1.2 Significance of the Study
1.2.1 Theoretical Significance
    Language is a kind of representation for national features, which not only contains national history and culture, but also its life style. The incentive phrase is one of those polite verbal behaviors, which is a speaker’s praise and encouragement to his listener. It has various kinds of functions in different social conditions in our daily life. According to some researches, among those functions, in spite of expressing appreciation, the main function of incentive phrases is to encourage someone and make an inspiring condition.
To make a comparative study between English and Chinese is one of the most effective ways to learn a kind of foreign language. There is a difference between different cultures, such as verbal behavior, which may be very common in one culture, but change a lot in another. So we need to pay attention to some differences in our learning and daily life. We should know the speaker’s cultural background and his value, so as to understand his real meaning. By making a comparative study between English and Chinese incentive phrases is meaningful for those teachers who teach foreign language and learners who learn western culture. 英汉体育激励语对比研究(2):http://www.751com.cn/yingyu/lunwen_25955.html