Dispreferred Responses in Mandarin Child Languag

本研究探討兒童在給予非優先應答時所採取的語用策略，以及母親在接續的對話中所給予的回應。研究的語料來自於一名以漢語為母語的四歲兒童與她的母親之間的日常對話。在分析的資料中，我們將非優先應答區分成拒絕和異議兩類，分析之後，結果發現受試兒童採取六種不同的語用策略來表達非優先應答，分別為(1)直接否定(simple negation)、(2)理由(account)、(3)挑戰(challenge)、(4)修正(correction)、(5)部分認同(partial agreement)、(6)反請求(counter-request)，而受試者的非優先應答往往結構簡單，內容直接而缺少修飾，雖然她在否定或提出異議時，能給予進一步的解釋，但是她所提出的多為以自我為中心的理由。另外，母親在面對受試者直接的拒絕或異議時，多半會以下列三種方式回應：一、再次陳述自己的要求或想法，二、提供更多的解釋來說服對方，三、提出問題要求對方進一步說明拒絕或不同意的原因，以上的三種回應策略都使母親有再一次的機會來說服受試兒童接受她的要求，或者同意她的想法。This study investigates children’s pragmatic strategies of delivering dispreferred responses and also how the mothers reacted in the subsequent turns. The data analyzed are a Mandarin-speaking four-year-old child’s natural conversation with her mother. In the observed verbal exchanges, the subject child’s dispreferred seconds are categorized into refusals and disagreements. After careful examination, six pragmatic strategies are identified in the dispreferred turns, namely, simple negation, account, challenge, correction, partial agreement, and counter-request. The results indicate the child’s dispreferreds are generally simple in structure, direct and unmitigated in force. Though she was capable of providing accounts for her refusals or disagreements, the reasons she gave are mostly self-oriented and serve to express her non-compliance and disapproval. As for the mother’s subsequent responses, it is found that facing the child’s direct and socially disruptive seconds, the mother generally targeted at her previous turn and attempted to carry on the prior illocutionary force. When her directive or statement was refused or denied, she tended to responded with reformulations, persuading remarks or queries, which elicited more information about the dispreferred acts. All of these three strategies provided another chance for the achievement of compliance or agreement