本研究旨在以言談-語用的觀點探討國語的附加問句。文中指出，國語附加問句作用的層次在後語言層次(meta-linguistic level)，是用以創造說話者與聽話者間互動的一種言談標記。它有別於英文的附加問句。英文附加問句作用於句法層次(syntactic level)，要求聽者依據句子的動詞片語做回答。中英文附加問句本質的不同，解釋了為何中國學生學英文時，常對何時回答 ‘yes’，何時回答 ‘no’，產生混淆與誤會。
本論文探討了中文附加問句的形式與功能。形式上，可分為兩種：帶有詞尾助詞的附加問句(particle tags)及A-不-A附加問句(A-not-A tags)。兩者的出現頻率有顯著的差別，在總數322個附加問句中，前者在語料中出現頻率佔7.76%，後者佔87.89%。帶有詞尾助詞的附加問句的功能皆與其前頭語(head utterance)的命題內容(propositional conent)有緊密的相關。然而，四個頻率最高的A-不-A附加問句(好不好，對不對，有沒有和是不是)的功能，則不只和命題內容相關，更進一步演化出文意連接(textual)及情感(affective)功能，顯示其比帶有詞尾助詞的附加問句較高程度的語法化，且語法化乃朝向主觀性(subjectivity)的方向。也就是說，A-不-A附加問句一般功能在使交談更生動，更有互動性。
帶有詞尾助詞的附加問句與A-不-A附加問句的不同功能，反映在它們不同的分佈位置上。帶有詞尾助詞的附加問句很一致地出現在其前頭語之後，而A-不-A附加問句則還可出現在前頭語的中間，甚至之前的位置。文中並指出，使用頻率是促成兩種附加問句不同語法化程度的主要因素。A-不-A附加問句因為使用頻率很高，而加速其語法化的速度。因此A-不-A附加問句表現出頻率效應(frequency effects)，如功能改變(functional change)，音變(phonological change)，及詞句結構變化(morphosyntactic change)。

This study aims to investigate question tags in Taiwan Mandarin from a discourse-pragmatic perspective. It is pointed out that question tags in general are discourse markers that serve the meta-linguistic function of creating speaker-addressee involvement during speech. They are distinguished from tag questions in English, which serve the syntactic function of requiring the addressee to respond according to the polarity of the verb phrase in the head clause. The very different nature of the ‘tag questions’ in the two languages thus can account for the common errors committed by Chinese learners of English when they are called upon to respond to English tag questions containing a negative head clause. Chinese learners are often tempted to reply with “yes” instead of what is meant to be “no,” thus causing misunderstanding.
The forms and functions of Mandarin question tags are explored. Two forms of question tags are identified in Mandarin, i.e. particle tags and A-not-A tags. Particle tags and A-not-A tags occur with strikingly great difference in frequency, the former occupying 7.76% and the latter occupying 87.89% of all the 322 tags in the data. The functions of the particle tags all show close dependency on the propositional content of the head utterance. In other words, their functions are generally proposition-oriented. However, the functions of the four frequently occurring A-not-A tags, namely, hao-bu-hao好不好, dui-bu-dui對不對, you-mei-you有沒有and shi-bu-shi是不是, all evolve textual and epistemic functions from their propositional usages, exhibiting their higher degrees of grammaticalization toward subjectivity than particle tags. That is, A-not-A tags develop to mainly serve to make the interaction more vividly bi-directional.
The different general functions of particle tags and A-not-A tags are also reflected in their difference in distribution. Particle tags invariably occur at head-final positions whereas A-not-A tags occur at head-final, head-medial and even head-initial positions. Frequency is proposed to be the factor that accounts for the different degrees of grammaticalization for particle tags and A-not-A tags. Being unmarked members of question tags, A-not-A tags occur with high frequency, which encourages their grammaticalization. They thus show such frequency effects (Bybee 1999) as functional change, phonological change and morphosyntactic change.

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