本研究旨在探討中美文化差異對於建議語行為的影響，並且進一步探究文化差異以及社會地位、人際熟悉度等情境因素如何影響台灣英語學習者的建議語行為。本研究的三組受試者分別為35位英語母語人士、35位中文母語人士、35位英文程度佳的台灣英語學習者。語料蒐集工具為言談情境填充問卷(DCT)。所蒐集的語料針對受試者的建議語策略使用來進行量化以及質化的分析。 研究結果顯示，中文組的建議語行為比英語組來的直接。而學習者組在建議語的策略使用上則近似於中文組，也表現出比英語組直接的建議語行為。這樣的結果很可能由中美文化的差異所導致。此外，台灣英語學習者的建議語行為受到了文化差異的影響，表現出來自於母語的語用移轉(pragmatic transfer)，除了語用移轉所造成的語用失敗(pragmatic failure)之外，研究者還發現兩項學習者在建議語使用上的語用失敗，分別是：教學引起的誘發性錯誤(teaching-induced errors)，以及使用過多文字(waffle phenomenon)。有鑑於這些語用失敗，本研究提出兩點教學上的啟示。一、語言教師必須引導學生瞭解文化差異對於跨文化溝通的影響。二、語言教師以及教材編者必須提供充足的語境訊息(contextual information)以教導英語學習者如何適宜地的表達。 / The present study aimed to explore the cross-cultural differences between the suggestion behaviors by Chinese and Americans, and further investigated how the differences affect Taiwanese EFL learners’ interlanguage suggestion under two social variables. Three groups of participants were concerned in this study. They were 35 native speakers of American English, 35 native speakers of Mandarin Chinese and 35 Taiwanese EFL learners. The data were collected by written DCT elicitation questionnaire. Participants’ responses were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively to see how the three groups of participants employed the suggestion head act strategy, hedging devices, supportive moves and suggestion patterns. The results showed that the Chinese group was more direct than the American group. Besides, the learner group approximated the Chinese group and thus also employed more direct suggestion patterns and strategies than the American group did. This may be possibly due to the cultural differences between the Chinese and the American culture. This study also found that the EFL learners transferred both their native socio-cultural norms and pragmalinguistic conventions into their suggestion behaviors. In addition to pragmatic transfer, two more pragmatic failures were found; they were teaching-induced errors and the waffle phenomenon. With regard to these failures, this study suggested that language teachers should make learners aware of the importance of cultural differences in cross-cultural communication. Besides, teachers and language materials designers should provide as much contextual information as possible so that learners can learn the appropriate form or structure for its corresponding function.

本論文研究以｢間接抱怨的反應｣的語言行為為研究方向；一方面以跨文化語用學的探討為主，研究母語為中文的台灣人與母語為美語的美國人語言行為之差異，藉以探討該語言行為的文化普遍性、獨特性；另一方面是以外語語用學的探討為主，研究台灣大專生學習美語的外語行為是否接近母語為英語的美國人，以深究研究對象的語用轉移現象。研究的四組受試人分別為36位以英語為母語的美國大學生、36位以中文為母語且以中文為學習主要媒介的台灣的大學生、36位英語學習程度較佳的台灣大學生、36位英語學習程度中等的台灣大學生。蒐集語言資料的工具是語言言談情境問卷(Discourse Completion Task，簡稱DCT)，依照蒐集到的語料進行量化、質化的資料分析。研究結果顯示：四組研究對象皆傾向以憐憫策略來回應間接抱怨。然而以兩項研究變項(性別與社交關係)來進一步討論時，研究結果呈現不同的策略使用：以中文為母語和英語學習程度較佳的台灣大學生這兩個研究對象趨於以沉默或是轉移話題來回應女性陌生人的間接抱怨，但是英語學習程度較中等的台灣大學生，卻是較常使用建議策略來回覆陌生人。再者，探究研究對象們的語用標記時，英語學習者常轉化中文的發語詞於英語表達中，相較於以英語為母語的美國大學生，他們的語用句型也較為簡化。根據研究結果與探討，英語學習者們的英語學習程度高低並不與其語用表現成正比，這論述可以呼應語用知識是有別於語言知識的概念。故在英語為外語教學上，除了英語能力的提升外，學習者應能有機會體驗不同情境下的語用表現，自覺性的討論出該表現背後的不同文化意涵，進而提升其對母語文化以及目標語文化所該具有的知識與內涵。 / This study investigated response strategies to indirect complaints (IC). On the one hand, it explored the cross-cultural differences in speech behaviors between native Mandarin Chinese speakers and native American English speakers. On the other hand, it examined EFL learners’ IC response behaviors in Taiwan. Four participant groups were invited in this study: 36 native speakers of American English living in the United States, 36 native Mandarin Chinese speakers living in Taiwan, 36 EFL learners with high English proficiency level, and 36 EFL learners with intermediate English proficiency level. Their language data were collected through designed Discourse Completion Test (DCT). Both quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted to deal with the collected data. The research results indicated that the commiseration strategy was mostly used by all four participant groups. Yet, taking the two independent variables (gender and social-distance relationships) into consideration, informative results were found across different groups. The two groups of native Chinese speakers and EFL learners with high English proficiency level applied off strategy to their female strangers’ indirect complaints. On the contrary, the group of EFL learners with intermediate English proficiency level used more advice strategy to their strangers’ indirect complaints. Furthermore, negative transfer was found in the EFL learners’ linguistic realization to achieve illocutionary forces, including pragmatic markers and simplified sentential expressions. The research findings implied that there was not any positive relationship between language learners’ linguistic abilities and their pragmatic performance. The implicature is correlated with the concept that pragmatic knowledge is distinct from linguistic knowledge. Thus, in EFL courses, language learners should be provided opportunities to consciously explore different cultural meanings behind speech act behaviors.