Sarcasm Detection in Native English and English as a Second Language Speakers

Sarcastic speech is ubiquitous in most languages, though understanding sarcasm is highly dependent upon cultural and social contextual factors (Campbell & Katz, Discourse Processes, 2012, 49, 459). It is therefore surprising that little research has examined the ability of nonnative speakers to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian journal of experimental psychology 2021-06, Vol.75 (2), p.133-138
Main Authors: Techentin, Cheryl, Cann, David R., Lupton, Melissa, Phung, Derek
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Context
Conversation
Cues
Cultural factors
English as a second language
English as Second Language
English language
Facial Expressions
Female
Figurative Language
Human
Linguistics
Male
Native languages
Personality
Prosody
Psychology
Questionnaires
Sarcasm
Sincerity
Social factors
Social psychology
Sociolinguistics
Speech
Speech Perception
Television programs
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Summary:Sarcastic speech is ubiquitous in most languages, though understanding sarcasm is highly dependent upon cultural and social contextual factors (Campbell & Katz, Discourse Processes, 2012, 49, 459). It is therefore surprising that little research has examined the ability of nonnative speakers to understand the sarcastic cues of a second language. In the current study, native English speakers and English as a second language (ESL) speakers were tested in each of four different conditions. Three of the conditions presented isolated cues involved in the detection of sarcasm (prosody, written context, and facial expression) and asked participants to identify the emotional intent of the cue (sarcasm or sincerity). The fourth condition combined spoken context, prosody, and facial expressions into each trial and asked the participant to identify sarcasm or sincerity. Participants also indicated their experience with sarcasm through the completion of three questionnaires: Sarcasm Self-Report Scale (Ivanko et al., Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 2004, 23, 244), the Conversational Indirectness Scale (Holtgraves, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1997, 73, 624), and an Exposure to Sarcasm Scale. Results indicated that there were no differences in the ability of the ESL group to understand sarcasm based on facial expression; however, they were less accurate in identifying the sarcastic written context or prosody than the native English speakers. Taken together with the correlations on the questionnaires, findings suggest that experience plays a key role in the ability of ESL speakers to identify sarcastic cues. Le discours sarcastique est omniprésent dans la plupart des langues, mais la compréhension du sarcasme dépend grandement de facteurs contextuels culturels et sociaux (Campbell & Katz, Discourse Processes, 2012, 49, 459). Il est alors étonnant que peu de recherche ait examiné la capacité des locuteurs non natifs à saisir les repères sarcastiques dans une langue seconde. Dans la présente étude, la capacité de locuteurs dont la langue maternelle est l'anglais et de locuteurs dont l'anglais est la langue seconde (ALS) a été testée au moyen de quatre conditions différentes. Trois des conditions comportaient des repères isolés impliqués dans la détection du sarcasme (prosodie, contenu écrit et expression faciale), et l'on demandait aux participants de déterminer l'intention émotionnelle du repère (sarcasme ou sincérité). La quatrième condition c
ISSN:1196-1961
1878-7290
DOI:10.1037/cep0000241