The Choice Of Address Terms At Workplace By Intercultural English Speakers And Its Pedagogical Implications

Research Article
Astrit Maria and Sudirman Willian
DOI: 
http://dx.doi.org/10.24327/ijrsr.2019.1003.3274
Subject: 
science
KeyWords: 
Terms of address, intercultural communication, workplace, and pedagogical implications.
Abstract: 

Address terms indicate the speaker’s attitude, intention, as well as relationship with the addressee that someone is talking to. While each culture has its own standard, the appropriate choice of address terms in intercultural communication remains blurry. As do very little literature elaborate this concern, this paper performs to thoroughly figure out the selected address terms used by intercultural work colleagues in addressing their interlocutors. This study applies audio recording as well as participant observation to collect data of the three intercultural speakers coming from Indonesia, England, and Canada and sharing occupation in one of English schools in Mataram. This paper manages to result that the speakers from three different cultures apply nearly all the existing terms of address regardless of the common patterns of address terms in each corresponding culture. Rather, the choices of address terms are due to three social factors. In brief, in language teaching, teacher must not only introduce the existing address terms in English, but also emphasize the importance of considering the all of the possible social factors.