Communication strategy use and negotiation of meaning in text chat and videoconferencing

This study aims at investigating meaning negotiation and communication strategy use among nonnative speakers of English in text chat and videoconferencing. Learners in a Chinese and a Japanese university participated in text chats and videoconferences to discuss culture-related topics using English as the common language. Text chat scripts and videoconferencing transcripts were analyzed using a simplified version of the meaning negotiation model developed by Smith (2003a). A survey was conducted on communication strategy use. Results of the discourse analysis and the survey indicate that both text chat and videoconferencing are valuable tools to assist meaning negotiation and facilitate second language acquisition. Compared to videoconferencing, text chat has the potential of promoting lexical acquisition.