Conversation and preference structure
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This document provides an overview of concepts related to conversation analysis. It discusses terms like interaction, conversation structure, and conversation analysis. Specific concepts covered include pauses and overlaps in conversation, conversational style, adjacency pairs, and preference structure. Adjacency pairs refer to automatic response patterns like greetings. Preference structure divides responses into preferred and dispreferred based on social expectations. Dispreferred responses require more hesitation and account-giving language. Overall, the document analyzes different elements that shape conversations between participants.
![Adjacency Pairs (Cont.)
First Part Second Part
A: What time is it? B: About eight-thirty
A: Thanks. B: You're welcome
A: Could you help me with this? B: Sure
Example: question - answer sequence in [1]
Example: thanking - response sequence in [2]
Example: request - accept sequence in [3]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/conversationandpreferencestructure-140728040520-phpapp01/85/Conversation-and-preference-structure-24-320.jpg)
Conversation and preference structure
- 2. Conversation and Preference Structure Presented by: Asif Ali Raza [email protected] +92-300-4-62-62-34
- 3. • Interaction • Conversation • Conversation Analysis • Terms regarding Conversation Analysis • Pauses, overlaps, and backchannels • Conversational style • Adjacency pairs • Preference structure • Summary Contents
- 4. Term INTERACTION could actually apply to a very large number of quite different social encounters. Different Social Encounters • A teacher talking to students • A doctor talking to a patient in a clinic • Individuals taking part in courtroom proceedings, attending meeting, buying stamps at the post office • And dozens of other different experiences Interaction This kind of talk is likely to differ according to the different contexts of interaction.
- 5. • The basic pattern of ‘I speak – you speak – I speak – you speak’ is called conversation structure. • We drive this structure from that fundamental kind of interaction we acquire first and use most often. Conversation Structure
- 6. There are many metaphors used to describe conversation structure. • For some; conversation is like a dance, with conversational partners coordinating their movements smoothly • For others; conversation is like traffic crossing an intersection, involving lots of alternating movements without any crashes. Conversation Analysis The most widely used approach is based not on dancing, nor on traffic flow but on an analogy with the workings of a market economy.
- 7. • Floor –the right to speak (a scarce commodity) • Turn – having control of this floor at any time • Turn-taking – In any situation where control is not fixed in advance, any one can attempt to get control. • Local Management System – set of conventions for getting, keeping and giving away turns • Transition Relevance Place (TRP) – Any possible change-of-turn point Specific words used for this analogy
- 8. Market Economy Metaphor (Cont.) • The speakers accomplish change of turn smoothly because they are aware of the local management system for taking those turns at an appropriate TRP. This metaphor can be applied to: • Where speakers cooperate and share the floor equally. • Also where speakers compete for keeping the floor, preventing others from getting it.
- 9. Conversations typically consist of two or more participants taking turns, and only one participant speaking at any time. Smooth transitions from one speaker to the next are valued. • Transitions with a long silence between turns • Or significant overlap (both speakers trying to speak at the same time) Pauses and Overlaps ‘are perceived as awkward’
- 10. When two people attempt to have a conversation and discover that there is no ‘flow’, or smooth rhythm to their transition, much more is being communicated than is said. There is a sense of distance, an absence of familiarity, or ease. Following is an interaction between a student and his friend’s father during their first meeting: Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.) Mr. Strait: What's your major, Dave? Dave: English—well, I haven't really decided yet. (3 seconds silence) Mr. Strait: So—you want to be a teacher? Dave: No—not really—well not if I can help it. (2.5 seconds silence) Mr. Strait: Wha—//Where do you— go ahead Dave: I mean it's a—oh, sorry //I em—
- 11. • — are short pauses and show hesitations • Long pauses become silences. Silences in the previous slide are not attributed to either speaker because each has completed a turn. • // used at the beginning of the overlapping talk. Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.)
- 12. • If one speaker actually turns over the floor to another and the other does not speak, then the silence is attributed to the second speakers and become significance. It’s an attributable silence. • In the following interaction, the non-response of Dave is treated, by his girlfriend, as possibly communicating something: Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.) Jan: Dave, I'm going to the store. (2 seconds) Jan: Dave? (2 seconds) Jan: Dave – is something wrong? Dave: What? What's wrong? Jan: Never mind.
- 13. 3-Apart from the basic overlap, sometimes younger speakers overlapped talk appears to function like an expression of solidarity or closeness opining about similar things. Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.) Min: Did you see him in the video? Wendy: Yeah - the part on the beach Min: Oh my God // he was so lovely Wendy // he was just being so cool Min: And all the waves // crashing around him! Wendy: // yeah that was really wild. 4-Overlap can also communicate competition. Joe: When they were in // power las-- wait CAN I FINISH? Jerry: // that's my point I said --
- 14. The point of overlap is treated as an interruption and the first speaker actually has to make a comment about procedure, i.e., appeals to an unstated rule of conversation structure, namely that each potential speaker is expected to wait until the current speaker reaches a TRP. Markers of TRPs: - end of a structural unit (phrase/clause) - pause Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.)
- 15. 5-A speaker who wants to keep holding the floor will avoid providing TRPs, i.e. avoiding open pauses at the end of syntactic units and places fillers/breaths in the middle, not at the end of those units. • I wasn't talking about—um his first book that was—uh really just like a start and so— uh isn't—doesn't count really. Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.)
- 16. Pauses and Overlaps (Cont.) 6- Another floor holding device is to indicate that there is a larger structure to your turn. a. There are three points I'd like to make—first ... b. There's more than one way to do this—one example would be... c. Didn't you know about Melvin?—Oh, it was last October ... d. Did you hear about Cindy's new car?—She got it in ... a/b technical information about coming structure c/d preludes to storytelling
- 17. Speakers expect their conversational partners to indicate that they are listening. Nodding, smiling, other facial expressions, gestures, vocal indications are called backchannel signals Backchannel Caller: If you use your long distance service a lot then you'll … Mary: // uh-huh Caller: be interested in the discount I'm talking about because … Mary: // yeah Caller: it can only save you money to switch to a cheaper service Mary: // mmm
- 18. Backchannel (Cont.) • Backchannel signals provide feedback to the speaker that the message is being received, they indicate that the listener is following and not objecting. • The absence of backchannels is interpreted as significant (in telephone conversations the speaker is prompted to ask whether the speaker is still there). • In face-to-face conversations the absence of backchannels may be interpreted as a way of withholding agreement.
- 19. There are individual and cultural differences in conversational style/turn taking Conversation Style High Involvement Style—some individuals expect that participation in a conversation will be very active, that speaking rate will be relatively fast, with almost no pausing between turns, and with some overlap or even competition between turns. High Considerateness Style—such speakers use a slower rate, expect longer pauses between turns, do not overlap and avoid interruption or completion of the other's turn.
- 20. Style clashes lead a conversation to be one- sided. Conversation Style (Cont.) • the faster speaker may think the slower one doesn't have much to say, is shy, perhaps boring or stupid • the slower speaker may view the faster one as noisy, pushy, domineering, selfish and tiresome features of conversational style are often interpreted as personality traits
- 21. Adjacency Pairs Almost automatic patterns in the structure of conversation (as given below), e.g., in greetings and good-byes are called adjacency pairs. Examples: Anna: Hello! Bill: Hi! Anna: How are you? Bill: Fine. Anna: See ya! Bill: Bye!
- 22. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) • These automatic sequences are called adjacency pairs • They always consist of a first and second part produced by different speakers. • The utterance of the first part immediately creates an expectation of the utterance of a second part of the pair. • Failure to produce the second part will be treated as a significant and hence meaningful.
- 23. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) First Part Second Part A: What's up? B: Nothin' much A: How's it goin'? B: Jus' hangin' in there A: How are things? B: The usual A: How ya doin' B: Can't complain A lot of internal variation is possible: For example: opening of conversation.
- 24. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) First Part Second Part A: What time is it? B: About eight-thirty A: Thanks. B: You're welcome A: Could you help me with this? B: Sure Example: question - answer sequence in [1] Example: thanking - response sequence in [2] Example: request - accept sequence in [3]
- 25. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) Agent: Do you want the early flight? (= Q1) Client: What time does it arrive? (= Q2) Agent: Nine forty-five (= A2) Client: Yeah - that's great (= A1) Insertion sequences can intervene between adjacency pairs: Form Q1 - Q2 - A2 - A1 (one adjacency pair within another) Jean: Could you mail this letter for me? (Req. 1) Fred: Does it have a stamp on? (Q2) Jean: Yeah. (A2) Fred: Okay (Acc. 1) Mix of different sequences possible:
- 26. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) Opening Sections (Summons-Answer Sequences): First utterance is a summons, the second utterance an answer to the summons, establishing an open channel for talk (three part structure). Child: Mommy? (Summons) Mum: Yes, dear. (Answer) Child: Can I have chocolate? (Reason for summons) Examples:
- 27. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) Closing Sections:The closure of any topic after the first one makes the introduction of a closing section imminent • closings placed in such a way that no party is forced to exit while still having compelling things to say • hasty or slow terminations carry unwelcome inferences about the relationships between the speakers
- 28. Adjacency Pairs (Cont.) B: Okay, so that would be in St. Jude’s wouldn’t it? A: Yes B: Okay so … A: One o’clock in the bar closing implicative topic (arrangement) B: Okay A: Okay? one or more pairs of passing turns with B: Okay then thanks very much indeed George – pre-closing items (okay, alright, so …) A: - Alright B: //See you there A: //See you there B: Okay A: Okay // bye terminal elements B: // bye Examples:
- 29. • adjacency pairs represent social actions, and not all social actions are equal when they occur as second parts of some pairs, e.g., a first part request expects an acceptance. • acceptance is structurally more likely than refusal and Structural likelihood is called preference Preference Structures Preference structure divides second parts into PREFERRED and DISPREFERRED social acts
- 30. First part Preference Structures Second part Preferred Dispreferre d Assessment Isn't that really great? agree Yes, it is disagree Invitation Why not join us tonight? accept I’d love to refuse offer Want some coffee? accept Yes, please decline proposal Maybe we could go for a walk. agree That'd be great disagree request Can you help me? accept Sure refuse
- 31. Silence is also always a dispreferred response, often leading to a revision of the first part. (Non-response communicates that the speaker is not in a position to provide the preferred response) Preference Structure (Cont.) Sandy: But I'm sure they'll have good food there (1.6 seconds) Sandy: Hmm—I guess the food isn't great Jack: Nah—people mostly go for the music Silence is risky as it may give the impression of non-participation in the conversational Structure. Speakers often signal that they are producing the marked, dispreferred structure
- 32. Aassessment: Preference Structure (Cont.) Cindy: So chiropodists do hands I guess Julie: Em - well - out there - they they mostly work on people's feet - initial hesitation: delay (em + pause) - preface: well - appeal to the views of others: out there - stumbling repetition: they they - relativizing statement/mitigation: mostly
- 33. Invitation: Preference Structure (Cont.) Becky: Come over for some coffee later Wally: Oh - eh - I'd love to - but you see - I - I'm supposed to get this finished - you know - hesitation: oh - eh - preface: I'd love to (token acceptance) - stumbling repetition: I - I'm - account: I'm supposed to get this finished - invocation of understanding: but you see, you know
- 34. How to do a dispreferred second part? Preference Structure (Cont.) delay/hesitate pause; er; em; ah preface well; oh express doubt I'm not sure; I don't know token acceptance that's great; I'd love to apology I'm sorry; what a pity mention obligation I must do X; I'm expected in Y appeal for understanding you see; you know make it non-personal everbody else; out there give an account too much work; no time left use mitigators really; mostly; sort of; kinda hedge the negative I guess not; not possible
- 35. Preference Structure (Cont.) • dispreferreds take more time/language/effort • more language creates more distance between first and second part • preferred represents closeness and quick connection • participants try to avoid creating contexts for dispreferreds e.g., by using pre-sequences
- 36. Question and Answer Period
- 37. Thanks