A Study on Intelligibility of Korean English in Cross-cultural Context

According to Pickering (2006), the studies of intelligibility between NNS and NNS are still in an infant stage, which challenges this research. The purpose of this study is to measure the intelligibility of Korean English in a small scale of multi-cultural context in the Philippines from a perspective of a Korean speaker. A total of 14 speakers and listeners participated in the study. Among them, three Korean speakers were enrolled in APNTS (Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary): Speaker 1 (beginner), Speaker 2 (intermediate) and Speaker 3 (advanced). Eleven listeners were in graduate studies in APNTS with at least 500 scores in local English exam. They consisted of NS and NNS students, and measured intelligibility of NNS students (3 speakers). Findings showed that the level of each speaker's English proficiency influenced on the degree of intelligibility. The Speaker I struggled with recognizing hard lexis, and her lack of confident knowledge of lexis influenced negatively on the intelligibility, The Speaker 3 was rated relatively highly in the perception scales, however, her fast speaking rate took the negative role in the intelligibility. The Speaker 2 was rated the most intelligible, especially in his free speech. The result of the study illustrated that it was not only speaker's English proficiency but also listeners' proficiency that is connected to the intelligibility. Intelligibility was mutually interactive and depending on the speaker-listener variables.