NATIVE AND FOREIGN COMMUNICATION STANDARDS IN COLLOQUIAL JAPANESE LANGUAGE. AN EXAMPLE OF JAPANESE-BRAZILIAN COMMUNICATION

There is a distinct difference on the standards of Japanese communication between native and foreign speakers. This is considered a problem for foreigners who communicate in Japanese within the Japanese community. This study focuses on the case of Japanese-Brazilian's style of communication. The use of honorifics, final particle and back-channeling are some of the important functions concerned with Japanese standards of communication. Even though these three functions are used by foreigners with the same frequency as native speakers, it is determined that this use can create different impressions. Pitch and long intervals have an important element within the standard of communication. It was concluded that although the frequency of use of these three functions was consistent, the different use of pitch and interval length produced differing results. In Japanese education as a foreign language (JSL) there needs to be more focus on the importance of accent and pitch.