Article published In: Trends in Second Language Pragmatics Research Part 2
[Applied Pragmatics 6:2] 2024
► pp. 131–146
Thematic article
Technology-enhanced pragmatic instruction
Published online: 7 February 2025
https://doi.org/10.1075/ap.00023.gon
https://doi.org/10.1075/ap.00023.gon
Abstract
Developing pragmatic competence in another language is not an easy task for language learners, especially in
foreign language settings which are deprived of real and rich interactions with different speakers of the target language in a
variety of contexts. For more than a decade, researchers of L2+ pragmatics have proposed that technology and technology-mediated
environments can expose students to a large variety of context and interactional practices to enhance their pragmatic awareness
and develop their pragmatic competence. This article reviews studies that have investigated the potential of teaching pragmatic
features with technology using a variety of tools (e.g., email; text-, audio-, and video-based computer-mediated communication;
social networks; simulations; virtual environments; games) to summarize the findings of the field so far. The article also poses
some questions that still need to be addressed and suggests future directions for research within the ever-evolving world of
technology.
Article outline
- 1.Introduction
- 2.Key concepts of technology-mediated pragmatics instruction
- 3.Survey of current literature
- 3.1Computer-mediated communication (CMC) tools
- 3.2Virtual environments and games
- 3.3Social networks and communities
- 3.4Simulations and interactive automated dialogues
- 4.Critical insights and future directions
References
References (77)
Abe, M., & Roever, C. (2020). Task
closings in L2 text-chat interactions: A study of L2 interactional competence. CALICO
Journal, 37(1), 23–45.
Abrams, Z. (2013). Say
what?! L2 sociopragmatic competence in CMC: Skill transfer and development. CALICO
Journal, 30(3), 423–445.
Alcón-Soler, E. (2005). Does
instruction work for learning pragmatics in the EFL
context? System, 33(3), 417–435.
Alemi, M., & Haeri, N. S. (2020). Robot-assisted
instruction of L2 pragmatics: Effects on young EFL learners’ speech act performance. Language
Learning &
Technology, 24(2), 86–103. [URL]
Barón, J., & Ortega, M. (2018). Investigating
age differences in e-mail pragmatic
performance. System, 781, 148–158.
Belz, J. (2002). Social
dimensions of telecollaborative foreign language study. Language Learning &
Technology, 6(1), 60–81.
Biesenbach-Lucas, S. (2007). Students
writing emails to faculty: An examination of e-politeness among native and non-native speakers of
English. Language Learning &
Technology, 11(2), 59–81.
Blattner, G., & Fiori, M. (2011). Virtual
social network communities: An investigation of language learners’ development of sociopragmatic awareness and multiliteracy
skills. CALICO
Journal, 29(1), 24–43.
Brône, G., & Oben, B. (Eds.). (2018). Eye-tracking
in interaction: Studies on the role of eye gaze in dialogue. John Benjamins.
Canale, M. (1983). From
communicative competence to communicative language pedagogy. In J. C. Richards & R. Schmidt (Eds.), Language
and
Communication (pp. 2–27). Longman.
Canale, M., & Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical
bases of communicative approaches to second language teaching and testing. Applied
Linguistics, 1(1), 1–47.
Carrol, G., & Conklin, K. (2017). Cross
language lexical priming extends to formulaic units: Evidence from eye-tracking suggests that this idea ‘has
legs.’ Bilingualism: Language and
Cognition, 20(2), 299–317.
Chen, Y. (2015). Developing
Chinese EFL learners’ email literacy through requests to faculty. Journal of
Pragmatics, 751, 131–149.
Chun, D. M. (1994). Using
computer networking to facilitate the acquisition of interactive
competence. System, 22(1), 17–31.
(2011). Developing
intercultural communicative competence through online exchanges. CALICO
Journal, 28(2), 392–419.
Codina-Espurz, V., & Salazar-Campillo, P. (2019). Openings
and closing in emails by CLIL students: A pedagogical proposal. English Language
Teaching, 12(2), 57–67.
Cunningham, D. J. (2016). Request
modification in synchronous computer-mediated communication: The role of focused
instruction. The Modern Language
Journal, 100(2), 484–507.
(2019). L2
pragmatic learning in computer-mediated communication. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), Routledge
handbook of SLA and
pragmatics (pp. 372–386). Routledge.
Dimock, M. (2019). Defining
generations: Where Millennials end and Generation Z begins (Generations). Pew Research Center. [URL]
Filik, R., Brightman, E., Gathercole, C., & Leuthold, H. (2017). The
emotional impact of verbal irony: Eye-tracking evidence for a two-stage process. Journal of
Memory and
Language, 931, 193–202.
Gonzales, A. (2013). Development
of politeness strategies in participatory online environments: A case
study. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 101–120). John Benjamins.
González-Lloret, M. (2008). Computer-mediated
Learning of L2 Pragmatics. In E. A. Soler & A. Martinez-Flor (Eds.), Investigating
pragmatics in foreign language learning, teaching and
testing (pp. 114–132). Multilingual Matters.
(2019). Task-based
language teaching and L2 pragmatics. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), Routledge
handbook of SLA and
pragmatics (pp. 338–352). Routledge.
Ho, S., Foulsham, T., & Kingstone, A. (2015). Speaking
and listening with the eyes: Gaze signaling during dyadic interactions. PLOS
ONE, 10(8), e0136905.
Holden, C., & Sykes, J. M. (2013). Complex
L2 pragmatic feedback via place-based mobile games. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 155–183). John Benjamins.
Hymes, D. (1972). On
Communicative Competence. In J. B. Pride & J. Holmes (Eds.), Sociolinguistics (pp. 269–293). Penguin.
Jenks, C. J., & Brandt, A. (2013). Managing
mutual orientation in the absence of physical copresence: Multiparty voice-based chat room
interaction. Discourse
Processes, 50(4), 227–248.
Jeon, E. H., & Kaya, T. (2006). Effects
of L2 instruction on interlanguage pragmatic development: A
meta-analysis. In J. M. Norris & L. Ortega (Eds.), Synthesizing
research on language learning and
teaching (pp. 165–211). John Benjamins.
Kasper, G. (1997). Can
pragmatic competence be taught? (NetWork #6) Second Language Teaching and Curriculum
Center. [URL]
(2009). L2
pragmatic development. In W. C. Ritchie & T. K. Bhatia (Eds.), The
new handbook of second language acquisition (1st
ed., pp. 259–284). Emerald.
Kasper, G., & Schmidt, R. (1996). Developmental
issues in interlanguage pragmatics. Studies in Second Language
Acquisition, 18(2), 149–169.
Li, Q. (2019). L2
Chinese learners’ pragmatic developmental patterns in data-driven instruction and computer-mediated communication (CMC): A
case of Chinese sentence final particle ne. Applied
Pragmatics, 1(2), 154–183.
Li, S. (2013). Amount
of practice and pragmatic development of request-making in L2
Chinese. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 43–69). John Benjamins.
Nguyen, T. T. M. (2018). Pragmatic
development in the instructed context: A longitudinal investigation of L2 email
requests. Pragmatics, 28(2), 217–252.
Norris, J., & Ortega, L. (2000). Effectiveness
of L2 instruction: A research synthesis and quantitative meta-analysis. Language
Learning, 50(3), 417–528.
Ortega, L. (2019). SLA
for the 21st century: Discipline progress, transdisciplinary relevance, and the bi/multilingual
turn. In D. P. Macedo (Ed.), Decolonizing
foreign language education: The misteaching of English and other colonial
languages (pp. 111–130). Routledge.
Pan, P. C. (2012). Interlanguage
requests in institutional e-mail discourse. In M. Economidou-Kogetsidis & H. Woodfield (Eds.), Interlanguage
request
modification (pp. 119–161). John Benjamins.
Perrin, A., & Atske, S. (2021). About
three-in-ten U.S. adults say they are ‘almost constantly’ online (Internet
Connectivity). Pew Research Center. [URL]
Peterson, M. (2012). Learner
interaction in a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG): A sociocultural discourse
analysis. ReCALL, 24(03), 361–380.
Plonsky, L., & Zhuang, J. (2019). A
meta-analysis of second language pragmatics instruction. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), Routledge
handbook of SLA and
pragmatics (pp. 287–307). Routledge.
Pojanapunya, P., & Jaroenkitboworn, K. (2011). How
to say “good-bye” in second life. Journal of
Pragmatics, 43(14), 3591–3602.
Rafieyan, V., Sharafi-Nejad, M., Khavari, Z., Siew Eng, L., & Rashid Mohamed, A. (2014). Pragmatic
comprehension development through telecollaboration. English Language
Teaching, 7(2), 11.
Reinhardt, J., & Ryu, J. (2013). Using
social network-mediated bridging activities to develop socio-pragmatic awareness in elementary
Korean. International Journal of Computer-Assisted Language Learning and
Teaching, 3(3), 18–33.
Rockey, C., Tiegs, J., & Fernández, J. (2019). Mobile
application use in technology-enhanced DCTs. CALICO
Journal, 37(1), 85–108.
Showstack, R. E., & Vergara Wilson, D. (2020). Research
on pragmatics learning, teaching, and curricula for heritage
speakers. In D. A. Koike & J. C. Félix-Brasdefer (Eds.), The
Routledge handbook of Spanish pragmatics: Foundations and
interfaces (pp. 455–468). Routledge.
Soares Palmer, D. (2010). Second
language pragmatic socialization in world of warcraft (Publication No.
ED520797) [Doctoral dissertation, University of California]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.
Sydorenko, T., Daurio, P., & L. Thorne, S. (2018). Refining
pragmatically-appropriate oral communication via computer-simulated conversations. Computer
Assisted Language
Learning, 31(1–2), 157–180.
Sydorenko, T., Jones, Z., Daurio, P., & Thorne, S. L. (2020). Beyond
the curriculum: Extended discourse practice through self-access pragmatics
simulations. Language Learning &
Technology, 24(2), 48–69. [URL]
Sykes, J. M. (2009). Learner
requests in Spanish: Examining the potential of multiuser virtual environments for L2 pragmatic
acquisition. In L. Lomicka & G. Lord (Eds.), The
second generation: Online collaboration and social networking in
CALL (pp. 199–234). Texas State University.
(2013). Multiuser
virtual environments. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 71–100). John Benjamins.
Sykes, J. M., & Dubreil, S. (2019). Pragmatics
learning in digital games and virtual environments. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), Routledge
handbook of SLA and
pragmatics (pp. 387–399). Routledge.
Sykes, J. M., & Taguchi, N. (2013). The
future of pragmatics and technology. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 271–274). John Benjamins.
Taguchi, N. (2013). Comprehension
of conversation implicature. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 19–41). John Benjamins.
(2015). Instructed
pragmatics at a glance: Where instructional studies were, are, and should be going. Language
Teaching, 481, 1–50.
(2021). Learning
and teaching pragmatics in the globalized world: Introduction to the special issue. The Modern
Language
Journal, 105(3), 615–622.
(2022a). Dispreferred
speech acts in virtual reality: Analysis of tone choices and
hesitations. System, 1061, 102793.
(2022b). Immersive
virtual reality for pragmatics task development. TESOL
Quarterly, 56(1), 308–335.
Taguchi, N., Li, Q., & Tang, X. (2017). Learning
Chinese formulaic expressions in a scenario-based interactive environment. Foreign Language
Annals, 50(4), 641–660.
Takamiya, Y., & Ishihara, N. (2013). Blogging:
Crosscultural interaction for pragmatic development. In N. Taguchi & J. M. Sykes (Eds.), Technology
in interlanguage pragmatics research and
teaching (pp. 185–214). John Benjamins.
Tang, X. (2020). Task-based
interactional sequences in different modalities: A comparison between computer-mediated written chat and face-to-face oral
chat. Applied
Pragmatics, 2(2), 174–198.
Tang, X., & Taguchi, N. (2020). Designing
and using a scenario-based digital game to teach Chinese formulaic expressions. CALICO
Journal, 31(1), 1–22.
(2021). Digital
game-based learning of formulaic expressions in second language Chinese. The Modern Language
Journal, 105(3), 740–759.
Thorne, S., Hellermann, J., Jones, A., & Lester, D. (2015). Interactional
practices and artifact orientation in mobile augmented reality game play. PsychNology
Journal, 13(2–3), 259–286. [URL]
Timpe-Laughlin, V., Evanini, K., Green, A., Blood, I., Dombi, J., & Ramanarayanan, V. (2017). Designing
interactive, automated dialogues for L2 pragmatics learning. In V. Petukhova & Y. Tain (Eds.), Proceedings
of the 21st workshop on the semantics and pragmatics of
dialogue (pp. 143–152). SEMDIAL.
Timpe-Laughlin, V., & Dombi, J. (2020). Exploring
L2 learners’ request behavior in a multi-turn conversation with a fully automated
agent. Intercultural
Pragmatics, 17(2), 221–257.
Tromp, J., Hagoort, P., & Meyer, A. S. (2016). Pupillometry
reveals increased pupil size during indirect request comprehension. Quarterly Journal of
Experimental
Psychology, 69(6), 1093–1108.
Tsai, M.-H., & Kinginger, C. (2014). Giving
and receiving advice in computer-mediated peer response activities. CALICO
Journal, 32(1), 82–112.
Tudini, V. (2013). Form-focused
social repertoires in an online language learning partnership. Journal of
Pragmatics, 50(1), 187–202.
Utashiro, T., & Kawai, G. (2009). Blended
learning for Japanese reactive tokens: Effects of computer-led, instructor-led, and peerbased
instruction. In N. Taguchi (Ed.), Pragmatic
competence (pp. 275–299). Mouton de Gruyter.
Van Compernolle, R. A., Gomez-Laich, M. P., & Weber, A. (2016). Teaching
L2 Spanish sociopragmatics through concepts: A classroom-based study. The Modern Language
Journal, 100(1), 341–361.
Ward, N. G., Escalante, R., Al Bayyari, Y., & Solorio, T. (2007). Learning
to show you’re listening. Computer Assisted Language
Learning, 20(4), 385–407.
Yeh, E., & Swinehart, N. (2019). Testing
the waters: Developing interlanguage pragmatics through exploration, experimentation, and participation in online
communities. CALICO
Journal, 37(1), 66–84.
Cited by (4)
Cited by four other publications
Aladini, Alaa & Asma Gheisari
Mahmoudi-Dehaki, Mohsen & Nasim Nasr-Esfahani
Wong, Leei & Keiko Mochizuki
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 19 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.
