Paul Drew

Talk at Work: Interaction in Institutional Settings.

Part I. Theoretical orientations: Part II. The activities of questioners: Part III. The activities of answerers: Part IV. The interplay between questioning and answering.

‘Open’ class repair initiators in response to sequential sources of troubles in conversation

Abstract When speakers initiate repair on the talk of co-participants in conversation, they may use repair initiation forms which locate the specific source of trouble (the repairable) in the prior turn; alternatively, they may select forms which treat the whole of the prior turn as in some way problematic. This paper explores the latter, i.e. ‘open’ forms of repair initiation, e.g. ‘pardon?’, ‘sorry?’, ‘what?’ etc. The analysis here, of a corpus of instances of this kind of repair initiation in naturally occurring telephone conversations, focuses not on the repair management sequence, but rather on the sequential environment in which ‘open’ class NTRIs are employed. It explores two environments in particular, involving first an apparently abrupt shift in topic, and second an apparently inapposite, or even disaffiliative, response by the other speaker. Analysis of these environments, and of the troubles in ‘understanding’ which may be associated with them, suggests that troubles generating this form of other-initiated repair shade into matters of alignment or affiliation between speakers (and hence conflict in talk). It also underlines how far ‘understanding’ is related to the sequential organization of talk.

Conversation analysis: a method for research into interactions between patients and health-care professionals

Background It is clear that much of the success of health‐care provision depends on the quality of interactions between health professionals and patients. For instance, it is widely recognized that patients are more likely to take medication effectively if they have been involved in discussions about treatment options, and understand and support the decision about what is prescribed (patient concordance). Hence, patient participation is important for the success of medical outcomes. The key is to explore how communicative choices made by health professionals impact on the quality of interactions in general, and of patient participation in particular. However, to date there has not been an appropriate method for investigating this connection or impact.

Figures of speech: Figurative expressions and the management of topic transition in conversation

In conversation, speakers occasionally use figurative expressions such as “had a good innings,” “take with a pinch of salt,” or “come to the end of her tether.” This article investigates where in conversation such expressions are used, in terms of their sequential distribution. One clear distributional pattern is found: Figurative expressions occur regularly in topic transition sequences, and specifically in the turn where a topic is summarized, thereby initiating the closing of a topic. The paper discusses some of the distinctive features of the topic termination/transition sequences with which figurative closings are associated, particularly participants’ orientation to their moving to new topics. Finally, the interactional use of figurative expressions is considered in the context of instances where their use fails to secure topical closure, manifesting some conflict (disaffiliation, etc.) between the participants. (Figurative expressions, idioms, conversation, topic)* One feature of conversation that contributes to its colloquial character is that, from time to time, speakers use certain forms of idiomatic expressions which may be regarded as figures of speech. The following fragment from a telephone conversation illustrates this kind of linguistic object, the use of which we shall examine in this article.

‘Am I not answering your questions properly?’ : Clarification, adequacy and responsiveness in semi-structured telephone and face-to-face interviews

This article considers spoken interaction in semi-structured qualitative research interviews, comparing those that are conducted by telephone or face-to-face. It draws upon recent empirical research that illuminated some of the differences that may be observed between these two interview modes. Methodological techniques drawn from Conversation Analysis were used to conduct a systematic and transparent comparison of the interview interactions, focusing on the spoken interactional devices that researcher and interviewee employ in order to pursue and maintain a collaborative and comprehensible dialogue. The article begins with an overview of previous discussion on the interactional effects of the telephone in qualitative interviews. Here, we find that while instructional texts have traditionally advised that the telephone mode is not well-suited to the task of qualitative interviewing – primarily because the lack of face-to-face contact is said to restrict the development of rapport and a ‘natural’ encounter – researchers giving personal accounts of conducting telephone interviews tend to offer more nuanced or critical reflections on the extent to which the lack of visual cues affects the interaction in practice. Empirical findings are then presented on: formulation and completion, clarification and comprehension, acknowledgement, interviewees’ checks on the ‘adequacy’ of their talk, and the duration of interviews. Key findings were that: completion or formulation of interviewee talk by the researcher was more common in face-to-face interviews; interviewee requests for clarification were slightly more common in telephone interviews; vocalized acknowledgements given by the researcher were less frequent in telephone interviews; interviewee checks on the adequacy of their responses were more common in telephone interviews; and telephone interviews tended to be shorter than those conducted face-to-face. The article discusses possible explanations for the findings that emerge alongside consideration of some potential implications.

Figurative Pivots: The Use of Figurative Expressions in Pivotal Topic Transitions

In this article, we use conversation analysis in an investigation of figurative expressions in conversation. We begin with the observation that figurative expressions are often followed by disjunctive transitions to a new topic (cf. Drew & Holt, 1988, 1995, 1998). In some instances, however, the figurative expression is used as a pivot to a new matter: The figurative expression forms a bridge connecting to the previous talk but opening up the possibility of moving away from that matter to a different one. In this article, we focus on these pivotal transitions, showing how aspects of the design of figurative expressions (such as the fact that they recurrently act as summaries and assessments of the previous detailing) make them appropriate devices for moving away from the matter at hand while at the same time enabling other matters to be introduced. Analysis of instances of these stepwise (rather than disjunctive) topic transitions raises issues concerning common difficulties in identifying topic transitions in interaction and the mechanisms by which stepwise transitions are managed.

Universal Principles in the Repair of Communication Problems.

There would be little adaptive value in a complex communication system like human language if there were no ways to detect and correct problems. A systematic comparison of conversation in a broad sample of the world’s languages reveals a universal system for the real-time resolution of frequent breakdowns in communication. In a sample of 12 languages of 8 language families of varied typological profiles we find a system of ‘other-initiated repair’, where the recipient of an unclear message can signal trouble and the sender can repair the original message. We find that this system is frequently used (on average about once per 1.4 minutes in any language), and that it has detailed common properties, contrary to assumptions of radical cultural variation. Unrelated languages share the same three functionally distinct types of repair initiator for signalling problems and use them in the same kinds of contexts. People prefer to choose the type that is the most specific possible, a principle that minimizes cost both for the sender being asked to fix the problem and for the dyad as a social unit. Disruption to the conversation is kept to a minimum, with the two-utterance repair sequence being on average no longer that the single utterance which is being fixed. The findings, controlled for historical relationships, situation types and other dependencies, reveal the fundamentally cooperative nature of human communication and offer support for the pragmatic universals hypothesis: while languages may vary in the organization of grammar and meaning, key systems of language use may be largely similar across cultural groups. They also provide a fresh perspective on controversies about the core properties of language, by revealing a common infrastructure for social interaction which may be the universal bedrock upon which linguistic diversity rests.

Strategies in the Contest between Lawyer and Witness in Cross-Examination

There has been a burgeoning of research interest over the past decade in the use of language in courts, as well as in other institutional settings, as Levi documents in her contribution to this volume. Part of the stimulus for this has been the relatively recent movement among linguists toward studying naturally occurring language. While Chomsky’s insistence on the primacy of investigating the formal syntactic and other properties of underlying linguistic competencies had such an ascendancy in the discipline, the use of language (performance) was relegated to a position of much less importance. The study of the structure of well-formed sentences, usually fabricated and detached from any sequences of discourse or from any other context, was preferred by many linguists over the empirical analysis of actual speech. A number of influences have, however, been responsible for a radical shift toward collecting (usually tape recording) and analyzing examples of what people actually say in communicating with one another.

Recruitment : Offers, Requests, and the Organization of Assistance in Interaction

ABSTRACT In this article, we examine methods that participants use to resolve troubles in the realization of practical courses of action. The concept of recruitment is developed to encompass the linguistic and embodied ways in which assistance may be sought—requested or solicited—or in which we come to perceive another’s need and offer or volunteer assistance. We argue that these methods are organized as a continuum, from explicit requests, to practices that elicit offers, to anticipations of need. We further identify a class of subsidiary actions that can precede recruitment and that publicly expose troubles and thereby create opportunities for others to assist. Data are in American and British English.

Personal Adviser Interviews With Benefits Claimants in UK Jobcentres

We report on a study commissioned by the UK government of the ways in which advisers conduct mandatory interviews with unemployment benefits claimants. Among other results, we identified practices in soliciting claimants’ job goals and job plans that were more, or less, effective in achieving desired outcomes during these interactions. Moreover, we found that making a calculation of how much better off a claimant would be by retaining some benefit and working part-time was ineffective. Our reports, recommendations, and presentation to officials of the Department of Work & Pensions were acknowledged to have influenced policy changes concerning Jobcentre service delivery. Data are in British English.