Refusal Strategies Used in Algerian Spoken Arabic in Response to Offers

Abstract

This study reports the findings of a study on strategies of refusal used in Algerian Spoken Arabic (ASA) in response to offers. The study included 30 native Algerians (15 males and 15 females) enrolled at the University of Mohammed Seddik Ben Yahia, Jijel, Algeria. To achieve the objectives of the study, the researchers used an Oral Discourse Completion Task (ODCT), which included six hypothetical scenarios representing three social statuses (Equal-Equal, Low-High, and High-Low). The findings revealed that Algerian Arabic speakers recorded preference to use direct refusal strategies in their response to offers from all status interlocutors (equal, higher, and lower). It was also found that negative willingness/ability was the most frequently used strategy to refuse all status interlocutors’ offers. The researchers recommend conducting a further research on the realization of the speech act of refusal in English as a foreign language by Algerians.