VIOLATIONS OF POLITENESS IN OME TV INTERACTIONS: A SPEECH ACT ANALYSIS OF INDECENT EXPRESSIONS

Abstract

Indecent expressions are increasingly common on random video-chat platforms such as OmeTV, yet little is known about how they function pragmatically as violations of politeness, making this an urgent site for inquiry. This study investigates such violations through a speech act analysis of indecent expressions, based on the assumption that these expressions are not merely vulgar lexical choices but pragmatic acts that shape interpersonal relations between speakers. Unlike prior research that treats online toxicity and im/politeness separately, this study offers a novel integration of the two frameworks in the underexamined context of synchronous video-based interaction. The objectives are to identify the forms of politeness violations found in OmeTV interactions, to analyze the speech acts realized through indecent expressions, and to explain how such expressions reflect politeness violations online. This study employed a descriptive qualitative approach with pragmatic analysis. The data consisted of utterances containing indecent expressions, classified according to the forms of politeness violations and their speech act functions. Findings show that politeness violations in OmeTV are primarily realized through sexualized indecent remarks, direct insulting expressions, mocking and degrading utterances, and intrusive personal comments, predominantly realized as expressive, directive, and representative speech acts. These results indicate that indecent expressions in OmeTV are not merely lexical phenomena, but pragmatic acts that threaten face, violate interpersonal boundaries, and construct relations of domination in digital interaction. The study concludes by contributing to digital pragmatics, particularly in understanding the relationship between politeness violations, indecent expressions, and speech acts in random video-chat communication.