A study in interlanguage pragmatics investigated the effect of three types of rejoinder (positive, negative, absent) on non-native informants' choices of strategies to perform complaints, requests, and apologies. Results show strategy choice differentially affected by rejoinder type, suggesting that findings from studies using different production…

Presents a survey of English usage for various communication purposes in different types of Brazilian business organizations. The objectives of the survey are to identify the major uses of business English/Portuguese in international/national settings, to identify the varieties widely used in transactions, and to study the types of documents used…

Researchers too frequently consider the reliability of the scores they analyze, and this may lead to incorrect conclusions. Practice in this regard may be negatively influenced by telegraphic habits of speech implying that tests possess reliability and other measurement characteristics. Styles of speaking in journal articles, in textbooks, and in…

Evaluates methods used by New Zealand researchers on language maintenance and shift among ethnic minorities to collect data on community languages. Points out that there are many communities in that country whose patterns of language use are mostly unknown. Makes a case for the social, cultural, and educational benefits of research on community…

Foreigner talk (FT) is the term used to characterize possible adjustments in the speech of a native speaker (NS) when he or she is in conversation with a non-native speaker (NNS). The paper examines conversations between 6 native speakers and 3 non-native speakers and characterizes the speech of the native-speakers involved. The data were…