A Comparative Study of Chinese and English Refusal Language Strategies

Using 80 short video examples about refusal language strategies on Douyin short videos as a corpus,this study explores the commonality and individuality,as well as the contradictory relationship between Chinese and British countries in the use of refusal language strategies by combining manual and graphical data analyses.It is found that Chinese people use more indirect ways of using refusal speech acts,and British and American countries use more direct ways of using refusal speech acts.In addition to this,both Chinese and British countries use non-verbal behavior to reject speech as a way of protecting the positive face of the addressee and reducing the threatening behavior to the face of the other party.This study also found that the ambivalent relationship between the emergence of refusal language strategies in both China and Britain is related to their personal psychological state,social values,and personal face.The results of this study have some values for sociology as well as pragmatics,which is conducive to the maintenance of interpersonal relationships.

High-context and Low-context communication: A Case Study of A Chinese Refusal

Edward Hall offers us an effective means of examining cultural similarities and differences,that is the classification of high-context and low-context culture.The paper attempts to analyze a case of a Chinese refusal from the perspective of highcontext and low-context communication and explores the differences between the two types of communication.

A Genre——based Analysis of English Refusal Letters

The present study analyzes ten English refusal letters of two subcategories based on Swales' genre analysis model and finds that difference exists in the generic features of the two subcategorized types. Teachers should reveal the underlying rationale behind linguistic features of a specific genre so that students can not only identify genre but also apply it appropriately.

The Erasure of Signifiers and Refusal of Signification in Philip Larkin's Poem“High Window”

This paper tries to analyze Philip Larkin's poem"High Window"from a deconstructive perspective. It is to show that in the poem the key words/signifiers are always under erasure, and thus the chain of signification is endless since the poem is self-deconstructing. Then, the paper argues that the linguistic features of the poem paradoxically meaningful in the sense that it reflects the poet's skepticism and anxiety.

Speech Act of Refusal-A Proposal from an Interlanguage Pragmatic Perspective

This paper is to present a typology of refusal strategies which may be employed in the analysis of refusal performance from a discourse approach.Some previous research carried out is reviewed in order to classify non-native speakers' production of this speech act.Then,the suggested taxonomy will be described in a systematized way from an interlanguage pragmatic perspective and within a conversational analysis framework.Finally,it is emphasized that effective communicative competence plays an important role in the production of this face-threatening speech act of refusing.

The Realization of Politeness Strategies in Children＇s Refusal： A Case Study of Parents＇ Educational Background on Children＇s Utterances

Language as a means of communication is represented in two basic forms, written and spoken. Spoken is the first form mastered by language speaker, particularly children. Speech community consists of adult and children. In producing their utterance, children are supposed to be affected by their parents. As a result of different educational background of their parents, children may produce different utterances including refusal. Children from different parents＇ educational background vary their refusal. The tendency that the higher parents＇ educational background will result the more polite refusal produced by children is not proved.

Politeness Strategies in Refusal

The theory of politeness and face-saving proposed by Brown and Levinson （1978, 1987） has been up to now the most influential politeness model. Brown and Levinson＇s politeness theory contains three basic notions： face, FTAs （face threatening acts）, and politeness strategies. According to the authors, ＂face＂ refers to the public self-image of a person. Negative face shows the need to be independent, to have freedom of action, and not to be imposed on by others. Positive face shows the need to be accepted, even liked, by others, to be treated as a member of the same group, and to know that his or her wants are shared by others. It plays a leading role in the study of speech acts Brown and Levinson introduced five super strategies for politeness in relation to FTAs： bald on-record, positive politeness, negative politeness, off-record, and don＇t do the FTAs. The theoretical framework of this paper is based on Brown and Levinson＇s politeness theory and strategies

Request-Refusal Strategies in Contemporary Chinese Teledramas From the Perspective of Social Power

This study was designed to explore the issue of request-refusal strategies in Chinese setting by establishing a corpus of vedio clips of contemporary Chinese teledramas on the basis of an overview of previous studies on Chinese refusal strategies. In the present study, we chose 3,970 short sequences of video clips from 35 Chinese teledramas which vividly described the Chinese people＇s life in the contemporary times. Taking the two variables of power and distance as reference points, nine situations were designed in this study. Elaborate refusal strategies were consecutively elicited in the nine situations of the 35 contemporary Chinese teledrama serials from the perspective of social power in the study.

Exposure to TL in class and IL refusal development

The present study aimed to account for the different degrees of IL refusal development in terms of the amount of exposure to TL in class. The refusing responses to various elicitations were collected by means of the written DCT, the oral DCT and the role-play and were processed by employing component analysis. The comparison of refusal components between Group A （with full exposure） and Group B （with partial exposure） presents that the exposure in class does facilitate the development of IL refusal competence. The findings in this study bring some pedagogical implications for L2 teachers and academic inspirations to the researchers in IL pragmatic acquisition.

The comparison between written DCT and oral role-plays in investigation upon English refusal strategies by Chinese EFL students

The present study is a comparison study of research instrument in the field of interlanguage pragmatics. Sixty-two Chinese EFL university students participated in the study. Written DCT and oral role-plays were designed in four stimulus types of refusal strategies--refusals to invitations, suggestions, offers and requests. Chi-square test and frequency were used for quantitative data and transcription of the tests was used for the qualitative data. The results show that there is no significant difference between the two tests in terms of strategies choices, but written DCT can produce a longer sentence while oral role-plays can yield a more natural expression.

Cross-cultural Pragmatics within Speech Act:Refusal in Chinese and American Culture

This essay concentrates on the differences in one cross-cultural pragmatics within one speech acts-refusal in both Chinese culture and American culture.Some background theories are introduced at the beginning,followed by specific pragmatics situations of refusal.At the end of the essay,some concepts of cross-cultural pragmatics speech acts teaching are also discussed.

Refusal Speech Acts in Chinese and American English

Refusals are frequently performed in our daily lives.Based on the speech act theory of Austin and Searle,with the theoretical frame of the politeness theory put forward by Brown and Levinson,It presents a comparative study of speech acts of refusal in Chinese and American English.The results show that refusals vary in directness with situations and cultures;On the one hand,both languages employ the three directness types,namely the direct refusal speech act,ability of negation and indirect refusal speech act,and prefer indirect refusals.The situational variability of directness in both languages follows a similar trend.On the other hand,Americans are more direct than Chinese.Furthermore,Chinese shows the lower degree of situational variation in the use of the three directness types.People' s choices of refusal strategies are influenced by social power and social distance.From all these evidence,we maintain that the cross-linguistic differences are due to basic differences in cultural values.

A Polite and Respectful Acceptance——Implicit Function of Refusal in Chinese from Pedagogical Perspective

This paper discusses the implicit function of refusal expressions that has been used by Chinese native speakers when responding to people’s offerings.By analyzing three conversations regarding how Chinese people have accepted people’s offerings during different time periods(1960’s,1980’s,and 2000’s),the author argues that the verbal refusal in reacting to people’s offerings(especially gifts)does not literally mean“No,I don’t want it.”Instead,it is a way to show humility,politeness,and respect to the gift giver,and it functions as an implicit form of acceptance.By referring to three excerpts chosen from The Book of Rites(Liji禮記),the author demonstrates the Chinese cultural values and cultural themes,focusing on what Chinese people say and do to show respect and politeness when dealing with gifts or other friendliness related offerings.The paper finds two pedagogical implications:1)it is the instructor’s responsibility to highlight the verbal and non-verbal behaviors that both native speakers and language learners do not ordinarily notice in language class,and 2)the repetitive contextualized performances in different levels of learning are necessary and play crucial roles in teaching and learning.

Exploring the Negative Perceptions Influencing the Refusal of Flu Vaccination in the Older Adult Aged Greater than 60 Years Old: A Qualitative Systematic Review

Aim: To review and investigate the negative perceptions influencing the refusal of flu vaccination in the older adult population age older than 60-year-old. Methods: This literature review focus on the qualitative studies or qualitative data from the mix-design research. A structural search of databases was performed for qualitative studies or mix-design research containing qualitative methods which were published in English between 2011 and 2021. There are eight studies selected in total, including 6 pure qualitative studies and 2 mixed-design studies with qualitative research methods. Only the qualitative data would be analyzed during this literature review. Results: Five descriptive themes emerged: “Insufficient promotion for influenza vaccination by healthcare professionals”, “Anti-vaccination influence”, “Insufficient local policies for encouraging influenza vaccination in elders”, “The negative personal experience of influenza vaccination” and “The negative perception of influenza vaccination from social network”. And one analytical theme was developed: “The cultural influence of influenza vaccination”. “Anti-vaccination influence” was the most significant theme out of the others, as this theme contained the greatest number of correlations to the other themes. Discussion: The six themes synthesized from the reviewed studies have correlations between them. The theme of anti-vaccine influence was the most significant theme with the evidence of the greatest number of correlations with the other theme. Both intrinsic and extrinsic factors strengthen the effect of anti-vaccine perception in older adults, leading to refusal of influenza vaccination in older people population. Conclusion: The government should design new strategies for promoting influenza vaccination among older adults and acknowledge their needs culturally and financially. The cooperation of alternative medicine and mainstream western medicine maybe help for promoting influenza vaccination among older adults who adopted alternative medicine. Moreover, healthcare professionals also play a vital role in improving the influenza vaccination ratio in older adults as older adults are likely to follow the vaccination advice from healthcare professionals.

Obstetric Anesthesia Practice Significantly Evolved: A Field for Cesarean Delivery Parturient for the Provision of Safe Anesthesia in Urgent Circumstances

General anesthesia and Obstetric Anesthesia is the gold standard for a cesarean section but there are some cases where general anesthesia is unavoidable. The use of general anesthesia for cesarean delivery has decreased in recent years due to the widespread use of neuraxial techniques. The choice of anesthesia techniques for cesarean delivery depends on several factors, including the patient’s psychology and the attending physician’s experience. It is chosen because of its safety profile and its benefits to the mother and fetus. It may be indicated due to emergency, maternal refusal of regional techniques, or regional contraindications. Major complications include failed intubation, gastric content aspiration, and increased bleeding risk. This study aims to evaluate the impact of a newly launched team on obstetric anesthesia practice.

ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF SPEECH ACT REFUSALS IN CHINESE:EVIDENCE AND MOTIVATING FACTORS

This paper examines the phenomenon of sociocultural transfer and its motivating factors within the realization patterns of speech act refusal by Chinese EFL learners. EFL refusal data were collected using a written data collection test (DCT), which was designed and then followed by semi-structured interviews. Using semantic formulas as units of analysis, EFL refusal responses were compared with similar data elicited from native speakers of English. The results show two areas in which sociocultural transfer is existent in EFL learners' speech: options of selecting semantic formulas and content of semantic formulas. Each was found to reflect cultural values transferred from Chinese to English. Furthermore, based on the interview data, it was found that learners' social system and political factors, traditional socio-psychological ideology and economy possibly motivate sociocultural transfer.

The Black Protests in Poland: An Example of an Anti-pastoral Revolution

Michel Foucault in Security, Territory, Population: Lectures at the Collège de France, 1977-1978 argues, that there has never been such a thing as an anti-pastoral revolution in Western societies. Yes, we have had revolutions against the disciplinary apparatus and legal devices of power (schools, hospitals, prisons) and we have had examples of revolutions against the economic foundations of social inequality, but there has never been a genuine revolution against pastoral power as a power relating to the conduct of individuals (but also entire social groups) and their disposition to “voluntary submission” to the will of external authorities. In my paper, I would like to reflect on this thesis, and taking it quite seriously, to look for examples of such revolutions. One of them is a women’s strike in Poland during the power of the conservative government of “Law and Justice”. Mainly referring to the texts of Silvia Federici and Paul Preciado, I will want to reflect on contemporary practices of reclaiming the body in contemporary capitalism. I will defend the thesis that regaining control over sexuality and reproduction means changing the material conditions of life and modern reproductive technologies.

Assessment of risk factors associated with oral polio vaccine refusal in Rahim Yar Khan District,Pakistan(2017)

Objective:This study aimed to determine the risk factors associated with oral polio vaccine(OPV)refusal.Methodology:A case-control study was conducted in Rahim Yar Khan(RYK)District,Pakistan.A case was defined as‘‘any child aged<5 years who was enrolled in the microplans of RYK District as part of the National Immunization Days program in January 2017 and whose parents or guardians refused to receive OPV for these eligible children.”The age-and sex-matched controls(1:1)were obtained from the same locality.Ratios were calculated,and odds ratios(ORs)were determined at 95%confidence interval(CI)and p<0.05.Results:Among the 110 children,64(58%)were male(male to female ratio,1.4:1).The mean age was 29.5 months(range,0.26–60 months).Seventy-four(67.2%)children were living in urban areas and 29(26.3%)children were living in peri-urban and rural areas,while seven(6.3%)were considered nomads.A total of 72(65.2%)children were Punjabi speaking,33(30%)were Saraiki speaking,2(3.7%)were Urdu speaking,and 2(1.82%)were Balochi speaking.Repeated campaigns(n=91,82.7%)was the major reason for OPV refusal.Living at a distance>1 km from a healthcare facility was significantly associated(OR,2.5;95%CI,1.4–4.4;p<0.05)with OPV refusal,while prior visits by healthcare workers(OR,0.11;95%CI,0.06–0.22;p<0.05)and mother’education above primary level(OR,0.42;95%CI,0.24–0.73;p<0.05)were inversely associated with OPV refusal.Conclusion:On the basis of our recommendations,door-to-door social mobilization visits by healthcare workers to alleviate fear,misconception,and fatigue of repeated campaigns and strict accountability mechanism were developed by district government at pre-and intra-campaign levels.

Impacts of Import Refusals on Agricultural Exports duri ng Pan demies: Implicatio ns for China

Pandemic outbreaks disrupt agricultural trade.The possible strengthening of import barriers to products from countries at the epicenter of a pandemic by their trade partners could aggravate this situation.This paper examines the responses of the US Food and Drug Administration(FDA),import refusals,and subsequent trade impacts on the agricultural exports from the developing countries that were the epicenters of four pandemics in the past two decades.Using monthly data for the period 2002-2020,we find increased import refusals and amplified trade-impeding impacts on agricultural exports during pandemic outbreaks.Increased import refusals and the amplification of the trade-impeding effect of import refusals were especially large when China was the epicenter.We further examine possible differences in these results across products and FDA inspection methods,and the main conclusions remain robust.This paper offers a better understanding of the economic outcomes of pandemic outbreaks and provides policy suggestions for China.

The Effects of Explicit and Implicit Instruction in English Refusals

本研究是英语拒绝策略的明示和暗示教学的对比研究。62名两个整班学生参加了本实验。33名为明示教学组,29名为暗示教学组。教学目标是四种英语拒绝类型:拒绝邀请、建议、提供和请求,情景设计是在高、平等、低三种身份和熟人之间。本研究实施了前测和后测,话语补全任务是测量工具。t检验和效果量的计算为定量数据的统计方法。定性分析对话语补全任务的内容进行归类。定量数据表明明示教学组的表现好于暗示组。定性分析显示在拒绝邀请和请求方面,明示组优于暗示组;在拒绝提供和建议方面,两种教学组没有明显差别,但是拒绝提供的表现有明显提高,拒绝建议的表现没有明显提高。在恰当性方面,信息量、策略选择和正式程度三个方面的表现明示教学组好于暗示教学组。