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Power distance in English lingua franca email communication 1
Author(s) -
Bjørge Anne Kari
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
international journal of applied linguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.712
H-Index - 39
eISSN - 1473-4192
pISSN - 0802-6106
DOI - 10.1111/j.1473-4192.2007.00133.x
Subject(s) - formality , hofstede's cultural dimensions theory , lingua franca , english as a lingua franca , power (physics) , ranking (information retrieval) , sociology , set (abstract data type) , linguistics , dimension (graph theory) , organizational culture , psychology , political science , social psychology , public relations , computer science , mathematics , artificial intelligence , pure mathematics , programming language , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics
This study investigates level of formality in international students’ emails sent to academic staff. National cultures have different traditions when it comes to adopting an egalitarian or a more distant student–professor relationship. Hofstede's cultural dimension of power distance (PD) is used to distinguish between relatively high and relatively low PD cultures. The students’ choice of initial greeting and complimentary close is discussed with respect to PD ranking, rapport management and the sociopragmatic conventions set out in business communication literature. The analysis is based on 344 emails written by 110 students in Norway, a low PD culture. The findings indicate that students from relatively high PD cultures are more likely to opt for formal alternatives, concluding that national culture is an aspect to take into account when analysing lingua franca English communication.