Interlanguage Features of Chinese EFL Learners in the Communicative Act of Refusal

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is to identify and analyze interlanguage features of Chinese EFL learners, focusing on the ways in which they make refusals in English. This paper intends to figure out how the refusal strategies and linguistic forms used by Chinese EFL learners vary from those of American English speakers and to see whether or not these variances can be related to features of their native language. Moreover, the relationship between EFL learners' L2 proficiency level and their realization of act of refusal were also examined. With regard to methodology, the present study employed the elicitation method of open role plays for data collection and analyzed the responses based on the interlocutors social status. Participants were composed of four groups: 12 native speakers of Chinese (NC), 12 Chinese EFL learners with intermediate proficiency level (CE-I), 12 Chinese EFL learners with higher proficiency level (CE-H), and 12 native speakers of American English (NE). In general, the results indicated that EFL learners differ from native speakers of English in terms of L2 language use. Native Chinese speakers as well as Chinese EFL learners were more sensitive to the interlocutors social status than the native English group. Native Chinese speakers and Chinese EFL learners used apology/regret strategies more frequently in refusing higher status interlocutors rather than equal or lower status interlocutors. In addition, the Chinese groups chose alternative and future acceptance strategies more frequently than the native English speakers. Regarding the content of the semantic formulas, the native Chinese and Chinese EFL learners both chose more specific, family-oriented reasons to mitigate the face-threatening power of refusals while the native speakers of English preferred to use more vague reasons in the speech act of refusals. The hypothesis of Takahashi and Beebe (1987) was not supported in the present study as the data showed negative correlation between the pragmatic transfer and the EFL learners L2 proficiency level in terms of the frequency and the content of the semantic formulas ( that is, transfer was found to be greater among lower proficiency learners than among higher proficiency learners). It was consistent with several previous studies (e.g., Maeshiba et al., 1996

Robinson, 1992

Takahashi & DuFon, 1989). Regarding the linguistic forms employed by the participants, the native English speakers tended to use hesitators, the modal verb could, and downtoners more frequently than the Chinese EFL learners. The Chinese EFL learners, on the other hand, employed the cajoler you know and minus committers more frequently than native English speakers. Based on the findings, the present study suggests that sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic instruction need to be integrated into the English curriculum. This can raise EFL learners pragmatic awareness and help them become familiar with the pragmatic conventions and devices in the target language.