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L2 pragmatics have explored the effects of different factors on different aspects of learners’ pragmatic performance, but often not simultaneously. In addition, syntactic complexity is rarely examined in L2 pragmatics. This cross-sectional study aimed to conduct a multidimensional analysis to explore the effects of proficiency and study-abroad (SA) on Chinese EFL learners’ refusals. Data were collected from 90 Chinese university students via a computer-animated elicitation task. The participants were divided into three groups: low-proficiency learners without SA experience and advanced learners with/without SA. The scenarios were kept consistent in imposition and social distance but varied in social status. Each participant interacted with a computer-animated native-speaker interlocutor in the scenarios. 20 American native speakers also participated in the study; their responses were used as the comparison data. Participants’ performance was evaluated in five aspects: appropriateness, syntactic complexity, refusal strategies, adjuncts and internal modifiers. Results revealed that there were significant effects of L2 proficiency on appropriateness and of SA on syntactic complexity. The interactions of the two factors and social status were also analysed in learners’ employment of refusal strategies and internal modification. Implications for pragmatic instruction and feasible suggestions for future research are discussed.

The effects of proficiency and study-abroad on Chinese EFL learners’ refusals