Perception of implicit promise in face-threatening contexts

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that when interpreting scalar terms like quantifiers (e.g., some) and probability expressions (e.g., possibly), recipients tend to take into account the speaker's face management concerns (e.g., to save the recipient's face). In this study, we presented two experiments in Chinese that examined the recipient's perception of the speaker's implicit promise, a speech act that threatens the speaker's own (negative) face (by restricting the speaker's subsequent freedom). Results showed that participants, as recipients, considered the speaker to be less committed to the implicit promise when the speaker's negative face was threatened. We suggest that the perceived lower speaker commitment in face-threatening contexts is motivated by participants' recognition of facework. During social interactions, people recognize the speaker's face management concerns not only when the recipient's face is threatened, but also when the speaker's own face is at stake.