Request strategies

Abstract

This research investigates request strategies in the Javanese community and the influence of the ± Power (±P), ± social Distance (±D), and ± Rank of imposition (±R) on the use of request strategies. The data were collected through Discourse Completion Tasks (DCTs) and analyzed according to Blum-Kulka et al. (1989). The results show that in the (+P+D+R) context, requests tend to be expressed indirectly. This is influenced by the (+) which is attached to all the variables. In the (−P−D−R) context, requests tend to be expressed directly. This is influenced by the (−) which is attached to all the variables. In the contexts of (+P+D−R), (+P−D+R), (−P−D+R), and (−P+D+R), there is a tug-of-war between the (+) and (−). However, the influence of the (+) appears to be stronger than the (−). Therefore, in these contexts requests are more likely to be expressed indirectly rather than directly.