THREATS TO ORAL COMPREHENSION
IN A MULTICULTURAL CONTEXT
Ana Lúcia Tavares Monteiro
INTRODUCTION
Interaction
Participants
Context
• Radiotelephony
communications
• Pilots
• ATCOs
• Multicultural
“First, and most important, ATC communication is more likely
to involve various Englishes than are other types of
aviation communication simply because it often takes
place in cross-cultural and multi-lingual environments”.
(TAJIMA, 2004)
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CROSS-CULTURAL FACTORS IN
AVIATION SAFETY
The Shell Model
EUROCONTROL (2004)
The Reason Model
MELL (2004)
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Based on a literature review, which factors can lead to
misunderstandings in radiotelephony communications?
According to Brazilian professionals’ experience, what are
the possible threats to oral comprehension which can
affect pilot-controller communications while interacting
in English?
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MAIN FACTORS RELATED TO RADIOTELEPHONY
COMMUNICATIONS’ FAILURES
Linguistic
• call signs confusion (from the sound point of view) (4), difficulties related to the prosodic features of
speech (5), different accents, homophony, non-standard phraseology (2), ambiguity, lack of
language proficiency, language barriers, etc;
Discursive-interactional
• Code switching, readback-hearback failures (1), non-cooperation, conflicts and relationship
problems, inferences and false suppositions, wrong interpretation of speech acts, etc;
Intercultural
• different cultures, differences in local procedures and attitudes, etc;
Other human factors
• fatigue, distraction, high workload, expectations, personal problems, etc;
Equipment and/or signal transmission
• incorrect use of microphones, blocked transmissions, distorted messages, frequency congestion,
etc (3);
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ANALYSIS OF PILOTS’ FOCUS GROUP
New Category
Consensus
Controversy
• Lack of knowledge of the other’s activities
• Different accents
• Lack of language proficiency
• Difficulties related to the prosodic features of
speech
• Non-cooperation, conflicts and relationship
problems
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PILOTS’ COMMENTS FROM FOCUS GROUP
DISCUSSIONS
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ANALYSIS OF PILOTS’ INTERVIEWS
New categories
Consensus
Controversy
• Saving face
• Power relations
• Differences in local procedures and attitudes
• Little professional experience - controllers
• Little professional experience - pilots
• Controllers’ training failure
• Lack of knowledge of the other’s activities
• Different Accents
• Difficulties related to the prosodic features of
speech
• Non-standard phraseology
• Code switching
• Non-cooperation, conflicts and relationship
problems
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PILOTS’ COMMENTS FROM INDIVIDUAL
INTERVIEWS
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ANALYSIS OF CONTROLLERS’ FOCUS GROUP
New categories
Consensus
Controversy
• First language interference
• Power relation
• Differences in local procedures and attitudes
• Controllers’ training failure
• Pilots’ training failure
• Lack of knowledge of the other’s activities
• Difficulties related to the prosodic features of
speech
• Lack of knowledge of the other’s activities
• Non-cooperation, conflicts and relationship
problems
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CONTROLLERS’ COMMENTS FROM FOCUS
GROUP DISCUSSIONS
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ANALYSIS OF CONTROLLERS’ INTERVIEWS
New categories
• Saving face
• Power relations
• Differences in local procedures and attitudes
• Little professional experience - controllers
• Lack of knowledge of the other’s activities
• Little professional experience - controllers
• Little professional experience - pilots
Consensus
• Non-cooperation, conflicts and relationship
problems
• Non-standard phraseology
• Difficulties related to the prosodic features of
speech
Controversy
• Code switching
• Cultural differences
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CONTROLLERS’ COMMENTS FROM
INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEWS
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RADIOTELEPHONY COMMUNICATIONS
AND GRICE’S THEORY
THE COOPERATIVE
PRINCIPLE:
‘UNIVERSAL’ CONVENTIONS FOR
RADIOTELEPHONY COMMUNICATIONS:
Discipline:
Make your
conversational
contribution such
as is required...
ICAO, Annex 10, Vol II, 5.1.1 (2001)
Standard Phraseology:
ICAO, Annex 10, Vol II, 5.1.1.1 (2001)
Transmitting technique:
ICAO, Annex 10, Vol II, 5.2.1.5.3 (2001)
... at the stage at
which it occurs...
At the correct time:
“used at the correct time” ICAO, Doc 9432, 4.1.1 (2007)
ICAO, Doc 9432, 4.1.2 (2007)
... by the accepted
Purpose:
purpose or
“safe and expeditious operation of aircraft” .ICAO, Doc 9432, 2.1 (2007)
direction of the talk
“are appropriate and adequate for maintaining an acceptable level of safety in
exchange in which
the provision of ATS”. ICAO, Doc 9432, 2.1 (2007)
you are engaged.
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CATEGORIES
MAXIMS
Quantity
l. Make your
contribution
as informative
as is required (for the
current purposes of
the exchange).
SUB-MAXIMS
Transmission of necessary information: ICAO,
Annex 10, V II, 5.2.1.6.2.1.1
2. Do not make your
contribution more
informative than is
required.
Quality
Try to make your
contribution one
that is true.
Relation
Be relevant.
I expect a partner's
contribution to be
appropriate to the
immediate needs at
each stage of the
transaction.
‘UNIVERSAL’ CONVENTIONS FOR
RADIOTELEPHONY COMMUNICATIONS:
Avoid unnecessary transmissions : ICAO, Annex
10, V II, 5.1.1.2
1. Do not say what
you believe to be
false.
2. Do not say that for
which you lack
adequate evidence.
Say only what you are able to do: ICAO, DOC
9432, 2.8.3.10
Comply with the messages’ sequence:
ICAO Doc 9835, Apêndice B (2004a)
Comply with the messages’ categories:
ICAO, Annex 10, V II, 5.1.8
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CATEGORIES
Manner
MAXIMS
Be perspicuous.
SUB-MAXIMS
‘UNIVERSAL’ CONVENTIONS FOR
RADIOTELEPHONY COMMUNICATIONS:
1. Avoid obscurity
of expression.
Direct statements: “Direct statements” .
ICAO, DOC 9432, p. (iii)
2. Avoid
ambiguity.
Be as clear as possible: “clear, concise, and
unambiguous.”
(ICAO, DOC 9432, p. (iii)
3. Be brief. Avoid
unnecessary
prolixity.
Conciseness of transmissions:
ICAO, Annex 10, V II, 5.2.1.5.2
1) Order of messages: ICAO, Annex 10, V II,
5.2.1.6.
4. Be orderly.
2) Order of phases: ICAO, Doc 4444,
4.5.7.5.1 e 4.5.7.5.2 (2007)
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FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
“One may conclude that despite the studies and recommendations
that have been made in the past, controllers and pilots continue to make
the same communication errors. This is not surprising because pilotcontroller communication is still highly dependent on the human factor.”
(EUROCONTROL, 2006)
RECOMMENDATIONS
• raise awareness
• propose training activities
• reduce the impact of cross-cultural factors on aviation safety
• foster cooperation to continue research on this issue
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ONLINE SURVEY
Link: http://bit.ly/surveyana
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“I am pleased with what I have been able to accomplish”
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Thank you!!!!
Contact: ana.monteiro@anac.gov.br
Master thesis:
http://www.letras.ufrj.br/linguisticaaplicada/docs/dissert/anamonteiro.pdf
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