Journal of Languages for Specific Purposes (Mar 2018)
AN ANALYSIS OF CONVERSATIONAL DISCOURSE IN MEDICAL SETTINGS FOR LEARNERS OF GERMAN: LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND PEDAGOGY
Abstract
The recent sociopolitical circumstances in Germany have led to the popularization of teaching German as a foreign language (Deutsch als Fremdsprache, DaF) within the country. To cater to the different needs or goals of learners, various DaF materials including those for specific occupational purposes have been designed. Assuming that dialogues in contemporary DaF textbooks constitute the important means of socializing learners into the use of the target language in real-life communication, this paper examined 29 conversations provided in an audio recording of a DaF textbook for non-physician healthcare workers. The healthcare sector was chosen because it is the profession in which DaF foreigners are often recruited. The major objective of the current research is to identify any pedagogic values of the dialogues. To this end, the utterances of the medical personnel in the dialogues were analyzed in accordance with Halliday’s (1975) model about the seven functions of language. Attention was also paid to how these functions are linguistically manifested for medical communication as well as the construction of professional identity. The findings underscore the different roles which healthcare employees play in their workplace. These roles include providing or gathering information, building up rapport and regulating patients’ behavior. Besides, the function-form correspondence is evident in the data. For instance, where the “instrumental” function is concerned, the healthcare workers tend to articulate their medical routine as a desire with ich möchte [I want to]. On the other hand, the “personal” function is typically realized by phrases like ich glaube [I believe], which preface the healthcare workers’ medical judgment or advice. Last but not least, the data offer insights into how healthcare workers perform their professional identity during communication. One example is the simultaneous use of medical jargon and its generic equivalent (e.g., Amlodipin [amlodipine] versus Blutdrucktabletten [blood pressure tablets]) to display their expertise without jeopardizing patients’ understanding. Given the findings of this study, DaF practitioners working in the field of Languages for Specific Purposes (LSP)are advised to use the dialogues in textbooks to systematically cultivate learners’ consciousness of how linguistic resources can be mobilized for communication in their profession.
