Communication accommodation theory analysis of nurse-patient interaction: Implications for course design

Language discordance can limit nursing professionals' (NP) ability to use patient-centred communication (PCC). Adequate research should underpin the design of applied linguistic solutions to this problem. Thus, this article reports on some of the potential language and communication learning needs of NPs in language discordant contexts. Communication Accommodation Theory is used to analyse observation and interview data with the aim of investigating the factors that influence patients' evaluative responses to NPs' limited linguistic competence. The results indicate that, depending on context, attributed motives and willingness to accommodate can influence patient evaluative reactions more than cultural stereotypes or comprehension problems. Thus, NPs need to develop not only their linguistic and accommodative resources to decrease comprehension problems, but also the ability to attend to affect.