LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 12 : 8 August 2012
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.
         L. Ramamoorthy, Ph.D.
Assistant Managing Editor: Swarna Thirumalai, M.A.

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Copyright © 2012
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Communication Strategies in the Discourse of Commercial Transaction in Jordan: A Study of Spoken Language Performed between Customers and Shop Assistants

Asim Khresheh, M.A. in Applied Linguistics
Areej Saraiyreh, B.A. in English-Education

Abstract

This study aims to identify the types of communication strategies followed by Jordanian customers and shop assistants in their use of the language of commercial transactions in Jordan. Doing so reveals their social beliefs and cultural norms about commercial transaction.

Tape- recordings of 217 conversations were obtained from 33 shop assistants. Customers were divided according to their ages, sexes, and educational backgrounds whereas shops assistants who were all males were divided according to their ages and educational backgrounds.

Discourse analysis shows certain groups of the participants are more apt than others to employ certain strategies. For example, female and male customers from the middle age group (36-59) and old age group (60-75) employ more follow-up strategies than male and female customers from the young age group (25-35). Also, female customers particularly from the old age group (60-75) and middle age group (36-59) employ a strategy of persuasion more than male customers from all age groups.

The study also shows that some strategies were used by shop assistants in response to those used by customers. That is, when a strategy of persuasion is employed by semi-illiterate female customers from the middle and old age group, shop assistants often use swearing or oath words to employ a strategy of apologizing. Additionally, when customers ask more questions about the commodities, young shop assistants often resort to the use of technical terms related to these commodities to employ a strategy of persuasion.

Keywords: Discourse analysis, communication strategies, sociolinguistics, social conventions, cultural beliefs.

1. Introduction

Most people’s communication is conducted in spoken language. Such a language is used in all aspects of life and considered as a primary means of oral communication in which people express thoughts and beliefs, collaboratively build interpersonal relations, and mutually exchange different meanings of utterances and thus perform different behaviors. Tannen (1985, p. 213) states that “in order to accomplish any public or private goal, people have to talk to each other.”

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

Asim Khresheh, M.A. in Applied Linguistics
Almazar Aljanoubi-Alkarak
Jordan 61610
isam_khresheh@yahoo.com

Areej Saraiyreh, B. A. in English-Education
Almazar Aljanoubi-Alkarak
Jordan 61610
angel.eyes0000@yahoo.com
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