The influences of proficiency and gender on Uyghur-Mandarin children’s advice-giving

Yuchen Peng; Wei Ren; Ruilin Wu

doi:10.1515/text-2022-0155

Article

The influences of proficiency and gender on Uyghur-Mandarin children’s advice-giving

Yuchen Peng
Yuchen Peng is a PhD candidate at the School of Foreign Languages, Beihang University, Beijing, China. Her research interests include second language acquisition and pragmatics.
, Wei Ren
Wei Ren is Professor of Applied Linguistics at the School of Foreign Languages, Beihang University, Beijing, China. His research interests include pragmatics and second language acquisition. His recent publications have appeared in journals such as Applied Linguistics, Discourse Context & Media, Journal of Pragmatics, Language & Communication, and Language Teaching Research.
and Ruilin Wu
Ruilin Wu is Professor at the Department of Psychology, Beihang University, Beijing, China. His research interests include educational psychology and ethnic minority education.

Published/Copyright: February 1, 2024

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From the journal Text & Talk Volume 45 Issue 1

Abstract

Mandarin Chinese, as the national lingua franca in China, has gained increasing importance in bilingual education in ethnic minority areas in the country. However, little research has explored ethnic minority children’s pragmatic competence. Therefore, this study investigates ethnic Uyghur children’s written pragmatic performance of advice-giving through a brief note in Mandarin and the possible effects of proficiency and gender on their advice-giving. Data were collected from 300 ethnic Uyghur children across three proficiency levels with a balanced gender split. In addition, 100 Han children were also recruited as a comparison group. The advice produced by the children was coded in terms of speech act strategies and supportive moves. The findings showed that the Uyghur children with higher proficiency provided more reasons and fewer affective expressions when giving advice than the two lower proficiency groups, reflecting the performance of the Han children. On the other hand, the results also revealed gender differences in certain advice-giving strategies and supportive moves. The study discusses the findings in relation to national lingua franca and second language pragmatics. Some pedagogical implications for multilingual education in ethnic minority areas are also provided.

Keywords: national lingua franca; ethnic minority; pragmatic competence; advice-giving; proficiency; gender

Corresponding author: Wei Ren, School of Foreign Languages, Beihang University, 37 Xueyuan Road, 100083, Beijing, China, E-mail: weiren@buaa.edu.cn

Funding source: National Planning Office of Philosophy and Social Sciences, P. R. China; Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities

Award Identifier / Grant number: 20BYY066

Award Identifier / Grant number: YWF20BJW213

About the authors

Yuchen Peng

Yuchen Peng is a PhD candidate at the School of Foreign Languages, Beihang University, Beijing, China. Her research interests include second language acquisition and pragmatics.

Wei Ren

Wei Ren is Professor of Applied Linguistics at the School of Foreign Languages, Beihang University, Beijing, China. His research interests include pragmatics and second language acquisition. His recent publications have appeared in journals such as Applied Linguistics, Discourse Context & Media, Journal of Pragmatics, Language & Communication, and Language Teaching Research.

Ruilin Wu

Ruilin Wu is Professor at the Department of Psychology, Beihang University, Beijing, China. His research interests include educational psychology and ethnic minority education.

Research funding: This paper is supported by the National Planning Office of Philosophy and Social Sciences, P. R. China (20BYY066); Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (YWF20BJW213).

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Received: 2022-10-05

Accepted: 2024-01-15

Published Online: 2024-02-01

Published in Print: 2025-01-29

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/text-2022-0155

Keywords for this article

national lingua franca; ethnic minority; pragmatic competence; advice-giving; proficiency; gender