The Use of the Plain Form and Laughter in Business Conversations

<p>This paper aims to examine the use of the plain form by Thai Japanese speakers and Japanese native speakers as subordinates in business conversations with Japanese superiors. The study specifically focuses on the use of the plain form and its use in conjunction with laughter. This study also analyzes the contexts in which the plain form is employed and its functions within those contexts. The results show that Thai Japanese speakers primarily used the plain form in contexts to add information or examples, form questions and answers, and make references. Japanese native speakers employed plain form in context where they were referencing something, adding information or examples, or providing information. In the data from Thai Japanese speakers, multiple instances of the plain form occurring with laughter were observed, while a similar phenomenon was not found in utterances by Japanese native speakers. In addition, this paper identifies the fact that the plain form serves multiple functions, including clarifying information and expressing emotions, which were observed in both the data from Thai Japanese speakers and Japanese native speakers. Furthermore, the study uncovers some specific functions of the plain form, which were observed in the data of the Thai Japanese speakers only. These speakers are creating discourse markers when introducing new topics and adding a sense of enjoyment when the plain form occurs with laughter. The implications of this study could be applied to enhancing explanations of the plain form in Japanese education and business Japanese education.</p>