Politeness and Speech Acts in Cross-Cultural YouTube Interview Discourse: A Comparative Study of Thai and Chinese Hosts and Guests
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Abstract
This study investigates how cultural norms influence English-language communication by examining speech acts and politeness strategies in informal digital discourse. Focusing on ten YouTube interviews—five from Thailand’s KND Studio and five from China’s ICON—the study analyzes how Thai and Chinese hosts and guests use English as a lingua franca. Guided by politeness theory and speech act taxonomy, the analysis found that both groups primarily used representative and directive speech acts, with positive politeness strategies being dominant due to the casual interview format. Notably, Thai hosts often adopted a relaxed and informal tone, reflecting Thai cultural values of approachability and friendliness, which some viewers perceived as less polite. In contrast, Chinese speakers were viewed as more formal and indirect, contributing to perceptions of higher politeness. To triangulate the findings, interviews were conducted with Thai undergraduate, graduate, and academic participants, who provided interpretations of politeness based on the clips. The study highlights the impact of cultural values on English use in intercultural settings and supports the integration of pragmatic awareness into language education. It contributes to cross-cultural pragmatics and digital discourse analysis, while acknowledging limitations such as the small sample size and focus on only two Asian contexts.
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