Requesting Through Email: An Intercultural Communication Study on Chinese Graduate Students

This study investigates the pragmatic features of request emails written by Chinese graduate students in English, focusing on their use of request strategies, the occurrence of implicit requests, and instances of pragmatic failure in intercultural communication contexts. Through qualitative and quantitative analysis of authentic email samples, the research identifies prevalent patterns in strategy selection and highlights challenges related to cultural differences, language proficiency, and sociopragmatic awareness. Findings suggest that learners tend to favor direct and mitigated requests but may encounter misunderstandings due to indirectness or inappropriate levels of politeness. The study discusses underlying factors influencing these phenomena, including linguistic limitations and divergent cultural norms regarding power relations and face-saving. Based on these insights, it is recommended that students enhance their linguistic accuracy, develop a better understanding of culturally appropriate request conventions, pay close attention to power dynamics and politeness strategies, and actively reflect on their email writing practices to improve pragmatic competence and intercultural communicative effectiveness. This research contributes to the field of intercultural pragmatics by providing empirical evidence of second language (L2) email request behavior within academic contexts.