ERIC Number: EJ1305000
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 32
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0125-2488
EISSN: N/A
You Understand I Na Ka?: A Study of Comprehensibility of Thai English to Foreign Tourists
Phuengpitipornchai, Kukiet; Teo, Adisa
PASAA: Journal of Language Teaching and Learning in Thailand, v61 p1-32 Jan-Jun 2021
The objectives of this study were to explore foreign tourists' responses to Thai English, a variety of English emerging in Thailand, in terms of comprehensibility, and to identify the linguistic features that made Thai English incomprehensible. One hundred international tourists in Bangkok from four regions including East Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, and North America were surveyed after they listened to a set of five authentic speech samples from four speakers in Thai tourism industry. The data were collected and analysed quantitatively and qualitatively to yield multidimensional results. The results show that Thai English was comprehensible to most of the tourists from all four regions. While syntactic and morphological features of Thai English were well understood, the phonological features were a major hurdle for the comprehensibility of Thai English. This study not only proposes pedagogical implications of prioritizing those linguistic features, especially phonological features which mainly impede comprehensibility of Thai English, but also suggests Thais to be more confident in communicating in English for their specific needs and purposes.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, English (Second Language), Tourism, Comprehension, Syntax, Morphology (Languages), Phonology, Barriers, Interpersonal Communication, Language Usage, Pronunciation, Dialects, Language Variation
Chulalongkorn University Language Institute. Prem Purachatra Building, Chulalongkom University, Phayathai Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand. Tel: +66-2-218-6092; Fax: +66-2-218-6104; e-mail: pasaa.editor@gmail.com; Web site: http://www.culi.chula.ac.th/publicationsonline/home_p1.php
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Thailand (Bangkok)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A