The exploitation of conversational maxims in Generation Z’s mental health discourse on social networking sites

This study examines the use of pragmatic strategies in Generation Z’s linguistic expressions related to mental health issues on social media, drawing on Grice’s (1975) Cooperative Principle and Sperber and Wilson’s (1986) Relevance Theory. The analysis focuses on the exploitation of the Cooperative Principle maxims and the implicatures generated in mental health–related discourse. The data consist of Malay-language utterances purposively collected from social media platforms, particularly those exhibiting features of maxim exploitation. The analytical procedure involved data transcription, identification of types of maxim exploitation, derivation of implicatures based on relevance principles, and determination of communicative strategies according to the contextual features of the utterances. The findings reveal that Generation Z consistently exploits conversational maxims to convey indirect meanings, avoid social conflict, and manage audience perceptions when discussing sensitive mental health issues. Such maxim-exploiting linguistic expressions function as a self-protective mechanism that enables speakers to articulate views, experiences, and responses related to mental health while safeguarding their public image. The use of these communicative strategies indicates a tendency among speakers to adapt their utterances to social norms and audience expectations. This study demonstrates that pragmatic strategies play a crucial role in meaning construction and the management of mental health communication among Generation Z in digital spaces. Overall, the findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between linguistic form, communicative strategy, and mental health discourse among young social media users.

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