The Speech Act of Requests in Arabic Used by Saudi Facebook Users

This study investigates the direct and indirect strategies of the speech act of request in an academic online community. Grounded in speech act and politeness theory, it attempts to explore how Saudi digital interlocutors employ request strategies in terms of directness and indirectness, as well as gender differences in request formulation. While most previous studies focus on face-to-face communication, few have examined online requests. Data were collected from a public Facebook page for Saudi teaching assistants and lecturers, comprising 550 posts (300 from males, 250 from females). Quantitative content analysis revealed that direct strategies, particularly direct questioning, were predominant, supporting the preference for clarity in online discourse. Male users employed more direct strategies than females, reflecting subtle gender differences in politeness strategies. Although males also used indirect strategies more frequently, both genders equally employed query preparatory strategies. The preference for direct strategies does not indicate impoliteness but rather a need for clarity due to the lack of verbal and non-verbal cues in online discourse. Social media interactions are characterized by their informality and egalitarianism, lacking obligation statements and suggestory formulas. This study demonstrates that the use of digital platforms is revolutionizing the way Saudi users communicate, leading to greater directness while remaining attuned to politeness markers. This study enriches general perspectives on the social use of language in online environments, informing the understanding of cultural differences in language practices, providing implications for digital etiquette training, and highlighting shifts within the gendered nature of speech acts in virtual spaces.