Research Methodology and the Question of Validity

The analysis of the rules of speaking for a specific speech community is the first step in understanding what it means to be communicatively competent among that group. We must have reliable descriptions of these rules and patterns in order to improve second language instruction and assessment. Howe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:TESOL quarterly 1986-12, Vol.20 (4), p.689-699
Main Author: WOLFSON, NESSA
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alternatives in Second Language Research: Three Articles on the State of the Art
Communication Research
Communicative Competence (Languages)
Data Collection
Discourse Analysis
Intuition
Language acquisition
Language Research
Language Usage
Native languages
Naturalistic Observation
Observational research
Research Methodology
Research methods
Social distance
Social interaction
Sociolinguistics
Speech acts
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Summary:The analysis of the rules of speaking for a specific speech community is the first step in understanding what it means to be communicatively competent among that group. We must have reliable descriptions of these rules and patterns in order to improve second language instruction and assessment. However, there are serious questions as to the best methods of gathering and analyzing the very data upon which such descriptions must rest. This article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of different research approaches to the study of everyday speech behavior and hence to our understanding of communicative competence.
ISSN:0039-8322
1545-7249
DOI:10.2307/3586519