L2 requests: Preference structure in talk-in-interaction

Abstract

This study provides an empirical examination of how American learners of German accomplish the social action of requesting in L2 conversation, demonstrating how L2 learners use their linguistic and interactional resources to orient to preference structure in their talk. The data illustrate the sequential contingencies surrounding requests and their demonstrable impact on participants' interactional behavior. It is argued that it is insufficient to rely solely on an analysis of lexis and morpho-syntax as deployed by speakers within one turn to describe the sociopragmatic abilities of L2 learners. Furthermore, preference structure as it is revealed in L2 learner talk is discussed in the context of pragmatic transfer and considered as a meaningful concept to complement existing research on pragmatic regularities across languages.