Publication
Title
Effects of positive politeness in business letters
Author
Abstract
Brown and Levinson's (1987) typology of politeness strategies, derived from the basic wants of a model person, leaves the question unanswered as to what extent these strategies are perceived and evaluated as contributions to the quality of communication. In this paper, we will discuss the effects of adding and combining positive politeness strategies to letters denying claims to policy holders. The combined results of two experiments offer a clear picture: Give Reasons has a positive effect on the evaluation of the letter, while two other strategies have no effect at all. Theoretical implications are discussed, as is the use of experimentation in politeness research.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Journal of pragmatics: an interdisciplinary quarterly of language studies. - Amsterdam
Publication
Amsterdam : 2010
ISSN
0378-2166
Volume/pages
42 :9 (2010) , p. 2531-2548
ISI
000279546000014
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 27.10.2010
Last edited 23.08.2022
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