Phatic Production and Interlocutor Status

A mixed-methods study of pragmatic appropriateness in EFL academic WhatsApp interaction

Authors

Keywords:

Phatic production, pragmatic appropriateness, sociopragmatic competence, interlocutor status, academic WhatsApp interaction

Abstract

Conducted at the Facultad de Lenguas, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, this study examines whether the pragmatic appropriateness of EFL learners’ phatic production in academic WhatsApp interactions differs by interlocutor status, and what this implies for instruction. Using a mixed-methods, cross-sectional design, the study analyzed 50 EFL learners’ responses to a Discourse Completion Task by means of Wilcoxon signed-rank tests and qualitative interpretative analysis. Appropriateness was significantly higher toward professors than peers in openings and closings, but not in maintenance, revealing that learners’ sociopragmatic sensitivity is concentrated in the ritualized acts of opening and closing interactions, while they struggle to moderate peer register in digital academic interaction.

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Author Biographies

Alma Alicia Peralta Aguillón, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla

Alma Alicia Peralta Aguillón is a PhD candidate in the Facultad de Lenguas of the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Modern Languages and a master’s degree in English Teaching. Her research focuses on interlanguage pragmatics, digital pragmatics and pragmatics instruction in EFL.

Celso Pérez Carranza, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla

Celso Pérez Carranza holds a bachelor’s degree in Foreign Language Teaching, a master’s degree in Higher Education, and a PhD in Pedagogical Sciences from the University of Camagüey, Cuba. He has served as a full-time tenured Professor-Researcher in the bachelor's Degree in English Language Teaching for 29 years. He is a member of the Academic Group "Teaching, Research and Professional Innovation," which has achieved Consolidated status. He has published several research articles in indexed journals and has presented as a speaker at numerous national and international academic events. His areas of interest are language teaching and learning, and the Indigenous languages of Mexico.

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Published

2026-10-31

How to Cite

Peralta Aguillón, A. A., & Pérez Carranza, C. (2026). Phatic Production and Interlocutor Status: A mixed-methods study of pragmatic appropriateness in EFL academic WhatsApp interaction. CIEX JOURNAL, (23), 33–47. Retrieved from https://journal.ciex.edu.mx/index.php/cJ/article/view/295

Issue

No. 23 (2026): CIEX Journ@l

Section

Articles

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Copyright (c) 2026 CIEX JOURNAL

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