Language politeness in EFL student-lecturer interactions through technology-assisted communication

Politeness is essential to human interaction, particularly in the context of lecturer-student communication in Indonesia. This study aims to investigate the use of politeness in technology-assisted communication on WhatsApp by examining the politeness strategies employed by lecturers and students in their interactions via WhatsApp. The study adopts Brown and Levinson’s (1987) politeness theory as the analytical framework, extended by Faerch and Kasper (1989). It employs a qualitative field research design, analyzing 141 WhatsApp text messages exchanged between three English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturers and 111 students at one Indonesian public university over an academic year. Data were collected with informed consent and pseudonymized for privacy. Findings indicate that students exhibit greater politeness than lecturers in their written communication via technology. Students predominantly initiated messages (137 of 141), using positive politeness strategies and greetings, while lecturers more often employed bald-on-record strategies. This tendency is attributed to hierarchical relationships and age differences. Religious influences also shaped interactions, often prompting double greetings. While most Indonesian EFL learners show respect toward their lecturers, the study suggests that politeness should be reciprocal. Lecturers are encouraged to serve as role models. Limitations include the absence of interview data, which future studies could address by integrating speaker intent and deeper social variables like power and distance

English as a foreign language · Indonesian · Politeness · Politeness Theory · Public university · Qualitative research · Speech act · Arabic Language Education Studies · Language Acquisition and Education · Linguistics and Language Analysis