title: Lying: Strategies to Manage Undesirable Communicative Situations in Japan and New Zealand

authors: Nishimura, Fumiko

subjects: untruthful excuses

abstract: This study explores how Japanese and New Zealand people manage undesirable communicative situations by applying lying strategies, specifically, how they manage refusal situations by using untruthful excuses. Lying is a communicative strategy that people sometimes adopt to manage undesirable situations in everyday conversation. However, previous studies have not focused on what types of lies are employed or how lies are delivered in such situations. In addition, the use of lies is likely to differ among different cultures and this could lead to miscommunication. Thus, it is worthwhile to conduct a cross-cultural study on this topic. The study aims to find out, by focusing on specific situations involving refusals, what types of lies—or untruthful excuses—people use, how lies are employed between different cultural groups, and how culture influences the use of lies in conversation. For this purpose, lies used in refusal conversations—one request-refusal and two invitation-refusal conversations—were analysed within an interactional sociolinguistic framework and by drawing on interpersonal communication theory. The data consisted of role-play conversations performed by 64 pairs of friends (32 Japanese and 32 New Zealanders pairs) in Japanese and English respectively. The following key findings emerged. First, the choice of type of lies differed between the two data sets. The Japanese participants chose lies to demonstrate an unequivocal refusal message, for example, showing strong rejection with a surfeit of reasoning in their excuses. Such lies preclude negotiation and, therefore, the likelihood of further uncertainty or conflict. In this way harmony was maintained. The New Zealand participants followed social protocols to lie, for instance, lying about a prior arrangement with a simple explanation. Negotiation subsequently took place based on the information provided in conversation. Second, the emergent data suggested that culture influenced how lies were perceived. Japanese participants appeared to share an implicit understanding that lies are likely to be used in the refusal situation; by contrast, New Zealand participants acted without this presumption. This interpretation follows from the finding that the Japanese often disregard the information offered in untruthful excuses. The New Zealanders however, treat untruthful excuses as a genuine source of information. Third, Japanese and New Zealand participants tended to apply politeness strategies differently. The Japanese used strong and direct expressions in their lies. These were positive politeness strategies to show closeness to friends or in-group members. The New Zealanders tended not to differentiate between in-group and out-group members and applied similar politeness strategies to everyone. Through a comparative analysis, the study provides new knowledge how Japanese and New Zealanders use different types of lies in a different manner to handle potentially difficult interpersonal communicative situations such as refusals. It also demonstrates that lying is the result of complex, culturally influenced processes: the use of lies is underpinned by cultural preferences and protocols in relation to cultural values, the perception of lying, and communication style. The study has made a strong emphasis on importance of understanding the rationale behind the use of lies particularly for intercultural settings.

text: Lying: Strategies to Manage Undesirable Communicative Situations in Japan and New Zealand This study explores how Japanese and New Zealand people manage undesirable communicative situations by applying lying strategies, specifically, how they manage refusal situations by using untruthful excuses. Lying is a communicative strategy that people sometimes adopt to manage undesirable situations in everyday conversation. However, previous studies have not focused on what types of lies are employed or how lies are delivered in such situations. In addition, the use of lies is likely to differ among different cultures and this could lead to miscommunication. Thus, it is worthwhile to conduct a cross-cultural study on this topic. The study aims to find out, by focusing on specific situations involving refusals, what types of lies—or untruthful excuses—people use, how lies are employed between different cultural groups, and how culture influences the use of lies in conversation. For this purpose, lies used in refusal conversations—one request-refusal and two invitation-refusal conversations—were analysed within an interactional sociolinguistic framework and by drawing on interpersonal communication theory. The data consisted of role-play conversations performed by 64 pairs of friends (32 Japanese and 32 New Zealanders pairs) in Japanese and English respectively. The following key findings emerged. First, the choice of type of lies differed between the two data sets. The Japanese participants chose lies to demonstrate an unequivocal refusal message, for example, showing strong rejection with a surfeit of reasoning in their excuses. Such lies preclude negotiation and, therefore, the likelihood of further uncertainty or conflict. In this way harmony was maintained. The New Zealand participants followed social protocols to lie, for instance, lying about a prior arrangement with a simple explanation. Negotiation subsequently took place based on the information provided in conversation. Second, the emergent data suggested that culture influenced how lies were perceived. Japanese participants appeared to share an implicit understanding that lies are likely to be used in the refusal situation; by contrast, New Zealand participants acted without this presumption. This interpretation follows from the finding that the Japanese often disregard the information offered in untruthful excuses. The New Zealanders however, treat untruthful excuses as a genuine source of information. Third, Japanese and New Zealand participants tended to apply politeness strategies differently. The Japanese used strong and direct expressions in their lies. These were positive politeness strategies to show closeness to friends or in-group members. The New Zealanders tended not to differentiate between in-group and out-group members and applied similar politeness strategies to everyone. Through a comparative analysis, the study provides new knowledge how Japanese and New Zealanders use different types of lies in a different manner to handle potentially difficult interpersonal communicative situations such as refusals. It also demonstrates that lying is the result of complex, culturally influenced processes: the use of lies is underpinned by cultural preferences and protocols in relation to cultural values, the perception of lying, and communication style. The study has made a strong emphasis on importance of understanding the rationale behind the use of lies particularly for intercultural settings.

year: 2011

title: Towards the web in your pocket: Curated data as a service

authors: Dillon, Stuart M.

subjects: curation process

abstract: The Web has grown tremendously over the past two decades, as have the information needs of its users. The traditional interface between the vast data resources of the Web and its users is the search engine. However, search engines are increasingly challenged in providing the information needed for a particular context or application in a comprehensive, concise, and timely manner. To overcome this, we present a framework that does not just answer queries based on a pre-assembled index, but based on a subject-specific database that is curated by domain experts and dynamically generated based on vast user input

text: Towards the web in your pocket: Curated data as a service The Web has grown tremendously over the past two decades, as have the information needs of its users. The traditional interface between the vast data resources of the Web and its users is the search engine. However, search engines are increasingly challenged in providing the information needed for a particular context or application in a comprehensive, concise, and timely manner. To overcome this, we present a framework that does not just answer queries based on a pre-assembled index, but based on a subject-specific database that is curated by domain experts and dynamically generated based on vast user input

year: 2013

title: The Impact of Colonisation on the Maori community: An exploration of the attitudes and perspectives held by Maori in relation to the active reclamation of Maori sovereignty/tino rangatiratanga.

authors: Baty, Tina Amy

subjects: Maori

abstract: Whāia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei
Seek the treasure you value most dearly: If you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain
The purpose of my research was twofold. I first sort to explore the attitudes and perspectives held by Māori in relation to the active reclamation of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga. I further wanted to know how Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga could lead to the improvement of Māori health.
My research collected information pertinent to these two inquiries from current literature and from interviews I conducted with five Māori individuals from different iwi, hapu groups. All whom were actively engaged with the Māori community in some form. My research data found that colonisalism has and continues to negatively impact the Māori community. This negative impact manifests in a variety of behaviours that effect Māori health and leads to poor outcomes for Māori. Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga was thought of as the solution to overcome and neutralise the negative effects of colonialism experienced by Māori. Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga was found to be related with Māori idenity and instrumental in all things pertinent to the Māori communities.
My research found that Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga can be identified as existing on a philosophical level, governance-structural level, and on a day-to-day basis. This research found that the reclamation of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga is a process that is currently in motion. Finally, the exercising of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga in relation to Māori health provides a well-established argument that it can produce positive health benefits to the Māori community, because it is responsive to Māori and better meets the needs of our Māori community simply because it is a Māori way of being, doing and knowing.

text: The Impact of Colonisation on the Maori community: An exploration of the attitudes and perspectives held by Maori in relation to the active reclamation of Maori sovereignty/tino rangatiratanga. Whāia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei
Seek the treasure you value most dearly: If you bow your head, let it be to a lofty mountain
The purpose of my research was twofold. I first sort to explore the attitudes and perspectives held by Māori in relation to the active reclamation of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga. I further wanted to know how Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga could lead to the improvement of Māori health.
My research collected information pertinent to these two inquiries from current literature and from interviews I conducted with five Māori individuals from different iwi, hapu groups. All whom were actively engaged with the Māori community in some form. My research data found that colonisalism has and continues to negatively impact the Māori community. This negative impact manifests in a variety of behaviours that effect Māori health and leads to poor outcomes for Māori. Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga was thought of as the solution to overcome and neutralise the negative effects of colonialism experienced by Māori. Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga was found to be related with Māori idenity and instrumental in all things pertinent to the Māori communities.
My research found that Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga can be identified as existing on a philosophical level, governance-structural level, and on a day-to-day basis. This research found that the reclamation of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga is a process that is currently in motion. Finally, the exercising of Māori sovereignty, tino rangatiratanga in relation to Māori health provides a well-established argument that it can produce positive health benefits to the Māori community, because it is responsive to Māori and better meets the needs of our Māori community simply because it is a Māori way of being, doing and knowing.

year: 2018