A COMPARISON BETWEEN MALAY AND AMERICAN RESPONSES TO
COMPLIMENTS IN ENGLISH
NURIZAH BINTI MD NGADIRAN
Laporan Projek Ini Dikemukakan Sebagai Memenuhi
Sebahagian Daripada Syarat Penganugerahan
Ijazah Sarjana Pendidikan (TESL)
Fakulti Pendidikan
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
OKTOBER 2009
V
ABSTRACT
This investigation is pertaining to a comparison of compliment responses between
Malay and American responses to compliments in English. The respondents of this
research comprise of 10 Malays and 10 Americans; half of them are males and another
half of the respondents are females, aged between 20 to 22 years old and currently, they
are studying in a tertiary level. In the process of achieving the objectives of the study, the
instruments used in this research were a set of Discourse Completion Test (DCT) and a
number of interview questions. The findings suggest that there are a few similarities as
well as differences of compliment responses produced by the Malay and the American
respondents involved in this research. Moreover, the compliment response patterns
produced by the two groups of respondents based on their gender have managed to be
discovered in this investigation. Last but not least, this paper has also highlighted the
underlying reasons for the choices of compliment responses produced by the respondents
in the DCTs distributed to them earlier on which include social factors, the influence
form mass-media, subject matters being complimented on, as well as their own belief.
VI
ABSTRAK
Kajian ini adalah berkaitan dengan perbandingan balasan terhadap pujian yang
diberikan di antara bangsa Melayu dan warga Amerika Syarikat. Sampel bagi kajian ini
terdiri daripada 10 orang bangsa Melayu dan 10 orang warga Amerika Syarikat; separuh
daripada sampel ini merupakan lelaki, manakala separuh lagi merupakan wanita, berumur
di antara 20 - 22 tahun dan di ketika kajian ini dijalankan, mereka merupakan pelajar -
pelajar universiti. Bagi mencapai objektif-objektif kajian, penyelidik telah menggunakan
satu set Discourse Completion Test (DCT) dan satu set soalan temuduga. Dapatan kajian
ini telah menunjukkan bahawa terdapat persamaan dan perbezaan dalam balasan terhadap
pujian di antara bangsa Melayu dan warga Amerika Syarikat yang terlibat dengan projek
ini. Tambahan lagi, kajian ini juga telah mendapati bahawa terdapat beberapa corak di
dalam balasan terhadap pujian yag diberikan berdasarkan kepada jantina para sampel.
Dalam masa yang sama, kajian ini juga telah mengenalpasti sebab-sebab bagi sampel
yang terlibat dengan kajian ini memilih beberapa jenis balasan terhadap pujian yang
diberikan kepada mereka. Sebab-sebab tersebut terdiri daripada faktor sosial, pengaruh
media massa, topic pujian, serta kepercayaan agama para sampel.
vi i
TABLE OF CONTENT
Title Page
Pengesahan Penyelia i
Declaration ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract V
Abstrak vi
Table of Content vii
List of Tables and Figures X
List of Abbreviations xi
List of Appendices xii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction 1
1.2 Background of Study 2
1.3 Statement of Problem 3
vi i i
1.4 Objectives of Research 5
1.5 Research Questions 6
1.6 Scope and Limitation of Research 6
1.7 Significances of Research 7
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction 9
2.2 Theories on Language in Human Interactions 10
2.3 Theories on Compliment Behaviors 11
2.4 Theories on Compliment Responses 12
2.5 Researches on Compliment Responses Relating to Cultures and Genders 16
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction 24
3.2 The Research Methodology 25
3.3 The Samples 26
3.4 The Instruments of the Study 27
3.4.1 Discourse Completion Test (DCT) 27
3.4.2 Interview questions 29
3.5 The Data Analysis 31
3.6 The Research Procedures 31
3.7 The Pilot Test 32
ix
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS
4.1 Introduction 33
4.2. The Findings from the Quantitative Data (DCT) 35
4.2.1 The similarities and the differences between the Malays and
the Americans' compliment responses 37
4.2.2 The compliment responses patterns of the Malays based on
their gender 39
4.3 The Findings from the Qualitative Data (Interview Sessions) 46
4.3.1 Feedbacks from the male Malay respondents 47
4.3.2 Feedbacks from the female Malay respondents 49
4.3.3 Feedbacks from the male American respondents 50
4.3.4 Feedbacks from the female American respondents 51
4.4 Discussions 52
4.5 Conclusions 55
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Introduction 56
5.2 Conclusions 57
5.3 Pedagogical Implications 59
5.4 Limitations of the Study 61
5.5 Recommendations for Future Researches 62
REFERENCES 64
APPENDICES 69
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Table Title Page
Table 2.1 Compliment Subject Matters 12
Table 2.2 Herbert's Taxonomy of Compliment Responses 15
Table 2.3 Studies of Compliment Responses Across Cultures 19
Table 2.4 Researches on Compliment Responses Relating to Gender 22
Table 3.1 The Respondents of the Research 26
Table 3.2 The Compliment Responses Produced by the Respondents 29
Table 4.1 The Compliment Responses 35
Figure Title Page
Figure 4.1 Malays and Americans' Compliment Responses 37
Figure 4.2 The Male Malays and Americans' Agreement Comp. Responses 40
Figure 4.2 The Male Malays and Americans' Non-Agreement Comp. Resp. 42
Figure 4.3 The Female Malays and Americans' Agreement Comp. Responses 44
Figure 4.4 The Female Malays and Americans' Non-Agreement Comp. Resp. 45
Xll
LIST OF APPENDICES
Appendix Title Page
1 The Discourse Completion Test (DCT) 69
2 The Interview Questions 77
xi
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
1. L2 Second Language
2. DCT Discourse Completion Test
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction
Generally, the act of communication with the interlocutors of other languages can
be considered as a complicated event which involves two types of competencies;
linguistic as well as pragmatic. Thus, if the speakers do not possess both skills,
communication breakdowns will definitely occur. Moreover, socio cultural customs and
boundaries also shape the way one communicates with another person. As highlighted in
an article that discusses on compliment responses (2003), in the United States of
America, at least, most people accept the compliment given to them by saying 'thank
2
you' or 'thanks'. Sometimes, they will also provide some additional information, for that
the conversation will keep going on. On the other hand, in Indonesia, to show modesty,
most of the people there will reply to the compliment given by rejecting it. According to
Brown and Levinson (1987), by denying a compliment, it does not mean that they are not
accepting the kind words, nor have no respect towards the person making the
compliment. Instead, we have to realize that there are culturally diverse ways in
responding to compliments.
1.2 Background of Study
The number of investigations on compliment responses between English used by
the native speakers and English used by L2 learners has increased in the past few years.
Basically, there is no difference between cultures in the use of compliments. Then again,
as pointed out by A1 Falasi (2007), differences arise when it comes to compliment
responses. For example, Arabic and South African English speakers are found to accept
the compliments rather than rejecting them. On the contrary, Asian non native speakers
of English prefer to reject the compliments, as they have difficulties in responding
appropriately to compliments (Ghawi, 1993). According to Nelson, Al-Batal and Echols
(1996) the Syrians respond to the compliments with agreement or formulaic expression,
while the Americans will rather accept or mitigate the force of the compliments.
3
Apart from differences between cultures, in addition, it is also vital to take into
account, the effect of inter-sex communication in different cultures on the planet. There
are a few investigations relating to the effect of gender in communication, as well as
cross-gender communication in a particular ethnicity. Just to name a few, Herbert (1986),
Holmes (1995), and Tannen (1996) are some of the significant names relating to this area.
In particular, as stated by Cedar (2006), men and women depend on different sub-cultural
norms when interpreting the cultural information encoded by language. Thus, it is useful
to investigate the communicative events between men and women of different cultures
exchanging verbal and non-verbal compliments and responses.
Regardless of the above investigations on compliments and compliment
responses, it is apparent that there is lack of comparative researches between the native
speakers of English language and the Malay speakers of English.
1.3 Statement of Problem
It is fascinating to see that the patterns of compliment responses vary greatly
across societies. As stated by Baek (1998), in non-western countries, the agreement rates
are much lower compared to those who's English is their first language. Daikuhara
4
(1986) reported that most of the time, the Japanese's responses to compliments will be
"No, no." or "That's not true." However, according to Wolfson (1993), among
Americans, disagreement frequently happens in communications between associates.
As for compliment behaviors of men and women, based on the findings of New
Zealand English research conducted by Holmes (1989), a basic difference of compliment
behavior is present among the two. He argues that for males, the purpose of a compliment
is a face threatening act. In contrast, when a female gives a compliment to another, her
puipose is to show that she shares the same feeling or opinion and also, offers a kind
mutual support to the particulars which are complimented.
However, in her research, Ming Ai (2008) states that, despite countless researches
on compliment and compliment responses, few or none of them are associated with the
Malaysian culture. Hence, it would be motivating to conduct an investigation on the
similarities and the differences of the Malays and the Americans' responses to
compliments, and to investigate the compliment responses patterns of the two groups in
terms of their gender.
Furthermore, a comparison of compliment responses concerning native speakers
of English and Malay speakers of English would positively benefit those in line with the
English language pedagogy, particularly in Malaysia. Based on the findings, relevant
teaching methodologies, as well as activities, can be designed in order to assist the
students in mastering the language better. At the same time, the students will be able to
5
grasp important knowledge on the appropriate ways of responding to compliments, and in
this case, while communicating with the Americans when they one day, have the chance
to do so.
1.4 Objectives of Research
There are three objectives of this research, and they are as follows:
a. To examine the similarities and the differences of the Malays and the Americans'
compliment responses.
b. To investigate the compliment response patterns of the Malays and the Americans
based on their genders.
c. To discover the underlying reasons of choosing such compliment responses.
6
1.5 Research Questions
This study attempts to answer two research questions, which are:
a. What are the similarities and the differences between the Malays and Americans'
compliment responses?
b. What are the compliment response patterns of the Malays and the Americans
based on their gender?
c. What are the underlying reasons behind the choices of compliment responses?
1.6 Scope and Limitation of Research
The focus of this research is mainly on a comparison of compliment responses
between the Malay non-native speakers of English and the Americans. The Malays; five
male and five female respondents, are currently studying in one of the most prominent
universities in Malaysia, while another five male and five Americans are at present,
studying in a tertiary level in one of the major higher institutions in the United States of
America. The ages of the respondents are between twenty to twenty two years old.
7
There are three focal points of the investigation. Firstly, the researcher will try to
highlight the similarities and the dissimilarities of each group, pertaining to the
compliment responses produced. Secondly, the researcher would like to identify the
compliment patterns of the Malays and the Americans based on their sexual category.
And thirdly, the researcher also would like to find out the underlying reasons of the
respondents choosing certain compliment responses in the test given to them earlier on.
For these reasons, there are a few limitations of this investigation. To begin with,
this research is limited to these particular respondents. Thus, the findings and results
obtained from this research might not strike resemblances in other researches relating to
this area of study. Additionally, this research will only focus on compliment responses
produced by these two groups; the Americans and the Malays. As a result, conclusions
derived from this investigation will primarily linger around the compliment response
patterns produced by the two groups of respondents.
1.7 Significances of Research
Nowadays, according to a website that discusses on cross-cultural communication
researches (2008), there has become an increasing need for higher institutions across the
globe to include intercultural and international knowledge, as well as understanding into
8
the education of their students. International literacy, as well as cross-cultural
understanding, is becoming significant to one's cultural, scientific, economic, and
political wellbeing. It has also become important for colleges to train their fellow students
to effectively and comfortably communicating with other people with different kinds of
cultural views.
Thus, this study is also useful for university educators in Malaysia to look back
into the English syllabuses offered by the respective universities. As far as cross-cultural
communication field is concerned, they will be able to implement the content of the
syllabus which are relevant to be introduced to their students. At the same time, they will
also have a golden opportunity of revising the content that should be adapted and
replacing it with a new-improved version
In the process of teaching and learning, the educators will also have the chance to
design relevant teaching aids and implement appropriate teaching methodologies to the
language learners. By doing so, the learners' level of English language proficiency will
be increased tremendously, as they will not be restricted in only using one or two
compliment responses. Instead, the language learners will have sufficient vocabularies
relating to compliment responses to be used appropriately according to the
communication context.
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
In this chapter, the topics that will be covered comprise of theories on language in
human interaction and compliment behaviors. In addition, compliment responses and
previous researches on compliment responses across cultures and genders will also be
mentioned in this particular chapter.
10
2.2 Theories on Language in Human Interactions
Principally, language carries two purposes, and they are referential and affective.
Holmes (1992) denotes that language expresses objective information of a referential
kind, and at the same time, it can also convey the feeling of a person. As an interlocutor,
in expressing something on his or her mind, one has to make sure that the puipose of the
sentences being used are relevant interpretations and perceptions about the roles of the
sentences themselves. This is one of the reasons why paying appropriate compliment
response maybe different from one person to another.
As stated by Holmes (1992), social factors play an important role in the use of
language in human interaction. For some, emphasis will be given to the users of the
language, while others will relates to its uses; the social setting and functions of
interaction. In certain situations, the speakers and the recipients are important factors that
need to be considered, whereas in other occasions, the essential aspect is the setting or the
social context. Additionally, the objective of the communication maybe important, while
in other circumstances, the topic has a control over the choice of language being used in a
conversation.
11
2.3 Theories on Compliment Behaviors
Based on an article that discusses compliments (2009), compliments are used for
a handful of reasons, and they are as stated below;
a. to express admiration or approval of someone's work, appearance and taste
b. to establish, confirm and maintain solidarity
c. to replace greetings, gratitude, apologies and congratulations
d. to soften face-threatening acts such as apologies, requests and criticism
e. to reinforce desired behaviors
Knapp, Hopper and Bell (1984), mention that most compliments are given to
recipients of the same age and social status. On top of that, according to Herbert (1989),
in American English, agreement responses happen just about one third if the time and
generally, there are three primary compliment subject matters, and the matters are shown
in Table 2.1.
13
establishment or reinforcement of solidarity between the speaker and the recipient. As the
function of the compliment itself may vary, so does the types of compliment responses.
For instance, for certain people, the responses tend to maximize their superior skill and
knowledge. However, for other people, they have a propensity to minimize it. On top of
that, agreeing and accepting the compliments given can be seen as self-praise, while
rejecting the compliments may be seen as an impolite manner.
The first researcher who had called attention to compliment responses from a
pragmatic point of view was Pomerantz (1978). Based on the finding of her research, she
argued that, in American English, the addressee of a compliment faces two (2)
contradicting conditions which pose a tight spot when responding to it; (A) agree to the
speaker, and (B) avoid self-praise. For instance, the addressee agrees with the addresser
by accepting the compliment praise (Condition A), it breaks Condition B in that the
response goes against the speaker's sociolinguistic expectations. However, when the
addressee does not agree to the compliment in order to follow Condition B, the response
can be considered as face-threatening since it breaks Condition A. The addressee of the
compliments implements a variety of solutions to overcome this clash, categorized by
Pomerantz as (1) Acceptance, (2) Rejection, and (3) Self-praise Avoidance.
In line with theories of compliment responses, Leech (1983) had proposed Model
of Politeness. According to his point of view, one of the major motivations for speakers
to actually breach conversational principles is to be polite. In his Politeness Principles, he
suggested six maxims to account for a variety of responses to compliments, such as
14
accepting, returning, mitigating, and rejecting, by the application of one or more than one
maxim. For instance, accepting compliments can be considered as Adherence to the
Agreement Maxim; returning compliments can be seen as an Application of the
Agreement Maxim and the Approbation Maxim; offering object of compliment or help as
an Application of the Agreement Maxim and the Tact Maxim; deflecting a compromising
strategy between the needs to stick onto the Agreement Maxim and the Modesty Maxim;
and Rejection as adherence to the Modesty Maxim.
As for Brown and Levinson's Model of Politeness (1987), in Western context,
accepting compliments shows the addressee's attention to the addresser's positive face
wants because the former anoints the face of the recipient to be approved and liked. Still,
the model proposed by them cannot clarify the implementation of other kinds of
strategies, such as returning, or deflecting by English speakers (Holmes, 1988), or the
primary use of the rejecting approach by the Mandarin interlocutors (Chen, 1993).
After analyzing American English speakers' compliment responses, Herbert
(1986) amended Pomerantz's taxonomy. Within 3 years, he collected more than a
thousand samples of compliment responses of the American college students. The
following table shows the conclusion of his research, as known as Herbert's Taxonomy
of Compliment Responses.
Table 2.2: Herbert's Taxonomy of Compliment Responses
Response Type Description Example
Appreciation Token A verbal or non-verbal acceptance of thecompliment, acceptance not being tied to thespecific semantics of the stimulus.
Thank you.
CommentAcceptance
Addressee accepts the complimentary force andoffers a relevant comment on the appreciatedtopic.
Yeah, it's my favorite too:
Praise Upgrade Addressee accepts the compliment and assertsthat the compliment force is insufficient.
Really brings out the blue in my eyes, doesn 't it?
Comment History Addressee offers a comment (or a series ofcomments) on the object complimented; thesecomments differ from comment acceptance inthat the latter are impersonal, that is, they shiftforce of the compliment from the addressee.
I bought it for the trip to Arizona.
Reassignment Addressee agrees with the compliment assertionbut the complimentary force is transferred tosome third person or to the object itself.
My brother gave it to me.
orIt really knitted itself.
Return As with reassignment except that the praise isshifted (or returned) to the first speaker.
So is yours.
Scale Down Addressee disagrees with the complimentaryforce, pointing to some flaw in the object orclaiming that the praise if overstated.
It's quite really old.
Question Addressee disagrees with the complimentaryforce, pointing to some flaw in the object orclaiming that the praise is overstated.
Do you really think so?
Disagreement Addressee asserts that the object complimentedis not worthy of praise: the first speaker'sassertion is in error.
I hate it.
Qualification Weaker that Disagreement: addressee merelyqualifies the original assertion, usually withthough, but, well, etc.
It's all right, but Jen's nicer.
Noacknowledgement
Addressee gives no indication of having heardthe compliment; the addressee either respondswith an irrelevant comment or gives no response.
-
RequestInterpretation
Addressee, consciously or not, interprets thecompliments as a request rather than a simplecompliment.
You want to borrow this too?
16
2.5 Researches on Compliment Responses Relating to Cultures and Genders
Inspired by Herbert's extensive research on responses to compliments, a number
of investigations in comparing complement responses had been conducted by numerous
researchers. One of them is a research conducted by Daikuhara (1986). This particular
researcher had collected 115 compliment exchanges of natural conversation by 50 native
speakers of Japanese. The findings of the investigation suggested that compliments by
Japanese seem to show the addresser's deference to the recipient and this may create
distance between both interlocutors. In order to sustain harmony between the
interlocutors, the recipient fills in this gap with rejecting or deflecting the compliment
In 1993, Chen had done an investigation in comparing compliment responses
produced by the American and the Chinese. He used written Discourse Completion Test
(DCT) towards the respondents of his research to achieve the objective of his
investigation. As for the findings, 95.73% of all compliment responses produced by the
Chinese respondents were rejecting. On the contrary, only 4.4% from the compliment
responses felt under the acceptance category.
In the following year, using the same research methodology utilized by Chen
(1993) which was DCT, Gajaseni (1994) had compared the compliment responses
produced by the Americans and the Thais. He computed an analysis of variance to mean
frequency of different response types which included acceptance, rejection and
indirection. The result of his study indicated that the Americans use acceptance type
responses considerably more frequent than the Thais.
17
An investigation relating to comparison of compliment and responses to
compliment of native speakers of American English, Puerto Rican Spanish and native
speakers of Puerto Rican Spanish speaking English had been carried out by Kryston-
Morales (1997). The primary research questions aimed to investigate how both
compliments and responses are realized and negotiated by the non-native speakers of
English, as well as how socio-linguistic norms of both groups are reflected in these
compliments. Furthermore, the study compared the strategy choice and use of NS of
English and NS of Puerto Rican Spanish. Based on the results, generally, the strategy
choice was similar, but the semantic content of both languages varied. The Puerto Rican
Spanish-speakers tended to include more set-ups by the person receiving the compliment,
more requests for clarification, and the desire to lend or borrow the items being
complimented on.
In 1999, Hernandez-Herrero had conducted a descriptive work that offers a lexical
and syntactical comparison of complimenting behavior in American English and Costa
Rican Spanish. The researcher investigated eighty naturally-occurring compliments in
Costa Rican Spanish. The findings of the investigation indicated that, while American
English used a restricted set of lexical and syntactical structure, Costa Rican Spanish, on
the other hand, implemented a more varied system of syntactic patterns.
Hiba Qusay Abdul Sattar and Salasiah Che Lah (2009) had carried out a research
relating to compliment responses in English among Iraqi Postgraduates at Universiti
Sains Malaysia (USM). These researchers had tried to find out whether the respondents
18
will produce target-like compliment responses, and at the same time, discover evidence
of pragmatic transfer. To sum up, it was found that this particular group had adapted
various types of compliment responses. On top of that, pragmatic transfers were existed
in compliment responses produced by the respondents. According to both researchers,
this might occur due to the respondents' lack of knowledge of different sociolinguistic
rules among cultures. It could also because of the respondents' dependence on their
mother tongue sociolinguistic norm in realizing speech acts in the target language.
2 0
There were a number of previous researches on compliment responses available
pertaining to gender. Chung-hye Han (1992) had compared responses to compliments of 10
Korean females in English interactions and in Korean interactions with 10 American females.
The data were primarily from field notes and interviews. Based on the findings, in Korean,
most of them rejected the compliments. In the interview conducted afterwards, the Koreans
reveal that in their English textbook, only "thank you" is stated as a response to compliments.
In addition, they were under the impression that the Americans will most of the time, accept
compliments upon receiving them.
In 1993, Chiang and Pochtrager had investigated similarities and differences on ways
Chinese-bom speakers of English and American-bom speakers of English responded to
compliments, based on their gender and status. The respondents of this study included 15
American and 15 Chinese individual, and instrument used in this research is DCT of 18
specified situations. The findings suggested that there were significant differences in the two
cultural groups. In most situations, the Chinese-born English speakers used negative
elaboration as well as denial. On the contrary, the American-bom speakers resorted to
positive elaborations.
Nelson, Bakary and Batal (1996) had studied the similarities and the differences of
compliment responses between the Egyptians and the Americans thru interview sessions, and
one of the aims of the research was to look into the gender of the compliment giver and the
recipient. The respondents were 20 American students and 20 Egyptian students; half of them
were male and half of the respondents were female students. The result indicated that their
2 1
forms of compliments were similar; primarily adjectival, and it was responsible for the
positive meaning. The study additionally showed that the Americans produced compliments
more frequently as to the Egyptians.
Cedar, in 2006, did an investigation of compliment responses given by 12 American
native speakers and Thai students of the same number; using transcriptions from recorded
interviews and observations. As for the result of the investigation, it indicated that the latter
responded differently compared to the native speakers of English. Moreover, the Thai
students basically used the patterns that were not commonly used by the native speakers.
In 2007, Al-Falasi had conducted a study on finding out whether Arab female learners
of English produce target-like compliment responses in English and whether, while
communicating, pragmatic transfer can take place. In order to answer the research questions,
the instruments used in this study were DCT and several interview questions. The findings of
this research had suggested that Arabic expressions were sometimes being transferred to
English. This investigation also showed that the Arabic have some false impressions about
the native speakers of English that affect the way they reply to the compliments given,
Using DCT in a form of questionnaires, Davis (2009) had conducted a study which
examines compliment responses across gender within Australia. In addition, the researcher
would like to investigate the likelihood of males perceiving a compliment as flirtatious. As
for the results of this study, Australian speakers of English used acceptance token in all cases
2 2
when responding to non-intimate compliments. To add, the majority of male respondents
were also found to identify the compliment as neither 'flirtatious' nor 'innocent'.
In a few words, the table sums up the studies highlighted earlier on;
Table 2.4: Researches on Compliment Responses Relating to Gender
Study Participants Language Compared
Chung hye-Han
(1992)
• Koreans
• Americans
• L1 Koreans
• L2 American English
• LI American English
Chiang and
Pochtrager(1993)
• Chinese
• Americans
• L2 America English
• LI American English
Nelson, Al-Batal and
Echos (1996)
• Syrians
• Americans
• LI Arabic
• LI American English
Cedar (2006) • Thai
• American English
• LI Thai
• L2 American English
• LI American English
Al-Falasi (2007) • Arabs
• Americans
• LI Arabic
• L2 American English
• LI American English
Davis (2009) • Australians • LI Australian English
23
It can be seen that there are a handful of investigations and researches done on
compliment and compliment responses. Though, none of them is associated with the
Malaysian context and the Malay language. Hence, this research attempts to study the
similarities and the differences of the Malays and the Americans' responses to compliments.
The researcher will focus on the compliment responses patterns of the two groups in terms of
their gender. On top of that, this research will aim at inferring the respondents' reasons
behind choosing certain types of compliment responses.
CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
There are several aspects that will be discussed in this chapter. Mainly, the
research methodology, the samples, the instruments of the study and the data analysis of
this study will be highlighted. At the same time, the research procedures and the pilot test
will also be discussed in this chapter.
6 4
REFERENCES
A1 Falasi, H. G. (2007). Just Say "Thank You": A Study of Compliment Responses. The
Linguistic Journal.
Baek, G. (1998). A cross-cultural study of compliments and compliment responses in English
and Korean. Doctoral dissertation. University of Seoul.
Brown, P. and Levinson, S. (1987). Politeness: Some Universals in Language Usage.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Cedar, P. (2006). Thai and American Responses to Compliments in English. The Linguistic
Journal.
Chen, R. (1993). Responding to Compliments: A Contrastive Study of Politeness Strategies
between American English and Chinese Speakers. Journal of Pragmatics. 20: 49-75.
Chiang, B. and Pochtrager, F. (1993). A pilot study of compliment responses of American-
bom English speakers and Chinese-born speakers. ERIC
Document Reproduction Service No. ED 347 803.
Chung-hye Han. (1992). A comparative study of compliment responses: Korean females in
Korean interactions and in English interactions. Working Papers in Educational
6 5
Linguistics, 8 (2). 17.31.
Daikuhara, M. (1986). A study of compliments from a cross-cultural perspective: Japanese
vs. American English. Working Papers in Educational Linguisitcs. 2 (2). 103-134.
Davis, B. (2009). Ah, excuse me... I like your shirt": an examination of compliment responses
across gender by Australians. Griffith Working Papers in Pragmatics and Intercultural
Communication Volume 1, Issue 2. Retrieved August 9lh from
http://www.griffith.edu.au/ data/assets/pdf file/0009/88119/8.-Briallen-Davis—
Compliment-responses-across-gender.pdf
Gajaseni, C. (1994). A contrastive study of compliment responses in American English and
Thai including the effect of gender and social status. Dissertation. University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign.
Ghawi, M. (1993). Pragmatic transfer in Arabic learners of English. E! Two Talk, 1(1), 39-
52.
Herbert, R. K. (1989). Compliment-rejection versus compliment-avoidance: Listener-based
versus speaker-based pragmatic strategies. Language and Communication, 35-47.
Herbert, R. K. (1990). Sex-based differences in compliment behavior. Language in Society,
19, 201-224.
6 6
Hernandez-Herrero, A.A. (1999). Analysis and comparison of completing behavior in Costa
Rican Spanish and American English. Kanina, 23, 121-31.
Hiba, Q. A. S. and Salasiah Che Lah. (2009). A Study of Compliment Responses in English
among Iraqi Postgraduates at USM. Retrieved 7th August, 2009 from
http://pkukmweb.ukm.my/~solls09/Proceeding/PDF/hiba%20et%20al.pdf
Holmes, J. (1988). Compliment and Compliment Responses in New Zealand English.
Anthropologist Linguistics. 28: 485-507.
Johnson, D. M. (1992). Approaches to research in second language learning. New York:
Longman.
Kartomihardjo, S. (1982). Ethnography of Communication Codes in East Java. Canberra :
Pacific Linguistics
Knapp, M. L., Hopper, R. and Bell, R. A. (1984). Compliments: A descriptive taxonomy.
Journal of Communication 34(4), 2-31.
Kryston-Morales, C. (1997). The production of compliments and responses in English by
native Spanish speakers in Puerto Rico: An intercultural pragmatics study. New York
University.
Leech, G. (1983). Principles of Pragmatics. London: Longman.
6 7
Manes, J. and Wolfson, N. (1989). The Compliment Formula. Conversational Routine, ed. by
F. Coulmas, 115-132. The Hague: Mouton.
Nelson, G., A1 Batal, M. and Echols, E. (1996). Arabic and English Compliment
Responses:Potential for Pragmatic Failure. Applied Linguistics. 17.4:411-432.
Pomerantz, A. (1978). Compliment Responses: notes on the cooperation of multiple
constraints. Studies in the organization of conversational interaction, ed. by Schenkein.
New York.
Siedman, I. (1998). Guide for Researchers in Education and the Social Sciences (2nd ed.).
New York: Teachers College Press.
Tannen, D. (1996). Gender and discourse. New York: Oxford University Press.
Tuckman, B. W. (1994). Comparing incentive motivation to metacognitive strategy in its
effect on achievement. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American
Educational Research Association (New Orleans, LA, April). (ERIC Document
Reproduction Service No. ED 368 790).
Wolfson, N. (1993). An empirically based analysis of compliments in American English.
Sociolinguistics and Language Acquisition, eds. by N. Wolfson and E. Judd. Rowley,