A PRAGMATIC STUDY OF COMPLIMENTS AND COMPLIMENT RESPONSES BY THAIS AND AMERICANS: CROSS CULTURAL, INTERLANGUAGE AND METALINGUISTICS STUDIES

Abstract

This pragmatic study investigated cross-cultural, interlanguage, and metalinguistics aspects of compliments (Cs) and compliment responses (CRs) by Thais and Americans. The cross-cultural study of Cs and CRs was taken up in order to explore the similarities and differences in the two languages’ structures and strategies in giving Cs and CRs performed by the Thais and the Americans. The interlanguage study of Cs and CRs was conducted in order to investigate the hypothetical language problems of the Thais learners of English when giving Cs and CRs in English in comparison to the Thai and American norms. It was to clearly examine whether or not a cross-linguistic influence or transfer occurred. The metalinguistics study investigated the attitudes and perceptions of the Americans and the Thai learners of English towards Cs and CRs in English produced by the learners. It was to better understand the nature of the learners’ problems at different stages in the evolving interlanguage. Thirty American university students (AEs), thirty Thai university students (TTs), sixty Thai university students, divided into high English exposure (TEHs) and low English exposure (TELs) groups, participated in this study. The written Discourse Completion Task (WDCT) was used as the research instrument for the first two studies. The metalinguistic knowledge assessment task (MKAT) and the semi-structured interview were used as the two research instruments for the last part of the study. The data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. The cross-cultural study indicates the universalities of the Thai and American Cs as face upgrading acts in initiating and maintaining interpersonal relationships and of the CRs as face balancing acts in reciprocating and sustaining interpersonal relationships. The differences in linguistic representation found in Cs and CRs across cultures reflect cultural repertoires which could not be viewed as a complete dichotomy but rather differences in relative importance of factors in context of participants or the speaker-hearer relationships (i.e., relative degree of proximity, relative age, relative social status, and same/opposite sex). The interlanguage study shows that the deviations in giving Cs and CRs in English in both groups of the learners are from both cross-linguistic and cross-cultural influences. The TELs were seen as having royalty to the Thai culture of address terms to mark deference while their L2 constraint limited them from elaborating more in English Cs and CRs as the TEHs did. The metaliguistics study provides that in giving Cs and CRs in English, both groups of learners are strictly attached to grammar while the Americans do not. Based on the findings of the studies, theoretical and pedagogical implications are given.