Question design in veterinary consultations: Question forms and client responses in accomplishing problem presentation in a Malaysian context
Vol.15,No.1(2022)
Mei Yuit Chan
Shameem Rafik-Galea
Ngee Thai Yap
Geok Imm Lee
Puteri Azaziah Megat Abd Rani
Question design by medical practitioners has been shown to have important consequences on how patients present their problems in clinical consultations. Linguistic structure of questions as part of question design implements different communicative and pragmatic functions, and hence, affects patients’ response in different ways. This study examined types of questions asked by veterinarians in the problem presentation phase of the clinical consultation in relation to their linguistic forms and functions. Veterinary illness consultations were video-recorded and veterinarians’ question types, their linguistic forms and clients’ response in the interaction were identified and examined. The results show that the general inquiry question implemented using the open-ended wh-question structure and the closed-ended declarative interrogative are the preferred forms used by veterinarians to solicit patients’ presenting problems from clients. Also, alignment of the linguistic form of questions with their pragmatic functions and the discourse goal of problem presentation affects clients’ ascription of veterinarians’ actions. The findings from the study can inform veterinarian communication training for more effective veterinarian-client communication to accomplish problem presentation in clinical consultations.
clinical consultation interaction; question forms; veterinarians’ questions; client response; veterinarian-client communication; problem presentation; question design
Noorjan Hussein Jamal
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Noorjan Hussein Jamal completed her PhD in English Language at the Department of English, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia. She has been lecturer at the Department of Translation, University of Tikrit, Iraq, since 2007. She conducted her research on language in clinical communication focusing on veterinarian-client interaction.
Mei Yuit Chan
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Mei Yuit Chan is Associate Professor at the Department of English, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her primary area of interest is in the investigation of issues in language and discourses in social and professional contexts involving different populations. She also actively researches other areas of applied linguistics including language acquisition and specialised language use employing a diverse range of methodologies. She is the corresponding author of the present paper.
Shameem Rafik-Galea
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Shameem Rafik-Galea retired from Universiti Putra Malaysia and is now Professor at the Department of Postgraduate Studies, Faculty of Education, Languages and Psychology, SEGi University, Malaysia. Her research focuses on language in professional practices and workplace communication.
Ngee Thai Yap
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Ngee Thai Yap is Associate Professor at the Department of English, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her primary area of research involves language acquisition, psycholinguistics, and linguistic descriptions of language.
Geok Imm Lee
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Geok Imm Lee is a senior lecturer at the Department of English, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia. Her research interest is in applied linguistics, specifically focusing on the skill and practice of writing.
Puteri Azaziah Megat Abd Rani
Universiti Putra Malaysia
Puteri Azaziah Megat Abd Rani is associate professor at the Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universiti Putra Malaysia. She is a practicing veterinarian, and specialises in small animal veterinary research.
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Copyright © 2022 Noorjan Hussein Jamal, Mei Yuit Chan, Shameem Rafik-Galea, Ngee Thai Yap, Geok Imm Lee, Puteri Azaziah Megat Abd Rani