Business peoples’ perceptions of English language use and its importance in the Chinese business world: a mixed-methods study

ABSTRACT

This article presents the findings of a study measuring business people’s perceptions of English language use and its importance in the Chinese business community. Utilizing a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design, an analysis of cross-validated data from 1505 questionnaire participants and 30 interviewees revealed that business people in China do not use English as frequently as their national language, Mandarin Chinese, in their dealings. Nevertheless, the findings also indicated that business people are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of English as a medium of communication in the business world. The findings have meaningful implications for practitioners of English for specific purposes, policymakers, and materials developers.

KEYWORDS:

• Business English
• English as a lingua franca
• use of English
• communication
• business people
• China

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2024.2316402