Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study

Rongbin Wang; Mengyao Zhao; Yunqing Qiao; Yaoqin Xue

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study

Rongbin Wang, Mengyao Zhao, Yunqing Qiao, Yaoqin Xue

Published in International Journal of Language and Linguistics (Volume 11, Issue 3)

Received: 25 April 2023 Accepted: 9 May 2023 Published: 17 May 2023

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Abstract

As a complex and dynamic phenomenon, multimodal discourse has gained increasing attention in various fields. One common type of multimodal act among children is multimodal refusal, which involves a communicative act of rejecting an offer, request, or invitation using multimodal semiotic resources such as verbal languages, gestures and body movements, etc. Usually, a refusal is followed by a response to it. The analysis of children’s refusal and their responses to refusal can shed light on the ways in which they manage social relationships and interpersonal dynamics in their interactions. Choosing Chinese-speaking children’s acts of multimodal refusal on one hand and their responses to refusal on the other hand as its research object, this paper aims to examine and systematically reveal the representational and interactional characteristics of such discourse. A naturally occurred corpus of 100 videos with a length of 120.24 minutes is collected and analyzed, on the basis of which the modal representation, modal interaction and multimodal graduation characteristics of Chinese-speaking children’s multimodal refusal-response acts in the early school age are thoroughly analyzed and compared guided by Systemic Functional Grammar and Appraisal Theory. It is found that 62% of the refusal acts are caused by acts of request, and 68% of the children would use multiple modes to implement acts of refusal. Children’s multimodal refusal-response acts has the highest frequency of modal synergy, and some children would have strong emotional reactions after being refused. It is suggested that, children’s multimodal refusal-response acts should be concerned and valued by researchers, educators and children’s parents.

Published in	International Journal of Language and Linguistics (Volume 11, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
Page(s)	78-86
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Multimodal Discourse Analysis, Chinese-Speaking Children, Refusal-Response Acts, Appraisal

References

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APA Style

Rongbin Wang, Mengyao Zhao, Yunqing Qiao, Yaoqin Xue. (2023). Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 11(3), 78-86. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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ACS Style

Rongbin Wang; Mengyao Zhao; Yunqing Qiao; Yaoqin Xue. Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. Int. J. Lang. Linguist. 2023, 11(3), 78-86. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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Rongbin Wang, Mengyao Zhao, Yunqing Qiao, Yaoqin Xue. Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. Int J Lang Linguist. 2023;11(3):78-86. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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@article{10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13,
  author = {Rongbin Wang and Mengyao Zhao and Yunqing Qiao and Yaoqin Xue},
  title = {Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study},
  journal = {International Journal of Language and Linguistics},
  volume = {11},
  number = {3},
  pages = {78-86},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijll.20231103.13},
  abstract = {As a complex and dynamic phenomenon, multimodal discourse has gained increasing attention in various fields. One common type of multimodal act among children is multimodal refusal, which involves a communicative act of rejecting an offer, request, or invitation using multimodal semiotic resources such as verbal languages, gestures and body movements, etc. Usually, a refusal is followed by a response to it. The analysis of children’s refusal and their responses to refusal can shed light on the ways in which they manage social relationships and interpersonal dynamics in their interactions. Choosing Chinese-speaking children’s acts of multimodal refusal on one hand and their responses to refusal on the other hand as its research object, this paper aims to examine and systematically reveal the representational and interactional characteristics of such discourse. A naturally occurred corpus of 100 videos with a length of 120.24 minutes is collected and analyzed, on the basis of which the modal representation, modal interaction and multimodal graduation characteristics of Chinese-speaking children’s multimodal refusal-response acts in the early school age are thoroughly analyzed and compared guided by Systemic Functional Grammar and Appraisal Theory. It is found that 62% of the refusal acts are caused by acts of request, and 68% of the children would use multiple modes to implement acts of refusal. Children’s multimodal refusal-response acts has the highest frequency of modal synergy, and some children would have strong emotional reactions after being refused. It is suggested that, children’s multimodal refusal-response acts should be concerned and valued by researchers, educators and children’s parents.},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study
AU  - Rongbin Wang
AU  - Mengyao Zhao
AU  - Yunqing Qiao
AU  - Yaoqin Xue
Y1  - 2023/05/17
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
T2  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
JF  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
JO  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
SP  - 78
EP  - 86
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-0221
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
AB  - As a complex and dynamic phenomenon, multimodal discourse has gained increasing attention in various fields. One common type of multimodal act among children is multimodal refusal, which involves a communicative act of rejecting an offer, request, or invitation using multimodal semiotic resources such as verbal languages, gestures and body movements, etc. Usually, a refusal is followed by a response to it. The analysis of children’s refusal and their responses to refusal can shed light on the ways in which they manage social relationships and interpersonal dynamics in their interactions. Choosing Chinese-speaking children’s acts of multimodal refusal on one hand and their responses to refusal on the other hand as its research object, this paper aims to examine and systematically reveal the representational and interactional characteristics of such discourse. A naturally occurred corpus of 100 videos with a length of 120.24 minutes is collected and analyzed, on the basis of which the modal representation, modal interaction and multimodal graduation characteristics of Chinese-speaking children’s multimodal refusal-response acts in the early school age are thoroughly analyzed and compared guided by Systemic Functional Grammar and Appraisal Theory. It is found that 62% of the refusal acts are caused by acts of request, and 68% of the children would use multiple modes to implement acts of refusal. Children’s multimodal refusal-response acts has the highest frequency of modal synergy, and some children would have strong emotional reactions after being refused. It is suggested that, children’s multimodal refusal-response acts should be concerned and valued by researchers, educators and children’s parents.
VL  - 11
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Rongbin Wang

School of Foreign Language, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, China
Mengyao Zhao

School of Foreign Language, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, China
Yunqing Qiao

School of Foreign Language, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, China
Yaoqin Xue

School of Foreign Language, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, China

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Rongbin Wang, Mengyao Zhao, Yunqing Qiao, Yaoqin Xue. (2023). Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. International Journal of Language and Linguistics, 11(3), 78-86. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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ACS Style

Rongbin Wang; Mengyao Zhao; Yunqing Qiao; Yaoqin Xue. Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. Int. J. Lang. Linguist. 2023, 11(3), 78-86. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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AMA Style

Rongbin Wang, Mengyao Zhao, Yunqing Qiao, Yaoqin Xue. Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study. Int J Lang Linguist. 2023;11(3):78-86. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13

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@article{10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13,
  author = {Rongbin Wang and Mengyao Zhao and Yunqing Qiao and Yaoqin Xue},
  title = {Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study},
  journal = {International Journal of Language and Linguistics},
  volume = {11},
  number = {3},
  pages = {78-86},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijll.20231103.13},
  abstract = {As a complex and dynamic phenomenon, multimodal discourse has gained increasing attention in various fields. One common type of multimodal act among children is multimodal refusal, which involves a communicative act of rejecting an offer, request, or invitation using multimodal semiotic resources such as verbal languages, gestures and body movements, etc. Usually, a refusal is followed by a response to it. The analysis of children’s refusal and their responses to refusal can shed light on the ways in which they manage social relationships and interpersonal dynamics in their interactions. Choosing Chinese-speaking children’s acts of multimodal refusal on one hand and their responses to refusal on the other hand as its research object, this paper aims to examine and systematically reveal the representational and interactional characteristics of such discourse. A naturally occurred corpus of 100 videos with a length of 120.24 minutes is collected and analyzed, on the basis of which the modal representation, modal interaction and multimodal graduation characteristics of Chinese-speaking children’s multimodal refusal-response acts in the early school age are thoroughly analyzed and compared guided by Systemic Functional Grammar and Appraisal Theory. It is found that 62% of the refusal acts are caused by acts of request, and 68% of the children would use multiple modes to implement acts of refusal. Children’s multimodal refusal-response acts has the highest frequency of modal synergy, and some children would have strong emotional reactions after being refused. It is suggested that, children’s multimodal refusal-response acts should be concerned and valued by researchers, educators and children’s parents.},
 year = {2023}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Multimodal Refusal and Response to Refusal of Chinese-Speaking Children: A Comparative Case Study
AU  - Rongbin Wang
AU  - Mengyao Zhao
AU  - Yunqing Qiao
AU  - Yaoqin Xue
Y1  - 2023/05/17
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
T2  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
JF  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
JO  - International Journal of Language and Linguistics
SP  - 78
EP  - 86
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2330-0221
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijll.20231103.13
AB  - As a complex and dynamic phenomenon, multimodal discourse has gained increasing attention in various fields. One common type of multimodal act among children is multimodal refusal, which involves a communicative act of rejecting an offer, request, or invitation using multimodal semiotic resources such as verbal languages, gestures and body movements, etc. Usually, a refusal is followed by a response to it. The analysis of children’s refusal and their responses to refusal can shed light on the ways in which they manage social relationships and interpersonal dynamics in their interactions. Choosing Chinese-speaking children’s acts of multimodal refusal on one hand and their responses to refusal on the other hand as its research object, this paper aims to examine and systematically reveal the representational and interactional characteristics of such discourse. A naturally occurred corpus of 100 videos with a length of 120.24 minutes is collected and analyzed, on the basis of which the modal representation, modal interaction and multimodal graduation characteristics of Chinese-speaking children’s multimodal refusal-response acts in the early school age are thoroughly analyzed and compared guided by Systemic Functional Grammar and Appraisal Theory. It is found that 62% of the refusal acts are caused by acts of request, and 68% of the children would use multiple modes to implement acts of refusal. Children’s multimodal refusal-response acts has the highest frequency of modal synergy, and some children would have strong emotional reactions after being refused. It is suggested that, children’s multimodal refusal-response acts should be concerned and valued by researchers, educators and children’s parents.
VL  - 11
IS  - 3
ER  -

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