Chapter 5. Compliment response behavior among Japanese-English bilinguals on Facebook

Abstract

This study examines compliment responses on Facebook produced by Japanese-English bilingual women who post photos of their manicures and pedicures – the objects of praise. It is based on a total of 178 responses directed towards Japanese monolinguals, (American) English monolinguals, and Japanese-English bilingual audiences. The responses were coded according to Holmes (1986) and Placencia, Lower, and Powell’s (2016) taxonomies of compliment response strategies. Results indicated that acceptance of compliments was the most common strategy used by the Japanese-English bilingual women in the study, followed by evasion, rejection, and no acknowledgement. The study also highlights the importance of further examining the online practices of bilinguals who interact with multilingual audiences in compliment response research.