communicative competence

a speaker’s knowledge of language and ability to use it appropriately in various communicative settings and with a range of different interlocutors. In contrast to Noam Chomsky’s notion of competence, which explicitly excludes nonlinguistic factors, the idea of communicative competence stresses the social uses of language and the importance of context. See also communication skills. [first described by U.S. sociolinguist Dell H. Hymes (1927–2009)]

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

May 10th 2024

coping style

the characteristic manner in which an individual confronts and deals with stress, anxiety-provoking situations, or emergencies.