Differences Between Business Letters From Native and Non-Native Speakers of English

Abstract

The authors compared 214 letters of inquiry written by native and nonnative speakersof English to test the assumption that cultural factors beyond language greatly affectcommunication, factors such as the knowledge of the business communication practices and of the cultural expectations of other countries. Letters written by native andby nonnative speakers of English differed significantly from each other in number ofmechanical errors in the complimentary closings, in tone (primarily through exaggerated politeness), and in length. The two groups also differed significantly in thetype of information in the letters, specifically, unnecessary professional and personalinformation and inappropriate requests for evaluation or intercession. These findingsindicate that the native speakers' letters overall deviated less from US business communication practices than did the nonnative speakers' letters.