The speech act of request from the perspective of cross-cultural pragmatics: a plurilingual and multicultural approach

• Grant number: 22/05865-9
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: March 01, 2023
• End date: February 28, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Linguistics
• Principal Investigator: Elisabetta Antonietta Rita Maria Carmela Santoro
• Grantee: Elisabetta Antonietta Rita Maria Carmela Santoro
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Adriana Mendes Porcellato ; Cibelle Correia da Silva ; Elena Nuzzo ; Fabio Barbosa de Lima ; Isabel Maria Loureiro de Roboredo Seara ; Luciane do Nascimento Spadotto ; Luiz Antônio da Silva ; Malila Carvalho de Almeida Prado ; Marceli Cherchiglia Aquino ; Maria Antonietta Rossi ; Miriam Ravetto ; Rosângela Aparecida Dantas de Oliveira ; Sonia Toledo

Abstract

Intercultural communication, enhanced by the use of technology and the increasingly frequent migrations, is a constitutive part of contemporary society daily life. In order to investigate this scenario, the centrality of language, which can be considered "a symbolic guide to culture" (SAPIR, 1949, p. 162), is unquestionable. In particular, when the objective is to compare more cultures to understand their diversity, research in the field of linguistics can contribute to the identification of analogies and differences in models, habits and norms of reference, leading to a better coexistence with the "other". In studies of this nature, such as the one proposed here, it is necessary to have empirical data from different languages and data collection methodologies, which allow access to the complexity of the phenomena under analysis. In this project, the selected speech act is the request, a high-frequency "basic social act", highly sensitive to cultural variations. For data collection, the following methodologies were chosen: (i) Written Discourse Completion Task (WDCT) and Multiple Choice Discourse Completion Task (MCDCT), with high internal validity; (ii) Role Plays and Real Plays, for data that include orality and interaction; (iii) Think Aloud Protocol, stimulated recall and assessment questionnaire, referred to as introspective methods, to gain access to the mental process of data production. Thus, the "triangulation" of methodologies, recommended in the literature but still rarely implemented, will be guaranteed, making it possible to overcome the limitations of each instrument and increase the reliability of the analysis. With a data-driven taxonomy and annotation with Atlas.ti software, it will be possible to carry out quantitative and qualitative analysis and to identify and to compare functioning patterns of each language and characteristic traits of each culture. (AU)