Research methods for describing variation in intercultural pragmatics for cultures in contact and conflict
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Andrew D. Cohen
Abstract
The chapter considers options for conducting research in intercultural pragmatics, and focuses on doctor-patient interactions in the US Southwest in which intercultural pragmatics is involved as a vehicle for highlighting the number of variables that can lead to pragmatic variation in the research outcomes. When doctors use Spanish as a nonnative language, the question is how their pragmatics is perceived by their Spanish-speaking Mexican immigrant patients and with what impact. The suggested study compares the pragmatics of this context with that of native Spanish-speaking doctors interacting with these same patients, English-speaking doctors interacting with mainstream patients in English in the U.S. Southwest, and doctors in Mexico interacting with their patients. Research design issues, types of data employed, the measures used, and concerns about data analysis. The purpose is to problematize just what the study of intercultural pragmatics involves when looking at speech communities in flux and taking into account individual variation.
Abstract
The chapter considers options for conducting research in intercultural pragmatics, and focuses on doctor-patient interactions in the US Southwest in which intercultural pragmatics is involved as a vehicle for highlighting the number of variables that can lead to pragmatic variation in the research outcomes. When doctors use Spanish as a nonnative language, the question is how their pragmatics is perceived by their Spanish-speaking Mexican immigrant patients and with what impact. The suggested study compares the pragmatics of this context with that of native Spanish-speaking doctors interacting with these same patients, English-speaking doctors interacting with mainstream patients in English in the U.S. Southwest, and doctors in Mexico interacting with their patients. Research design issues, types of data employed, the measures used, and concerns about data analysis. The purpose is to problematize just what the study of intercultural pragmatics involves when looking at speech communities in flux and taking into account individual variation.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Notes on contributors ix
- Introduction 1
- Chapter 1. Pragmatic variation by gender in market service encounters in Mexico 17
- Chapter 2. Cross-cultural stances in online discussions 49
- Chapter 3. Pragmatic variation in therapeutic discourse 81
- Chapter 4. Disagreement and sociolinguistic variables 113
- Chapter 5. Variation in the pragmatic use of conventional expressions 141
- Chapter 6. Variation in NS-learner interactions 175
- Pragmatic variation in learner perception 209
- Chapter 8. Variationist sociolinguistics, L2 sociopragmatic competence, and corpus analysis of classroom-based synchronous computer-mediated discourse 239
- Research methods for describing variation in intercultural pragmatics for cultures in contact and conflict 271
- Chapter 10. Between pragmatics and sociolinguistics 295
- Chapter 11. Conclusions 319
- Index 337
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Notes on contributors ix
- Introduction 1
- Chapter 1. Pragmatic variation by gender in market service encounters in Mexico 17
- Chapter 2. Cross-cultural stances in online discussions 49
- Chapter 3. Pragmatic variation in therapeutic discourse 81
- Chapter 4. Disagreement and sociolinguistic variables 113
- Chapter 5. Variation in the pragmatic use of conventional expressions 141
- Chapter 6. Variation in NS-learner interactions 175
- Pragmatic variation in learner perception 209
- Chapter 8. Variationist sociolinguistics, L2 sociopragmatic competence, and corpus analysis of classroom-based synchronous computer-mediated discourse 239
- Research methods for describing variation in intercultural pragmatics for cultures in contact and conflict 271
- Chapter 10. Between pragmatics and sociolinguistics 295
- Chapter 11. Conclusions 319
- Index 337
