Abstract:

The application of communication strategies is the issue that has been broadly discussed in numerous publications dealing with the notions of communication and communication efficiency. That prolific area of research resulted in the introduction of diverse taxonomies and classifications, among which the most frequently-quoted typologies were presented by Tarone (1977), Schegloff, Jefferson and Sacks, (1977) Varadi (1980), Corder (1983), Faerch and Kasper (1983), Blum-Kulka and Levenston (1983), Littlewood (1984), Paribakht (1985), Poulisse (1987), Ellis (1994), Dörnyei (1995), Brown (2000), which are believed to have established the basis for further development, studies and critical discussions in this area. In spite of the fact that some of those taxonomies vary greatly in terms of their nomenclature and complexity, they proved to be inestimable in determining the most significant aspects applicable to linguistic research. Consequently, it led to the situation that communication strategies have been investigated from different points of view, mainly in reference to their various kinds and the frequency of their employment in communication acts. Another type of research dealt with the issue how effective communication strategies prove to be in the case when interlocutors are faced with communication problems or are forced to overcome communication breakdowns. Finally, other examples of research desired to describe the influence of proficiency levels, linguistic background, individual personality traits or even gender on the amount and sorts of communication strategies.

The results of the study presented in the article focus on the description of the strategies that were used by a group of advanced Polish users of English and the extent to which they stimulated the successful exchange of communication messages. Since it is widely acclaimed that the level of proficiency positively influences and stimulates the range of communication strategies, it was decided that the study should concentrate only on advanced speakers of English. Additionally, in comparison with the previous studies conducted by the author, the number of the interlocutors was increased from two to three people in order to trigger more spontaneous interaction. What is more, the interactional exchanges were also promoted by the fact that the speakers were asked to perform diversified communication activities. Taking into consideration the aspects connected with the proficiency level, the number of the participants and finally the task types, the article aims at analyzing the correlation between those features and the occurrence of communication strategies. The article also attempts at identifying the most frequently appearing strategies and explaining the reasons for their application.

Keywords:

Communication strategies, advanced speakers of English.