Apology strategies in Indonesia language used by the Indonesian Department Students of the State University of Malang (UM)

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on analyzing the apology strategies used by the Indonesian department students of UM using theory of Olshtain and Cohen. When people have communication, it is possible for people to have violation and the offence, even it will come misunderstanding between speaker and the hearer, although they may have acquired a good lexical and grammatical command of the language, for example: students who take Indonesia language in their study. Sometimes, little comments or actions can hurt or offend others. If it happens, the act of apologizing is needed, to say they are sorry, to explain why the offense happened and to make a repair for the offense and maintain a good relationship with the redress.

Based on the background, this study aims at describing the Indonesian department students of UM frame apologizing in Indonesia language and identifying the kinds of strategy used by the Indonesian department students in performing apologize in Indonesia language.

This research is conducted using a descriptive qualitative method based on Olhstain and Cohen’s framework. The data were collected using a Discourse Completion Test (DCT) in which the respondents were asked to give responds, based on the given situations.

Based on the analysis, this study found that the Indonesian students of UM use the fifth strategy of apologies, they are an expression of apology, an acknowledgement of responsibility, an explanation or account of the situation, an offer of repair and promise of forbearance in 5 situations, but they prefer using offer of apology in direct apology and offer of repair in indirect apology. Besides, the apologiser reconcile the appropriate strategy with the offence situation happened.

Based on those findings, it is recommended that the next researchers conduct researchers on inter-language and cross-cultural study. In addition, the researchers should be aware in providing the DCT, it should be more various questions (situations) to get various expressions of apologies.