Effects of positive politeness strategies in business letters

Abstract

Brown and Levinson's (1987) typology of politeness strategies, derived from the basic wants of a model person, leaves the question unanswered as to what extent these strategies are perceived and evaluated as contributions to the quality of communication. In this paper, we will discuss the effects of adding and combining positive politeness strategies to letters denying claims to policy holders. The combined results of two experiments offer a clear picture: ‘Give Reasons’ has a positive effect on the evaluation of the letter, while two other strategies have no effect at all. Theoretical implications are discussed, as is the use of experimentation in politeness research.