. The theoretical investigation explores various uses of acting in second language education. The empirical enquiry represents an exploratory case-study of two adult EFL learners attending a theatre course in English. Through teacher journals, interviews, and the analysis of the students’ pragmatic performance as captured by a video camera, the researcher hypothesizes that the pragmatic development of the students involved in drama comes from three main sources: the script, the acting exercises, and the necessity to communicate in English during the theatre course. In all three cases, the zone of proximal development in relation to pragmatic competence emerged as a result of a teacher-generated impetus to use L2, numerous opportunities for imitation and repetition, continuous peer-support, and the collaborative spirit created in the classroom.

La presente ricerca è stata condotta con il fine di individuare i bisogni comunicativi degli studenti universitari parlanti nativi (PN) e paranti non nativi (PNN) di italiano, attraverso l’osservazione di tre fenomeni diversi: la percezione di ciò di cui si ha bisogno per comunicare efficacemente e adeguatamente all’università con un professore; la competenza pragmalinguistica necessaria per fare richieste in modo appropriato al contesto accademico, nella corrispondenza scritta e nella conversazione con il docente; la gestione delle sequenze di chiusura alla fine del colloquio con il docente. Per perseguire gli scopi dello studio sono stati impiegati due strumenti: un questionario per rilevare la percezione degli studenti riguardo ai propri bisogni comunicativi in ambito accademico e una raccolta di produzioni scritte e orali, su cui è stata condotta un’analisi testuale. I testi collazionati sono specificamente e-mail di richiesta inviate a docenti universitari e colloqui tra docenti e studenti. I testi degli studenti italofoni sono spontanei, mentre quelli degli studenti internazionali sono stati elicitati tramite task scritti e role-play. I risultati ottenuti mostrano che gli studenti universitari PN e i PNN siano mediamente competenti nella gestione della diafasia nello scritto e nel parlato formale. Per entrambi i gruppi, quindi, data la sovrapponibilità dei risultati ottenuti, l’analisi evidenzia che è possibile un raffronto tra esigenze glottodidattiche. Questo dato conferma l’assunto che la competenza diafasica delle varietà alte non fa parte della competenza linguistica naturale e spontanea, ma che, in un ipotetico continuum della competenza parlante nativo/parlante non nativo, le varietà formali della lingua costituiscano un’area di sovrapposizione, in cui tanto il parlante madrelingua quanto l’apprendente necessitano di istruzione. La sintesi dei risultati ottenuti da questa ricerca apre pertanto a una riflessione sull’opportunità di pensare ed elaborare strumenti di formazione specifici per l’italiano della comunicazione accademica, dedicati agli studenti universitari che entrano a far parte del sistema universitario italiano, sia italofoni sia in mobilità internazionale.

碩士
國立政治大學
英國語文學研究所
100
Though much of L2 pragmatics research has focused on the effectiveness of instructional pragmatics and cross-cultural variations of pragmatic norms and strategies used in the target language via cross-sectional quantitative research, little, however, has been conducted to explore teachers’ and students’ motivational experiences of implementing pragmatics instruction in real-life teaching and learning practices in EFL contexts. Specifically, little was known about what and how teachers and students perceive the role of developing pragmatic ability and their motivations to teach and learn socio-pragmatic functions since prior research has suggested that more research efforts should be done in the line of L2 pragmatics research. Therefore, this study aims to investigate both teachers’ and students’ motivations of learning and teaching pragmatics through qualitative research. Multiple data sources were collected through face-to-face interviews, classroom observations and field notes as well as the researcher’s reflective journals, to illuminate the dynamic, multifaceted motivational experiences of L2 instructional pragmatics. The findings suggest that both teachers and students considered the role of teaching and learning pragmatics essential to second language development pertaining to the polite and appropriate use of the target language, and its learning utility, practical functions and intrinsic interest in using language for authentic communication purposes despite the sociopolitical factors, such as exam-oriented teaching, lack of top-down institutional support and the implementation of English language policy in Taiwan. Nevertheless, the teacher voiced her inadequacy of teaching L2 pragmatics in a four-skill integrated course and demonstrated her concerns about the prevalence of teaching students how to speak English in a culturally appropriate way, which is, however, contrary to students’ eager expectations to learn L2 pragmatics. Albeit both the teacher and the students tended to ignore L2 pragmatics at first, after the initial reflections they raised their awareness of culturally speaking in an appropriate way. In this study, it was hoped to empower both teachers and students to understand their teaching and learning practices by sensitizing them to L2 pragmatics in EFL contexts, to facilitate the implementation of L2 pragmatics instruction in the classroom and to underscore the importance of developing learners’ communicative competence in Taiwan.

A pesquisa investiga o ensino dos pedidos com o objetivo de, por um lado, perceber como os livros didáticos de italiano L2/LE apresentam esse ato de fala do ponto de vista sociopragmático, pragmalinguístico e metapragmático e, por outro, de propor sequências didáticas que possam ser usadas em salas de aula de italiano L2/LE para promover a competência (meta)pragmática dos aprendizes. Na primeira fase, selecionamos as três coleções de livros didáticos de italiano L2/LE mais difundidas no Brasil (LANDULFO, 2017) e os examinamos confrontando os pedidos dos livros do nível A1 ao B2 com aqueles produzidos em role-plays gravados na Itália com falantes nativos. Do ponto de vista sociopragmático, verificamos que os materiais apresentam escassa variedade contextual (NUZZO, 2016), que os pedidos aparecem por vezes descontextualizados (PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013) e que o contexto, quando presente, tende a ser tratado de forma implícita (BARRON, 2016). Quanto às características pragmalinguísticas, constatamos que diversos recursos atenuadores frequentes nos role-plays não são contemplados nos livros didáticos, comprovando que os manuais apresentam um repertório limitado e empobrecido de modificadores e de atos de suporte (CAMPILLO, 2007; NUZZO, 2013, 2016). Além disso, quase não há atividades ou informações metapragmáticas que levem os aprendizes a refletir sobre a complexa relação entre língua e contexto (VELLENGA, 2004; PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013; BARRON, 2016). Uma vez identificadas as principais lacunas dos livros didáticos, a partir da análise de corpora de role-plays (SANTORO, 2012; CORTÉS VELÁSQUEZ & NUZZO, 2017), elaboramos duas sequências didáticas, de nível A2 e B1 (CONSELHO da EUROPA, 2001), voltadas tanto ao ensino de aspectos sociopragmáticos e pragmalinguísticos dos pedidos quanto à conscientização metapragmática dos aprendizes (cf. JUDD, 1999; ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; GLASER, 2013). As atividades foram testadas em turmas de italiano L2 (no Centro Linguistico di Ateneo da Università degli studi Roma Tre) e de italiano LE (no Instituto Cultural Ítalo-Brasileiro de São Paulo), coletando dados antes e depois da intervenção didática por meio de DCTs escritos. As respostas dos grupos experimentais ao pré e pós-teste foram comparadas com as respostas do grupo controle, tanto em termos quantitativos, por meio do modelo estatístico GLM (General Linear Model), quanto em termos qualitativos. Os resultados evidenciaram que houve, após o tratamento, um aumento, em alguns casos estatisticamente significante, do repertório de recursos atenuadores dos alunos dos grupos experimentais, que souberam também adequar melhor a língua à situação, mostrando que as atividades elaboradas dirigiram a atenção dos alunos para as novas formas e para seu contexto de uso (SCHMIDT, 1993; BIALYSTOCK, 1993). Ademais, os dados coletados por meio de questionários retrospectivos apontaram que a intervenção didática promoveu uma maior competência (meta)pragmática dos aprendizes (ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; LIDDICOAT & McCONACHY, 2019). Quanto ao impacto do contexto de aprendizagem (italiano L2 e LE) sobre o desenvolvimento da competência pragmática, não foi possível chegar a conclusões definitivas devido, entre outros fatores, às diferentes características dos grupos de aprendizes (BARDOVI-HARLIG, 2013).
La ricerca tratta dell’insegnamento delle richieste con un duplice obiettivo: da una parte, osservare come i manuali di italiano L2/LS presentano questo atto linguistico dal punto di vista sociopragmatico, pragmalinguistico e metapragmatico; dall’altra, proporre percorsi didattici che possano essere usati nella classe di italiano L2/LS per promuovere la competenza (meta)pragmatica degli apprendenti. Nella prima fase, abbiamo selezionato i tre manuali di italiano L2/LS più diffusi in Brasile (LANDULFO, 2017) e li abbiamo esaminati, confrontando le richieste dei volumi dal livello A1 al B2 con quelle prodotte in role-play registrati in Italia con parlanti nativi di italiano. L’analisi degli aspetti sociopragmatici ci ha consentito di verificare che i manuali presentano una scarsa varietà di situazioni (NUZZO, 2016), che le richieste non sono sempre contestualizzate (PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013) e che il contesto, quando presente, tende ad essere trattato in maniera implicita (BARRON, 2016). Quanto alle caratteristiche pragmalinguistiche, si è constatato che diversi mitigatori frequenti nei role-play non vengono inclusi nei manuali, confermando così che il repertorio di modificatori e atti di supporto è piuttosto ridotto (CAMPILLO, 2007; NUZZO, 2013, 2016). Inoltre, attività e informazioni metapragmatiche che spingano gli studenti a riflettere sulla complessa relazione tra lingua e contesto sono praticamente inesistenti (VELLENGA, 2004; PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013; BARRON, 2016). Una volta identificate le principali lacune dei manuali, a partire dall’analisi di tre corpora di role-play (SANTORO, 2012; CORTÉS VELÁSQUEZ & NUZZO, 2017), abbiamo elaborato due percorsi didattici, di livello A2 e B1 (CONSIGLIO d’EUROPA, 2001), rivolti tanto all’insegnamento di aspetti sociopragmatici e pragmalinguistici delle richieste quanto alla sensibilizzazione (meta)pragmatica degli apprendenti (cf. JUDD, 1999; ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; GLASER, 2013). Le attività sono state testate in classi di italiano L2 (presso il Centro Linguistico di Ateneo dell’Università Roma Tre) e di italiano LS (presso l’Istituto Culturale Italo-Brasiliano di San Paolo), dove, tramite DCT scritti, sono stati raccolti dati prima e dopo l’intervento didattico. Le risposte dei gruppi sperimentali al pre e post-test sono state confrontate con le risposte del gruppo controllo, con un’analisi di tipo sia quantitativo - realizzata tramite il modello statistico GLM (General Linear Model) - che qualitativo. I risultati evidenziano che, dopo il trattamento, si verifica un aumento, in alcuni casi statisticamente significativo, del repertorio di mitigatori degli studenti dei gruppi sperimentali. Gli apprendenti sono stati in grado di operare scelte linguistiche guidate dagli elementi del contesto, dimostrando che la realizzazione delle attività ha portato la loro attenzione verso le nuove forme e verso il loro contesto d’uso (SCHMIDT, 1993; BIALYSTOCK, 1993). Inoltre, i dati raccolti tramite questionari retrospettivi indicano che l’intervento didattico ha promosso una maggiore consapevolezza (meta)pragmatica (ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; LIDDICOAT & McCONACHY, 2019). Quanto all’impatto del contesto di apprendimento (italiano L2 e LS) sullo sviluppo della competenza pragmatica, non è stato possibile arrivare a conclusioni definitive a causa di diversi fattori, tra cui le differenti caratteristiche dei due gruppi sperimentali (BARDOVI-HARLIG, 2013).
This research investigates the teaching of requests in Italian L2/FL with a two-fold aim: understanding how Italian textbooks present this speech act from a sociopragmatic, pragmalinguistic and metapragmatic point of view and proposing teaching activities that can be implemented in the Italian L2/LE classroom to promote students’ (meta)pragmatic competence. In the first stage, we selected and analyzed the three Italian textbook series (LANDULFO, 2017) that are most widespread in Brazil comparing the requests in the A1-B2 books with the ones performed by native speakers in role-plays recorded in Italy. From a sociopragmatic standpoint, we noticed that the textbooks present little contextual variety (NUZZO, 2016), that contextual constraints are not always taken into account (PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013) and, when they are, they are communicated implicitly (BARRON, 2016). From a pragmalinguistic perspective, we observed that many mitigating devices which are commonly used in role-plays are completely disregarded in textbooks, proving that these materials present students with a limited range of modifiers and supportive moves (CAMPILLO, 2007; NUZZO, 2013, 2016). Moreover, we found that metapragmatic information and activities that lead students to reflect upon the complex relation between language and context are almost absent (VELLENGA, 2004; PETRAKI & BAYES, 2013; BARRON, 2016). Once the main shortcomings in the textbooks were identified, based on the analysis of three role-play corpora (SANTORO, 2012; CORTÉS VELÁSQUEZ & NUZZO, 2017), we designed an elementary (A2) and an intermediate (B1) (COUNCIL of EUROPE, 2001) lesson plan aiming to tackle sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic aspects of requests and to raise students’ (meta)pragmatic awareness (cf. JUDD, 1999; ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; GLASER, 2013). The activities were tested in several classes both in Italian L2 (Centro Linguistico di Ateneo of Università di Roma Tre) and in Italian FL contexts (Instituto Cultural Ítalo-Brasileiro in São Paulo), using written DCTs to collect data before and after the pedagogical treatment. The experimental group’s answers to the pre and post-test were compared with the control group’s answers both quantitatively, using GLM (General Linear Model), and qualitatively. Results showed that, after the treatment, students in the experimental group increased their repertoire of mitigating devices, in some cases to a statistically significant extent, and fine-tuned language to the situational context, proving that the designed activities steered students’ attention to the new language forms and related contextual factors (SCHMIDT, 1993; BIALYSTOCK, 1993). Furthermore, data collected using retrospective questionnaires pointed out that the treatment contributed to raising learners’ (meta)pragmatic awareness (ESLAMI-RASEKH, 2005; LIDDICOAT & McCONACHY, 2019). As for the impact of the learning context (Italian L2 and FL) on the development of pragmatic competence, we were not able to reach any definitive conclusion due to the groups’ differing characteristics, among other factors (BARDOVI-HARLIG, 2013).

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)
La competencia pragmática es un componente de la competencia comunicativa. Para que un hablante sea competente en una lengua, no sólo debe tener el conocimiento lingüístico, sino que, además, debe entender las normas, valores y estructuras sociales de la comunidad de habla. Al aplicar estos conceptos al campo de adquisición de segunda lengua (L2) o de lengua extranjera (LE), nos damos cuenta de que la enseñanza de pragmática de L2 es fundamental para ayudar a que el aprendiz establezca las similitudes y diferencias entre las normas, valores y estructuras sociales de su L1 y las de la lengua en estudio. Como no hay un modelo único a seguir en la enseñanza de pragmática para alcanzar los mejores resultados en cuanto a la adquisición de esta competencia, este estudio describe algunos modelos eficaces de enseñanza de la pragmática en el aula de español como lengua extranjera (ELE), y analiza la manera como los libros de texto examinados incluyen y tratan los temas de la pragmática. Este estudio sobre la adquisición de pragmática en segunda lengua aportará al campo de la enseñanza de pragmática, mediante una unidad didáctica que implementa los hallazgos de varios investigadores en el área de adquisición de segunda lengua, con énfasis en la adquisición de interlengua pragmática, es decir, de pragmática en segunda lengua (L2) o lengua extranjera (LE).