The Effects of Idiomatic Expressions and Nativeness of Writer on the Evaluations of Text and Speaker by English L2 Speakers.

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2020-07-10
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en
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Previous literature found that the correct use of idiomatic expressions positively influenced the judgements by natives of the proficiency of L2 speakers (Boers, Eyckmans, Kappel, Stengers, & Demecheleer, 2006). The current study investigated the effects of the use of idiomatic expressions in an ELF setting, which is often the default setting for international business (Cogo, 2012). To find out more about the effects of idioms in an ELF setting, this study tried to answer the research question: “to what extent do idiomatic expressions influence the judgements of texts and speakers in an ELF setting?”. Answers to this question might be interesting and relevant for people or businesses that act in an ELF setting to improve their communication skills. Because, if there is a positive relation between the correct use of idioms and the perceived proficiency, professionality and education level of non-natives, they might focus more on learning these expressions in order to be able to use them in their daily communication. The research question was answered using 4 different questionnaires filled in by 87 Dutch students. The students were asked to evaluate the comprehensibility and competence of the writer of business emails.
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