AN ANALYSIS OF FILLERS USED BY MALE AND FEMALE STUDENTS IN THEIR ENGLISH SPEECH (A Case Study at The Tenth Grade Students of One Senior High School in Singaparna Tasikmalaya)

Abstract

This research is aimed to analyze the type and factor that cause fillers spoken by male and female students in their English speech. This descriptive research employed two groups. Every group consists of three male and female students. The students used the data for fillers from their speech and interview transcript and interview. The data were identified and classified based on the theory put forward by Rose (1998). They consist of lexicalized and unlexicalized fillers. Then, the factor cause fillers were used underpinning the theory by Oomen and Postma (2001). They are divided into attention, infrequent words, and nervousness. The results show that the male and female students produced unlexicalized fillers asthe most frequently used, followed by lexicalized fillers. Both of male and female studentsproduced fillers because of three factors, divided attention, infrequent words, and nervousness. All those factors were used by male and female students in their English apeech performance. Moreover, nervousness was the most frequently factors causing fillers used by male and female students, followed by infrequent word, and the last devided attention. Thus, there were similiarities both in types and factors cause fillers used by male and female students. However, it was found that female students generated more fillers than men did. The reason is that women tend to speak less certainty compared to men.