Startseite Linguistik & Semiotik Refusing invitations and offers in second language Chinese: effect of proficiency at the actional and interactional levels
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Refusing invitations and offers in second language Chinese: effect of proficiency at the actional and interactional levels

  • Yunwen Su

    Yunwen Su is Assistant Professor of Chinese Linguistics at the University of Utah where she teaches and conducts research on acquisition, pedagogy, and assessment of second language pragmatics. Her work on pragmatics has appeared in Language Learning & Technology, The Modern Language Journal, Foreign Language Annals, East Asian Pragmatics, Journal of Pragmatics, and edited volumes.

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Veröffentlicht/Copyright: 19. März 2022

Abstract

The present study investigates the role of proficiency in the development of second language (L2) Chinese learners’ ability to negotiate refusals of invitations and offers in conversational interactions. Fifty-four American English learners of L2 Mandarin Chinese at three proficiency levels, and 22 native speakers, completed a four-item naturalized roleplay task. Findings suggest positive effects of proficiency on L1 American English L2 Chinese learners’ production of refusals at both actional and interactional levels, though different aspects of their pragmatic competence may not develop in parallel. NSs and learners across proficiency levels had access to a similar range of refusal strategies, but learner production showed a more target-like context-specific combination of refusal strategies with increasing proficiency. The effect of proficiency can also be observed on learners’ acquisition of sequential organization of refusals, in terms of delay and discourse patterns, in various context. Nevertheless, it is still unclear at what point along the developmental trajectory learners are sociopragmatically competent enough to show consistent orientation towards the hearer in their refusals as NSs do.


Corresponding author: Yunwen Su, Department of World Languages and Cultures, The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA, E-mail:

About the author

Yunwen Su

Yunwen Su is Assistant Professor of Chinese Linguistics at the University of Utah where she teaches and conducts research on acquisition, pedagogy, and assessment of second language pragmatics. Her work on pragmatics has appeared in Language Learning & Technology, The Modern Language Journal, Foreign Language Annals, East Asian Pragmatics, Journal of Pragmatics, and edited volumes.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Professor Bardovi-Harlig for her comments on earlier drafts of the paper and the anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestion during the peer-review process. Any remaining errors are mine.

Appendix: Screenshots of scenario prompts with English translation

Screenshot English translation (not provided to participants)

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Received: 2019-10-08
Accepted: 2020-10-28
Published Online: 2022-03-19
Published in Print: 2022-07-26

© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Heruntergeladen am 21.1.2026 von https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/pr-2019-0041/pdf
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