This volume aims to fill two gaps in pragmatic research into English as a lingua franca (ELF): the investigation of conflict talk and the incorporation of a multimodal perspective into the analysis of ELF interactions. To this end, multimodal conversation analysis is used, combined with the perspective of politeness theory. The author shows how interactants use multimodal resources to manage competitive overlaps, disagreement, and third-party complaints in casual ELF conversations among friends. In doing so, the notion of cooperativeness is re-examined, and the appropriateness of an intercultural approach to analyzing multimodal resources in ELF interactions is demonstrated.

Pragmatic research on ELF has investigated how ELF is used to achieve transactional and interactional purposes of the talk in diverse ELF contexts, using a conversation analytic approach. While findings of existing research highlight cooperative, mutually supportive, and consensus-oriented nature of ELF through the analysis of verbal resources, their adversarial aspects and the interplay of verbal and nonverbal resources are somewhat underexplored in the field of research. This book investigates how ELF is used to manage challenging moments in interactions by using multimodal interactional analysis: Thereby reexamining the notion of cooperativeness and elaborating on situational variation in ELF. Based on a qualitative analysis of audio-visual recordings of casual ELF conversation among friends, the book illustrates how interactants utilize various verbal and nonverbal resources at their disposal. They competitively take the conversational floor by overlapping, disagree with a co-interactant, and complain about something or someone else. Given the focus of the research, the book is highly relevant for researchers and under-/post-graduate students who study pragmatics, conversation analysis, and multimodal interactional analysis.

The global spread of English has resulted in contact with an enormous variety of different languages worldwide, leading to the creation of many new varieties of English. This book takes an original look at what happens when speakers of these different varieties interact with one another.

This book investigates the cultural and intercultural aspects of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF). Authors discuss how ‘culture’ and the ‘intercultural’ can be understood, theorised and operationalised in ELF, and how the concepts can be integrated into formats of ELF-oriented learning and teaching. The various cultural connotations are also discussed (ideological, political, religious and historical) and whether it is possible to use and/or teach a lingua franca as if it were culturally neutral. The chapters consider the communication and pedagogical implications of the cultural and intercultural dimensions of ELF and offer suggestions for new directions in ELF research, pedagogy and curriculum development.

As the colonial hegemony of empire fades around the world, the role of language in ethnic conflict has become increasingly topical, as have issues concerning the right of speakers to choose and use their preferred language(s). Such rights are often asserted and defended in response to their being violated. The importance of understanding these events and issues, and their relationship to individual, ethnic, and national identity, is central to research and debate in a range of fields outside of, as well as within, linguistics. This book provides a clearly written introduction for linguists and non-specialists alike, presenting basic facts about the role of language in the formation of identity and the preservation of culture. It articulates and explores categories of conflict and language rights abuses through detailed presentation of illustrative case studies, and distills from these key cross-linguistic and cross-cultural generalizations.

The end of the Cold War has changed the shape of organized violence in the world and the ways in which governments and others try to set its limits. Even the concept of international conflict is broadening to include ethnic conflicts and other kinds of violence within national borders that may affect international peace and security. What is not yet clear is whether or how these changes alter the way actors on the world scene should deal with conflict: Do the old methods still work? Are there new tools that could work better? How do old and new methods relate to each other? International Conflict Resolution After the Cold War critically examines evidence on the effectiveness of a dozen approaches to managing or resolving conflict in the world to develop insights for conflict resolution practitioners. It considers recent applications of familiar conflict management strategies, such as the use of threats of force, economic sanctions, and negotiation. It presents the first systematic assessments of the usefulness of some less familiar approaches to conflict resolution, including truth commissions, "engineered" electoral systems, autonomy arrangements, and regional organizations. It also opens up analysis of emerging issues, such as the dilemmas facing humanitarian organizations in complex emergencies. This book offers numerous practical insights and raises key questions for research on conflict resolution in a transforming world system.

Written in a detailed and fascinating manner, this book is ideal for general readers interested in the English language.

Language regulation has often been approached from a top-down policy perspective, whereas this book examines regulatory practices employed by speakers in interaction. With its ethnographically informed focus on language regulation in academic English as a lingua franca (ELF), the book is a timely contribution to debates about what counts as acceptable English in ELF contexts, who can act as language expert, and when regulation is needed.

This book addresses a fascinating topic – a constructed language that has turned from a project into a fully-fledged language used by some of its speakers on a daily basis. Based on extensive fieldwork, this book provides rare and profound insights into the use of Esperanto in a large number of communicative areas. It studies the speakers’ use of code-switching, phraseology and metaphors, techniques they employ to enhance understanding, such as metacommunication and repair strategies, as well as their predilection for humour. The study also contributes to a comparison between the communication in Esperanto and in the language that is now predominantly used as a lingua franca – English – and allows conclusions to be drawn on the question of what a lingua franca is all about.