Complaining as a face-threatening act: A look into AI complaints

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54855/paic.2461

Keywords:

complaining, directness, face-threatening, indirectness, politeness, speech act

Abstract

This paper aims to conduct an analysis of the complaints as provided by an AI tool, ChatGPT. First, an overview of complaining speech act as a face-threatening act is provided regarding the multiple ways how it is defined and classified, as well as its relation to directness levels. Second, the complaining-realizing strategies with a wide range of modification devices have been summarized and applied as frameworks for scrutinizing AI complaints. Third, the perusal of the complaints gathered from ChatGPT indicates its general adherence to the three-part structure of complaining set, Buffer, Complaint, and Negotiation. The analysis also recorded the implementation of modification tools to show concerns for the interlocutors’ faces.

 

Author Biography

Le Huu Loc, Quy Nhon University, Vietnam

Le Huu Loc is currently a lecturer of English in the Department of Foreign Languages, at Quy Nhon University, Vietnam. He has taught university courses in English language skills (separate and integrated skills) and English linguistic theory, including English Phonetics and Phonology, and English Semantics. His research interests cover Cross-Cultural Pragmatics, Linguistic Politeness Theory, Appraisal Theory (Language of Evaluation), and Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language.

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Published

2024-11-01

How to Cite

Le, H. L. (2024). Complaining as a face-threatening act: A look into AI complaints. Proceedings of the AsiaCALL International Conference, 6, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.54855/paic.2461

Issue

Vol. 6 (2024): Integrating AI Tools for Personalized Language Instruction

Section

Research Article

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Copyright (c) 2024 Le Huu Loc

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