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This study investigates  pragmatic force modifiers  (PFMs) ( Nikula 1996 ;  Lin 2010 ) in English-medium university lectures given by Mandarin Chinese speakers and compares the distribution and functions of the markers with those of their native English counterparts. The quantitative results reveal a narrower repertoire of PFMs, especially the intensifying and colloquial modifiers used by Chinese-speaking lecturers, who seem to prefer particular softeners with Chinese equivalents, a phenomenon possibly ascribable to first language interference. The distinct patterning between the two groups implies a higher degree of personal involvement, interactivity, and informality in lectures delivered by native speakers of English. Several important functions of PFMs associated with lectures are shared; functional homogeneity can be attributed to the generic properties that seem to transcend academic contexts and exhibit certain uniformity across languages. However, noteworthy functional discrepancies suggest that Chinese-speaking lecturers draw strategically on the same linguistic devices for different pragmatic purposes in an attempt to overcome language-related insecurity and achieve communicative effectiveness in the situated context in which English is used as an academic lingua franca.

An exploratory comparison of the use of modifiers by native speakers of English and Mandarin Chinese in academic lectures