Variability of refusal in L2: evidence of L1 pragmalinguistic transfer and learner's idiosyncratic usage

Abstract

This study investigates pragmalinguistic competence of Javanese learners of English in Indonesia as compared with native speakers of British English when realizing refusal strategies. The research data was obtained by means of a series of discourse completion tasks. Refusal strategies by native speakers of Javanese were also considered so as to observe whether or not the realization of refusal by the learners was informed by the Javanese language. The three groups of speakers broadly used similar types of semantic formulae and adjuncts of refusal. Nevertheless the wording of those phrased by the learners and the native Javanese speakers was more alike than either to that of the native speakers of British English suggesting L1 pragmalinguistic transfer.