文章基本信息

标题：“B/w U & me”: The Functions of Formulaic Language in Interactional Discourse onTwit er
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作者：Paul Dickinson
期刊名称：Linguistics Journal
印刷版ISSN：1718-2301
电子版ISSN：1718-2298
出版年度：2013
卷号：7
期号：1
页码：7-38
出版社：Linguistics Journal
摘要：Formulaic language, word strings that appear to be mentally stored and retrieved as single units,has recently been receiving considerable research attention. The present study explores thefunctions of formulaic language in interactional discourse on the Twitter microblogging service.Using Wray’s (2008) morpheme equivalent unit (MEU) definition and a diagnostic identificationcriteria developed by Wray and Namba (2003) instances of formulaic language use wereidentified in a dataset of the Twitter-mediated interactions of a group of English languageteaching (ELT) professionals. Data analysis drawing on prior studies revealed the functions offormulaicity in these interactions. Based on the findings, it is argued that formulaic languageperformed four main functions: to manipulate situations, to assert individual identity, to assertgroup identity and to connect the meaning and structure of the discourse. It was also found thatusers overwhelmingly chose formulaic language over novel constructions to help them achievetheir communicative goals. This study contributes to understanding of the crucial role played byformulaic language in communication and may also be of interest to people interested in howlanguage is used to facilitate conversation-style interaction on Twitter.
关键词：formulaic language; Twitter; morpheme equivalent unit (MEU); social interaction;interactional discourse.