Work

Are discourse markers related to age and educational background? A comparative account between two sign languages

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: This paper presents a pilot investigation of two discourse markers, namely palm-up and same, in French Belgian Sign Language and Catalan Sign Language. The two discourse markers are studied from a cross-linguistic and a cross-generational perspective using two comparable samples of argumentative productions. The analysis shows that the two discourse markers are highly polyfunctional. Although they have language-specific functions, most of these functions are shared between the two languages. Furthermore, the use of the two discourse markers is idiosyncratic in both sign language datasets. In the small-scale pilot study described in this article, factors such as age or level of education do not seem to influence the usage of the two discourse markers in question.

Source: Journal of Pragmatics

DOI: 10.1016/j.pragma.2018.12.019

Author: Sílvia Gabarró-López

Institution: Stockholm University

Language: English

Topic: Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies

Subfield: Language and Linguistics

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $992

Funders: Fonds De La Recherche Scientifique - FNRS, Institut d'Estudis Catalans