Data collection and analysis in developmental L2 pragmatics research: Discourse completion test, role play, and naturalistic recording

This chapter compares common data collection and analysis methods used in longitudinal studies in second language pragmatics. Specifically, three data collection methods used to document speech act development are compared: discourse completion tasks (written and spoken), role plays, and naturalistic recordings. I critically discuss benefits and shortcomings of these data collection methods, in response to three questions: (1) What is the nature of speech act data collected in each method?; (2) What kind of analysis is performed on the data collected?; and (3) What conclusions are drawn as evidence for speech act development? The chapter concludes with critical reflections and directions for future investigation into pragmatic development.