Students and Administrative Staff Interaction: A Socio-Cultural Competence of Pakistani English Address Forms in Academic Discourse (In Eng.)

Abstract

This article is a part of ongoing investigation into Pakistani English addressing practices in multilingual academic discourse. The article investigates the use and choice of address forms categories used between students and administrative staff interactions. The article is focused on the socio-cultural influence on the use and choice of address forms, as well as on identifying the frequency of address forms in different contexts in academic settings. The author believes that the data collected reflect the linguistic and cultural identity of the interlocutors. The data were collected through an adapted questionnaire along with ethnographic observation, moreover, 252 responses were received from participants. The data were analyzed quantitatively using SPSS v.20 for frequency and percent and qualitative research for interpretations and observation. The results reveal honorifics, kinship terms, occupational terms, and endearments as main categories along with names and titles. The results also showed that native and English address forms were used to express desired pragmatic purposes. The article describes each category in academic discourse and how social and cultural values influence the use and choice. The author concludes that a variety of examples from addressing practices suggest that students adhere to their lingua-cultural identity despite interacting in the English language.