Conversation Analytic Research Research Articles

Reporting Microaggressions: Kinship Carers’ Complaints about Identity Slights

The psychological concept of “microaggression” has refocused interest on what counts as prejudicial action. It redirects attention from standard socio-cognitive explanations of overt prejudice among social groups toward recipients’ perspectives of largely unwitting and subtle everyday racism. Microaggression studies define common implicit identity challenges faced by minority groups, including kinship carers. However, criticisms of the “microaggressions program” raise difficulties inherent in establishing prejudicial action from accounts of necessarily ambiguous actions, and contend that reliance on self-reporting inevitably lacks validity. This conversation analytic (CA) study offers a complementary approach: from videos of ten kinship carer support groups it shows how participants construct accountabilities for prejudicial actions in their retrospective reports of questions, challenges and suspicions in ways that build these actions as microaggressive. It addresses methodological shortcomings in microaggression studies, and extends CA research on accountability in offense construction, and on prejudicial social actions that are contested and difficult to analyze.

Learning to perform: A conversation analytic systematic review of learning and teaching practices in performing arts lesson interactions

Abstract This review synthesizes conversation analysis research examining multimodal performing arts interactions in learning and teaching contexts. It shows how the art itself is integrated into the learning dialogue and how it is integral to getting the business of learning and teaching done. Twenty-three publications met the criteria: conversation analytical multimodal research in performing arts lessons and rehearsals, with participants of all ages. The review highlights the developing field of conversation analysis in the performing arts over the last five years in particular. Nine practices were identified: (1) establishing and manipulating rhythm, space and timeframe, (2) making corrections, (3) miming and mirroring to provide information and understanding, (4) highlighting movements and demonstrations, (5) teacher/conductor controlling beginnings/restarts/end of activities, (6) cues for where to start/pick up from, (7) students showing understanding, (8) getting ready to perform, and (9) making learning inclusive and collaborative. As the practices were predominantly teacher led, students have little opportunity to engage in the learning dialogue and drive their own learning – responding mainly with performance. More active learning opportunities need to be created by teachers and conductors so that students can generate their own practices for learning.

Single case analyses of two overlap sequences in casual ELF conversations from a multimodal perspective: Toward the consideration of mutual benefits of ELF and CA

Since Firth’s (1990, 1996) seminal conversation analytic (CA) work on English as a lingua franca (ELF) interactions, the substantial amount of pragmatic ELF research has explored how interactants achieve intersubjectivity and social action in translingual ELF settings from a participant-relevant emic perspective (e.g., Jenks, 2012; Kaur, 2009). However, non-verbal resources are mostly disregarded in the majority of ELF research with a few exceptions. Meanwhile, mainstream CA research predominantly investigates first language interactions, and thus ELF research is still marginalized in the CA literature (Pietikäinen, 2018b). The primary aim of this paper, therefore, is to discuss the benefit of multimodal CA to analyzing ELF interactions, while the secondary one, that of analyzing ELF data to CA scholars. To these ends, the paper adopted a single case analysis (Sacks, 1992) combined with multimodal CA (Mondada, 2018), and analyzed two types of overlap sequences in casual ELF conversations of international students in British universities. The analysis of multimodal resources revealed interactional sensitivity and deftness of the interactants in the translingual ELF settings. The findings refine the understanding of lingua franca language scenarios and show the powerfulness of multimodal resources also in translingual ELF settings. Finally, a suggestion for future research will be given.

Online surveys as discourse context: Response practices and recipient design

While a growing body of work has focused on the interactional organization of telephone survey interviews, little if any research in conversation and discourse analysis has examined written online surveys as a form of talk-in-interaction. While survey researchers routinely examine such responses using content analysis or thematic analysis methods, this shifts the focus away from the precise language and turn constructional practices used by respondents. By contrast, in this study we examine open-ended text responses to online survey questions using a conversation analytic and discourse analytic approach. Focusing on the precise turn constructional practices used by survey respondents—specifically, how they formulate multi-unit responses and make use of turn-initial discourse markers—we demonstrate how online survey respondents treat open-ended survey questions much as they would any similar sequence of interaction in face-to-face or telephone survey talk, making online surveys a tenable source of data for further conversation analytic inquiry.

On second language/nonnative speakerism in conversation analysis: A study of emic orientations to language in multilingual/lingua franca couple interactions

While conversation analytic research on second language (L2) interaction tends to use categories such as L2/nonnative speaker and learner, these labels are not always rooted in the participants' emic orientations. This paper argues that the emic principle of conversation analysis should reverberate in the labelling of data types. It suggests that where overt orientations to nonnativeness are not pertinent, analysts should refrain from using stiff categorizations that excessively simplify speaker identities. Instead, participant labelling should be delayed until after emic analysis. Contrary to often explored institutional interactions, the current paper examines naturally occurring conversations between interlinguistic couples who could be described as users of English as a lingua franca or multilingual speakers, depending on the perspective. It explores the prevalence of sequential orientation to linguistic form compared to overall units of talk, to what degree language issues are repaired, and whether participants orient to language as novices/experts. The results indicate very little attention to language overall and where observable, interlocutors assume fluctuating speaker identities. Most repair work is unrelated to language, and displays of L2 identity (Kurhila, 2004) and expert/novice orientations (Brouwer, 2003) are rare. The interlocutors routinely produce a sequentially relevant next turn rather than correct nonstandard features.

Self-authorizing action: Onlet me Xin English social interaction

AbstractThis article contributes to conversation analytic research on the formatting of imperative actions by focusing on the English first person imperativelet me/lemme Xas it appears in a range of naturally occurring interactions. I argue thatlemme Xis a practice for displacing what was projectably relevant in a given environment in favor of a self-authorized action. This as a result tends to advance the speaker's interests/initiatives. The analysis accounts for speakers’ apparent presumption of permission in unilaterally undertaking theirlemme Xaction by reference to the placement, design, and subsequent orientations to the self-authorized action. The construction is discussed in terms of the distribution of agency and it is suggested thatlemme Xis particularly suited to advancing activities that favor autonomous action by the speaker and which involve the recipient only minimally. (Conversation analysis, imperatives, directives, English, agency)*

“Do you know banana boat?”: Occasioning overt knowledge negotiations in Japanese EFL conversation

This paper adds to a growing body of conversation analytic (CA) research that seeks to explicate how knowledge is negotiated in talk-in-interaction. It does so by documenting the specific interactional practices novice Japanese EFL learners use to claim, demonstrate, and monitor knowledge during conversation. Of particular note is one practice that speakers use to determine the extent of their recipient's epistemic access: “Do you know?” (DYK) formulations. DYK formulations are found to occur in a consistent sequential environment of initial reference sequences and to have regularly patterned, highly organized sequential trajectories. I show how both speakers and recipients display orientations to normative preferences regarding knowledge access and how knowledge check questions like DYK serve the larger role of maintaining intersubjectivity, epistemic congruence and managing topics. In particular, I argue that although morpho-syntactically “do you know?” constitutes a polar interrogative of Y/N access, sequentially it serves as a means of constraining the next relevant action to an overt claim of access or non-access that drives the ongoing interaction toward the public instantiation of intersubjectivity.

Enacting and expanding multilingual repertoires in a peer language tutorial: Routinized sequences as a vehicle for learning

Despite the prevalent use of English in translocal encounters, mobile individuals are faced with the constant need to continue expanding their multilingual repertoires. Language learning among English-knowing multilinguals merits attention from English as a lingua franca (ELF) and Conversation Analysis (CA) researchers since both groups are increasingly interested in how mobile populations adapt to diverse interlocutors and communicative demands in their life trajectories. The present study examines the enactment and expansion of multilingual repertoires in a peer language tutorial involving a Thai tutor and three Japanese tutees. Particularly, it illuminates how participants implement common actions and routinized sequences, such as repeat-after-me and grammatical correction, by juggling English and other languages in fine coordination with embodied resources. Beyond a sole focus on the official target language (i.e., Thai), it also shows how participants manage orientations to the teaching/learning of Japanese through language alternation. Furthermore, as the participants recognized routinized sequences without overt instructions, the findings suggest that not only did they share certain knowledge of English, but also histories of socialization as language learners. The article will conclude by discussing the implications of the study for recent developments in CA, concerning the understanding of repertoire and language learning in multilingual settings.

Storytelling as a resource for pursuing understanding and agreement in doctoral research supervision meetings

This paper examines the function of storytelling in securing agreement in doctoral supervision from the perspectives of conversation analysis (CA), which views storytelling as an interactional resource for achieving various social actions. The function of storytelling in managing disagreement has been explored in previous CA research (Georgakopoulou, 2001; Goodwin, 1982, 1990; Kjaerbeck, 2008). However, a question left unanswered is whether storytelling works to accomplish disagreement or to resolve disagreement. This paper addresses this question by examining storytelling data taken from a research project on doctoral supervision. The data corpus consists of approximately 25 h of video-recorded interactions in an Australian university between doctoral students and their supervisors. In the transcribed data, analysis shows that storytelling works to establish a shared knowledge domain that serves to secure agreement rather than construct disagreement. In addition, through their responses, the students display their orientation to storytelling as pursuing understanding rather than securing affiliation of affective stance. The findings point to the interactive relationship between knowledge and agreement.

„oh isch FIND_s nich;“

This paper adds to the growing field of conversation analytical research on smartphone-use in face-to-face interactions. Whenever smartphones are used in mobile-supported sharing activities – e.g. to show a picture to co-present others – the smartphone user needs to search for and find the "searchable object" in the World Wide Web, an App or on the device's local memory. Analyzing audio-recordings of naturally-occurring conversations, this paper identifies two types of practices of speech that explicitly orient to ongoing smartphone-supported searches: Collaborative search (cf. Brown/McGregor/McMillan 2015) and search-accompanying commentary by the smartphone-user. Both practices verbally provide for the accountability of the otherwise opaque device use. They differ in the way they produce opportunities for co-present others to substantively contribute to the progression of the search as well as the degree to which they produce the search as an interactionally public event.

“You Must Adhere Strictly to the Time and Days of Intake”: Medical Advice and Negotiations of Medical Authority in Nigerian HIV Consultations

Using the methodology of conversation analysis, this paper examines the practice of offering medical advice and its implication for negotiations of medical authority in Nigerian HIV consultations. Analyses of ninety treatment recommendation sequences from seventy audio-recorded interactions between doctors and HIV-positive patients reveal that doctors issue instructions as a form of medical advice on patients’ adherence to medical recommendations. During the advisory interactions, patients are held accountable for maintaining medical wellness, although the doctors’ reasons for offering medical advice, and the turn design and sequential distribution of the advice-giving sequence indicate that advice serves to enact authoritative roles. The findings are a counter-balance to the position, in existing conversation analysis research, that patients’ actions palliate medical authority. This paper calls for a broader conceptualisation of “adherence” and “medical authority” within medical institutional settings.

Teacher smiles as an interactional and pedagogical resource in the classroom

In classroom settings, laughter and smiles are resources for action that are available to both teachers and students. Recent interactional studies have documented how students use these resources to deal with trouble of various kind, but less is known about the sequential and activity contexts of teachers’ laughter-relevant practices, as well as their pedagogical functions. We use multimodal conversation analysis (CA) to investigate the interactional unfolding and pedagogical orientations of teacher smiles during instructional IRE (initiation-response-evaluation) sequences in a corpus of 37 bilingual lessons collected in schools in Finland and Spain. In analysing the focal smiles, we pay attention to their temporal relationships to students’ preceding and subsequent facial expressions and the unfolding of on-going talk. We argue that smiling can index teachers’ affiliative and pedagogical responsiveness to troubles and competences implied by prior student actions. The analysis of selected data fragments shows how smiling is part of multimodal action packages through which teachers manage momentary action disalignments and restore a sense of students as competent actors. The findings contribute towards recent CA research on the embodied and interactional nature of teaching and learning by showing some ways in which smiling is a situated practice used for professional purposes.

Hand-on-shoulder touch as a resource for constructing a pedagogically relevant participation framework

This article explores tactile practices in pedagogical settings by focusing on one specific pedagogical touch type, teacher-initiated hand-on-shoulder touch, which is examined particularly as a reactive practice for classroom management. Drawing on multimodal conversation analysis, the present study analyses variations in hand-on-shoulder touch as well as the relationship between these variations and the pedagogical functions of touch, specifically as they relate to the construction of a pedagogically relevant participation framework. The datasets consist of video recordings of naturally occurring classroom interaction in Finnish schools. From this, three types of hand-on-shoulder touch are described (serial, sustained, and extended) and their characteristics outlined (e.g., duration, force, body posture). Hand-on-shoulder touch is also discussed as a touch type with multifaceted pedagogical potential and variable use in coordinating and orchestrating students' attention and participation in classroom settings. This study thus contributes to both conversation analytical research on tactile practices and pedagogical research on classroom management.

Engaging older adults in self-management talk in healthcare encounters: a systematic review protocol

BackgroundClinical practice guidelines for the management of complex chronic conditions in older adults encourage healthcare providers to engage patients in shared decision-making about self-management goals and actions. Yet, healthcare decision-making and communication for this population can pose significant challenges. As a result, healthcare professionals may struggle to help patients define and prioritise their values, goals, and preferences in ways that are clinically and personally meaningful, incorporating physical functioning and quality of life, when faced with numerous diagnostic and treatment alternatives. The aim of this systematic review is to locate and synthesise a body of fine-grained observational research on communication between professionals, older adults, and carers regarding self-management in audio/audio-visually recorded naturalistic interactions.Methods/designThe paper describes a systematic review of the published conversation analytic and discourse analytic research, using an aggregative thematic approach and following the PRISMA-P guidelines. This review will include studies reporting on adult patients (female or male) aged ≥ 60 years whose consultations are conducted in English in any healthcare setting and stakeholders involved in their care, e.g. general practitioners, nurses, allied health professionals, and family carers. We will search nine electronic databases and the grey literature and two independent reviewers will screen titles and abstracts to identify potential studies. Discrepancies will be resolved via consultation with the review team. The methodological quality of the final set of included studies will be appraised using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist for Qualitative Research and a detailed description of the characteristics of the included studies using a customised template.DiscussionThis is the first systematic review to date to locate and synthesise the conversation analytic research on how healthcare professionals raise and pursue talk about self-management with older adults in routine clinical interactions. Amalgamating these findings will enable the identification of effective and potentially trainable communication practices for engaging older adults in healthcare decision-making about the self-management goals and actions that enable the greatest possible health and quality of life in older adulthood.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42019139376

Waiting to Inhale: On Sniffing in Conversation

ABSTRACTThis article examines sniffing in everyday conversations. It builds on prior conversation analytic research on respiratory conduct, which has shown how things like inbreaths, sighs, and laughter are delicately organized and consequential components of the social occasions into which they figure. Sniffing—the swift, audible, intake of breath through the nasal passage—is analyzed by reference to its sequential placement in talk. Using a collection of 70 cases of sniffs in naturally occurring conversations, two recurrent uses of sniffing are described. Sniffs placed before or during a turn-at-talk serve to delay turn progression. And sniffs placed in the postcompletion space of a turn can indicate its completion. This association between postcompletion sniffing and turn completion is further supported through a comparison with postcompletion inbreaths. By situating sniffing in its sequential contexts, the organization of breathing is shown to be bound up with the organization of speaking. Data are in American and British English.

Object transfers: An embodied resource to progress joint activities and build relative agency

ABSTRACTThis article builds on ethnomethodological, conversation analytic research on object transfers: how participants hand over objects to one another. By analyzing video recordings of mundane (cars) and institutional interactions (laboratories), we focus on situations where an object is central to and talked about in the joint course of action. We focus on different organizations of object transfer and show that one embodied move is decisive, either a sequentially implicative ‘give’ or an arm extension designed as a stand-alone ‘take’. We examine the interrelationship between the organization of the object transfer and the broader course of action (e.g. request or offer sequence), which is either overlapping or intersecting. We demonstrate that by making the decisive move, either the participant initially holding the object or her recipient critically influences the progression and trajectory of the activity, and displays agency. (Ethnomethodology, Conversation Analysis, multimodal interactions, objects in interaction, object transfers, agency)*

Conversation Analysis and Psychotherapy: Identifying Transformative Sequences

ABSTRACTThe starting point of conversation analytical research on psychotherapy was in Kathy Davis’s work on problem reformulations in the mid 1980s. Since then there has been a growing body of analysis of psychotherapy, based on the close, sequential relations between adjacent utterances. Through examples drawn from CA studies on psychotherapy in the past decade, this review shows that sequential relations between utterances enable a process of transformation of experience. This process pertains to referents, emotion, and momentary relations between the therapist and the client. The utterance-by-utterance transformation contributes to the process of change in more macroscopic time, spanning the continuum of psychotherapeutic sessions. The recent developments of CA research on psychiatric consultants will also be discussed. Data are in Finnish and English.

Modulating troubles affiliating in initial interactions

AbstractMuch of the research on affiliation to date has focused on how peopledo(dis)affiliation. This paper explores the remedial work thatfollowsinstances of disaffiliation between interactants who are getting acquainted. Building on an interactional pragmatics analytical approach informed by methods and research in conversation analysis, findings indicate that extended remedial accounts recurrently follow moments of disaffiliation in initial interactions. These remedial accounts enable participants to reposition a prior disaffiliative stance as (ostensibly) affiliative. It appears in initial interactions, then, that remedial accounts play an important role in modulating troubles in affiliating. We propose that the considerable interactional work undertaken by these participants to modulate such troubles reflects a general preference for agreeability in initial interactions, at least amongst (Australian and British) speakers of English.

Conversation analysis and family therapy: a narrative review

Conversation analysis (CA) can provide insight into interactional micro‐processes of family therapy. Past reviews of CA and family therapy have focused on methodology without descriptions of research findings, reducing the likelihood that the findings of CA research are employed to guide practice. This narrative review provides therapists with a description of CA findings that can inform family therapy practice. Systematic searches of databases, individual journals, and citation analyses were completed in April 2018 resulting in twenty‐five articles for review. The findings of this narrative review were summarised around three areas: family members’ talk about each other, therapists’ responses to the family, and the use of reflecting teams. The use of reflecting teams and various conversational devices may help engage multiple participants. Future CA research into family therapy could focus on longer sequences, the overall structural organisation of sessions and the interactions of multiple therapists.Practitioner points CA can offer practitioners insight into the interactional micro‐processes occurring in family therapy that can inform future practice Micro‐interactions between therapists and family members can indicate their perspectives on sensitive topics, blame and accountability Blaming talk creates a dilemma for therapists trying to maintain both neutrality and engagement Family therapists use conversational practices to respond to difficult conversations while maintaining engagement and collaboration Reflecting teams may help to acknowledge and engage multiple family members

Conversation Analysis and Family Therapy: A Critical Review of Methodology.

This article critiques the use of conversation analysis (CA) as applied to the study of family therapy. Searches of relevant databases and journals as well as citation searches were conducted in April 2018 for relevant articles. Inclusion criteria included the explicit use of CA either solely or in combination with discourse analysis and discursive psychology. This resulted in the inclusion of 25 articles that were reviewed against a guideline for the evaluation of qualitative research to which five items specific to CA were added to ensure a specific and balanced evaluation of the studies. Articles generally had a good application of quality criteria although there was a variation in detail of transcription, application of sequence analysis, and a limited use of validity testing. CA has the potential to complement existing research on family therapy but requires a rigorous application of process and quality criteria. The article provides recommendations for future CA research into family therapy.