Sharing Background Knowledge for Polite Intercultural Interaction: Indonesian Migrant Workers in Malaysia and Their Employers - A Pragmatics Study

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_23How to use a DOI?

Keywords

politeness; intercultural interaction; Indonesian Migrant Workers; Malaysia

Abstract

This study explores the role of background knowledge in facilitating polite intercultural interactions between Indonesian migrant workers and their Malaysian employers. Using a pragmatic framework, the research identifies key linguistic strategies and cultural norms that either bridge or widen the communication gap. The findings show that from the perspective of Malaysian employers, Indonesian migrant workers are perceived as significantly more pragmatically polite compared to workers from other countries. This heightened level of perceived politeness can be attributed to the shared background knowledge that Indonesian workers possess regarding language, cultural norms, rules, and beliefs, which aligns closely with those of their Malaysian employers. The linguistic affinity between Bahasa Indonesia and Bahasa Malaysia facilitates smoother communication and reduces potential misunderstandings, enabling Indonesian workers to employ politeness strategies more effectively. Additionally, the cultural and religious commonalities, predominantly Islam, further reinforce mutual understanding and respectful interactions. Consequently, Indonesian migrant workers exhibit a nuanced awareness of social etiquettes and hierarchical respect, which resonate well with the expectations of their Malaysian employers. Similarly, Indonesian workers hold a favorable impression of their Malay employers compared to employers of other ethnic backgrounds, primarily due to the shared cultural heritage. This reciprocal appreciation underscores the importance of background knowledge in fostering polite and harmonious intercultural workplace interactions.

Copyright

© 2024 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Download article (PDF)

TY  - CONF
AU  - Djatmika Djatmika
AU  - Riyadi Santosa
AU  - Agus Hari Wibowo
AU  - Bahtiar Mohamad
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/12/24
TI  - Sharing Background Knowledge for Polite Intercultural Interaction: Indonesian Migrant Workers in Malaysia and Their Employers - A Pragmatics Study
BT  - Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Communication, Language, Literature, and Culture (ICCoLliC 2024)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 321
EP  - 332
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_23
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_23
ID  - Djatmika2024
ER  -