Assessing pragmatic comprehension competence in Chinese as a second/foreign language: From the perspective of speech acts in Chinese

This study evaluates the pragmatic comprehension competence of Chinese speech acts among adult learners of Chinese as a second language (CSL) and Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). A computerized Pragmatic Listening Judgment Task was adopted to collect accuracy and reaction time data from 88 participants from Mainland China and South Korea, examining their comprehension across four major categories of speech acts including assertives, directives, commissives, and expressives. Three main observations were made: (i) learners’ speech act competence was not homogenously developed, with imbalanced mastery exhibited for different subtypes of speech acts; (ii) developmental progress was achievable for learners in pragmatics acquisition; (iii) learning context did not significantly affect the (non-) nativelike attainment of speech acts in the target language, while immersive learning environments could help enhance learners’ comprehension in some but not all conditions. These findings suggest important theoretical and pedagogical implications in CSL/CFL pragmatics acquisition, emphasizing the need for a more targeted and comprehensive approach to language instruction that addresses the interplay between language proficiency, sociocultural factors, and learning context in CSL/CFL pragmatics acquisition. Copyright © 2025 The Author(s).