George B. Ray

Language Attitudes and Speech Behavior New Zealand English and Standard American English

This study analyzed New Zealand listener attitudes toward a New Zealand English speaker and a Standard American English speaker. The speakers altered levels of pitch variation and rate in their delivery of standard content messages. On balance, the impact of the paralinguistic behaviors was greater than that of accent.

Setting the agenda: an analysis of negotiation strategies in clinical talk.

This article analyzes the process whereby physicians and patients set the agenda for medical interviews. Applying a conversation analytic perspective to the analysis of 22 videotapes of primary care interviews at a large, urban, teaching and research hospital, a 3-stage model is developed, consisting of (a) an opening sequence, (b) an initial statement of concerns by the patient, and (c) the negotiation process. The analysis illustrates the critical function of the opening verbal exchanges, showing how patient responses to the physicians first question and subsequent queries and summaries by the physician are intricately interwoven. The interaction at the very beginning of the interview is shown to significantly alter the ensuing interaction. The analysis provides a discursive framework for analyzing problematic communication during the primary care interview.

Nonverbal Expressions of Liking and Disliking in Initial Interaction: Encoding and Decoding Perspectives

This experiment investigated nonverbal behaviors associated with the encoding and decoding of liking and disliking in initial interaction. Forty-eight adults interacted with participant confederates in an 8-minute problem-solving activity. Beginning at the midpoint of the activity, confederates were instructed to communicate, through nonverbal channels, that they either really liked or really disliked their partners. Kinesic and vocalic behaviors were measured to allow for examination of the encoding patterns chosen to communicate these messages. Participants and third-party observers provided their perceptions of confederates and their behaviors, to allow for examination of the behaviors that were decoded as expressions of liking and disliking. Results of this study allowed the examination of the simultaneous encoding and decoding of nonverbal behaviors, the precise measurement of vocalic behaviors, and a clarification of nonverbal behaviors most influential in reaching judgments of liking and disliking.

Regional speech rates in the United States: A preliminary analysis

This study compared rates of speech found in naturally occurring contexts in the United States. Ninety‐three samples of speech were recorded at regional, public universities in various locations in the United States including the Pacific Northwest, the Southwest, and the Upper Midwest. The speech samples were taken from two contexts, university courses in public speaking and courses in group discussion. Rates in words per minute were calculated from transcriptions and comparisons were made on the basis of gender, region, and context. Significant differences were found for context. However, there were no significant differences for gender or region. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

“I'm all for equal rights, but don't call me a feminist”: Identity Dilemmas in Young Adults' Discursive Representations of Being a Feminist

The purpose of the study was to understand how young adults identified with the feminist label. Focus groups were conducted with males and females age 18–30 to ascertain the meaning they ascribed to the term. A theoretical identity framework emerged as a useful tool for understanding how participants were (not) identifying with the feminist identity. Participants expressed accepting or rejecting the label, the identity, and the ideals, materializing into four varieties of language called embracing, denouncing, refraining, and resisting.

Speech behavior and social evaluation: An examination of medical messages

Three levels of speech rate and pitch variation were used in audio‐taped presentations of two medical messages varying in seriousness of illness (high and low). The messages were uttered in natural speech samples which listeners judged according to their perceptions of rate and pitch as well as personality traits. A personality structure emerged which included dynamism, social attractiveness, and professional competence. Rate had its largest effects on dynamism while pitch variation had a greater influence on social attractiveness and professional competence. Seriousness of illness was primarily involved in interaction effects, the most important of which involved interaction between seriousness of illness and rate. High rate was perceived as less professionally competent in the high serious illness condition than the low serious condition, while medium rate yielded the highest ratings of professional competence for the high serious illness. The results are discussed in the framework provided by the dimen...