STRUCTURE OF CONVERSATIONS 2

STRUCTURE OF CONVERSATIONS 2

1. ADJACENCY PAIRS

   • Two-part conversations following predictable patterns
     • e.g. questions and answers - 'What is the time?' 'It's half past five'
   • Help structure of a conversation
   • EXAMPLES
     • greeting + greeting
     • summons + answer
       • 'Dad!' 'Yes?'
     • apology + acceptance
   • Conversation is most often disrupted if the pattern of an adjacency pair is violated, e.g. an unanswered question
   • THREE-PART EXCHANGES
     • Occur when the second speaker's response triggers a further utterance from the first
       • e.g. Student + Teacher - 'Who wrote Trainspotting?' > 'Irvine Welsh' > 'That's right'

2. TOPICS

   • Helps to give a conversation coherence and structure
   • Utterances generally are relevant to the current topic, but can be used to initiate a new topic
   • Formal situations may have a predetermined set of topics, whereas informal interactions may have drifts in conversation
   • The introduction of new topics can be a sign of conversational dominance reflecting status
   • A speaker's unsuccessful attempt to initiate conversation may show subordinate status
   • Changes in topic are called TOPIC SHIFTS, utterances that trigger them are TOPIC SHIFTERS
     • TOPIC SHIFTERS
       • e.g. 'by the way', 'incidentally'
   • When a conversation returns to its initial topic, a topic loop has occurred

3. REPAIRS

   • Occurs when a problem is resolved
     • Can be carried out by the dominant speaker or another speaker
       • 'We ended up on the North Circular (.) the A6 (.) I mean the A406.'
       • 'We ended up on the North Circular (.) the A6 (.)' - 'You mean the A406'
   • Can also occur when listeners ask for clarification or repetition

4. FEEDBACK

   • Listeners give 'feedback' to show the speakers that they are listening
     • Failure to give feedback by the listener can make the speaker feel uncomfortable
   • VERBAL RESPONSES
     • 'Abosutely'
     • 'I know'
     • 'Really?'
   • ORAL SIGNALS
     • Also known as back-channel noises
       • Sighs & gasps
     • 'mm'
     • 'uh huh'
   • NON-VERBAL RESPONSES
     • Nodding, smiling and eye contact, primarily positive and supportive, also can show boredom, disagreement or inattention
   • VARIATION
     • Feedback varies between speakers, look at kind of feedback and differences in response between speakers

5. CLOSING A CONVERSATION

   • There are conventional closing sequences that prevent conversations ending unexpectedly or abruptly
     • These are usually preceded by pre-closing signals to indicate that the conversation is reaching an end
   • The last words of a conversation are often a ritual of farewells, e.g. 'Goodbye'
   • The conversation is often concluded with a resume or remark such as 'I think that's it'
   • Phatic expressions such as 'Look after yourself' are common
   • Non-verbal closing sequences include turning away, collecting belongings and rising from your seat