Determines the characteristics of interactions that influence judgments of interruption behavior in naive observers. Asks subjects to decide whether an example of an interruption was an interruption and then rate it in terms of how "good" or "bad" it was. Finds that naive observers use some of the same features described in…

Uses data from academic counseling encounters at an American university to investigate how the practice of withholding certain information or opinion at an expected moment reconstructs the university institutional order. Details the sequential organization of the practice of withholding. Argues that, through withholding, academic counselors embody…

Shows that institutional conversations differ from natural conversations in their closings. Contrasts felicitous closings by both native and highly proficient nonnative speakers with felicitous closings by nonnatives. Shows that native speaker interviews are not reopened, but only followed by separate, limited postsession conversations. (SR)

Finds that zero quotatives (where direct speech is reported with neither a reporting verb nor an attributed speaker) are found when a speaker is clearly constructing attitude; where the omission of a quotative may serve some dramatic effect; and at sights where conversational partners are displaying strongly convergent behavior. (SR)

Examines how interlocutors' beliefs about each other's goals affect conversational references, comparing pairs who were either informed or noninformed about the goal difference, or misinformed that goals were the same. Finds that misinformed and noninformed pairs overlooked clues that may have signaled the goal discrepancy, made conversational…

Compares the communicative effectiveness of spontaneous monologues and dialogues on nonparticipating addressees overhearing talk. Finds that overhearers were more accurate at following instructions in a referential communication task when listening in on dialogues than when listening in on monologues. Suggests greater number of discourse markers…

Tests a process model of request tactic evaluation in two different cultures. Finds that, in both cultures, perceived effectiveness functions as a mediating variable between the four interactive constraints and perceived likelihood of use. Finds that Koreans rated concern for feelings and avoiding imposition highly, whereas Americans rated clarity…

Identifies five speech act exchange forms and their communicative functions as forms that the conversational partners used in the course of their interactions. Identifies variables that influence the use of these exchanges within the interaction. (SR)

Contributes to research on speech acts, power, and the negotiation of shared meanings. Argues that a primary off-record purpose of ostensible lies and of ostensible speech acts in general is to assert or affirm a status or power difference between speaker and addressee. Shows how ostensible lies are speech acts that flout the rules governing the…

Advances the development of a classification system, based on the salient speech act distinctions made by ordinary people, which can be of practical use in characterizing extended segments of discourse. Presents an attempt to use speech act theory in the quantitative study of interpersonal communication. (HTH)

Examines possible stylistic differences in how mothers structure conversations about the past with their young children and how these differences might influence children's memory development. Finds two styles, elaborative and repetitive. Considers implications of these two styles for children's memory development. (JAD)

Examines the differences in perspective and training of nurse practitioners and physician assistants, and effects of these on their interactive strategies with patients. Shows how the macro issue of differences in occupational perspective can be incorporated into micro studies of the form and content of talk in social interactions. (SR)

Investigates the conventions that govern telephone communication through answering machines, both domestic and institutional. Finds that talk on answering machines is highly structured and highly routinized. Identifies the internal structures of both callers' contributions and machine contributions. (SR)

Explores whether speakers choose spatial perspectives to minimize effort. Discusses an experiment in which speakers describe locations on a display for addressees who shared their vantage point or had different views. Finds that same-viewpoint speakers spoke differently from speakers with offset views, who did not differ from each other reliably,…

Examines the oral discourse of four university teaching contexts (lectures, laboratories, writing classes, and writing conferences) for the incidence of exchange patterns. Defines exchange patterns and explores previous research on three-part exchanges. Presents new research on two-part exchanges. Focuses on how non-native speakers of English…