| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
YAMAUCHI Yutaka Tokyo Kokusai University, Faculty of Commerce, Associate Professor, 商学部, 助教授 (30306245)
FUJIO Misa Tokyo Fuji University, Faculty of Management, Associate Professor, 経営学部, 助教授 (20350712)
TOYA Mitsuyo Ryukyu University, Faculty of Letters, Associate Professor, 法文学部, 助教授 (00295289)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥6,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥6,000,000)
Fiscal Year 2005: ¥2,300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,300,000)
Fiscal Year 2004: ¥3,700,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,700,000)
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| Research Abstract |
The foreign language learner, whether he/she is the speaker or listener, is struggling to share the meaning originally intended. The decoding process is normally analyzed into schematic knowledge, contextual knowledge and systemic knowledge. However, such a static classification into components does not reveal the dynamic nature of our communication. Moreover, in actual communication a decoding process is not an isolated activity, but is performed interactively and collaboratively. In this research we have focused on how the learner, as a listener, strives to infer the meaning of an unfamiliar word when decoding an utterance, and how the learner, as a communicator, struggles to convey the intended meaning.
According to the experiments in listening comprehension, difficulties caused by sound changes were ranked in the following order among Japanese learners : elision> assimilation > linking. In order to be able to exploit contextual clues to enhance auditory comprehension, a certain threshold of English proficiency was required. A similar threshold was also found to exist in inferring the meaning of unknown words.
In the area of communicative interaction, qualitative as well as quantitative analyses based on the long-term data indicated that both native and non-native participants used the most effective communication strategies in problem solving, observing the "principle of least collaboration effort." In order to facilitate the interlocutor's understanding, native speakers in particular used a variety of active strategies, especially those for checking the interlocutor's background knowledge and foregrounding it.
From the above-mentioned results, we can conclude that significant progress was made in clarifying the effective use of strategies, especially contextual and interactive clues. Such strategies constitute valuable strategic competence in a foreign language and greatly contribute to the successful management of intercultural communication.
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