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Grand strategy of politeness in new social networks: revisiting Leech’s politeness theory among Iranian EFL learners using Telegram

  • Reza Ahmadi

    Reza Ahmadi is a PhD Student in Applied Linguistics at Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran. His areas of interest include teaching English language skills, English course book evaluation, and critical discourse analysis. He is the author of some articles in his areas of interest and has presented papers at international conferences.

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    and Hiwa Weisi

    Hiwa Weisi is an Associate Professor in Applied linguistics. His area of interest includes Discourse Analysis, Multilingualism and Sociolinguistics. He has written one book in English titled Usage Notes, has translated four books into Persian (one was with the cooperation of Prof. Raizi from Macquarie University and one was published by Multilingual Matters and Dayton University). Hiwa Weisi has written many scholarly articles in the field which have been published in prestigious journals with JCR and Scopus indices. He has presented in many national and international conferences. Additionally, he has supervised many theses and dissertations in the Applied Linguistics field. He is currently teaching BA, MA and PhD courses at Razi University, Kermanshah.

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Published/Copyright: June 13, 2023

Abstract

Human beings utilize varied linguistic politeness to facilitate interaction and minimize the potential for conflict. With the advancement of the Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) and the introduction of new social networks, studying how politeness operates within human communication opened up new avenues for research, particularly within diverse cultures. For this reason, the current study sought to report on the “whats” and “hows” of politeness strategies identified in Telegram messages delivered by EFL Learners in Iran. Data were analyzed based on Leech’s (Leech, Geoffrey. 2007. Politeness: Is there an East-West divide? Journal of Politeness Research 3(2). 167–206) Grand Strategy of Politeness, considering the purpose of communication, politeness strategies, and context. The corpus for this study encompassed 1,413 text messages sent via Telegram by 9 EFL learners during one year. Findings indicated a number of different politeness strategies in Iranian culture, specifically the modesty constraint – the speaker maximizes dispraise of himself – which can be construed as one of the unique features and influences of Islamic teachings. Moreover, the Leech’s model might appropriately describe politeness principles in Asian contexts, including Iran, and how cultural dynamics manifest themselves in interpreting the concept of politeness.


Corresponding author: Hiwa Weisi, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran, E-mail:

About the authors

Reza Ahmadi

Reza Ahmadi is a PhD Student in Applied Linguistics at Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran. His areas of interest include teaching English language skills, English course book evaluation, and critical discourse analysis. He is the author of some articles in his areas of interest and has presented papers at international conferences.

Hiwa Weisi

Hiwa Weisi is an Associate Professor in Applied linguistics. His area of interest includes Discourse Analysis, Multilingualism and Sociolinguistics. He has written one book in English titled Usage Notes, has translated four books into Persian (one was with the cooperation of Prof. Raizi from Macquarie University and one was published by Multilingual Matters and Dayton University). Hiwa Weisi has written many scholarly articles in the field which have been published in prestigious journals with JCR and Scopus indices. He has presented in many national and international conferences. Additionally, he has supervised many theses and dissertations in the Applied Linguistics field. He is currently teaching BA, MA and PhD courses at Razi University, Kermanshah.

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Received: 2022-02-05
Accepted: 2022-12-20
Published Online: 2023-06-13
Published in Print: 2023-07-26

© 2023 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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