This article discusses three characteristics useful in defining the relations between speakers in the turn-taking aspects of conversation: the derivational history of personal relationships, stop-action pseudo-history versus dynamic compacted posing, and the criss-crossing of verbal versus kinetic axes. (Available from Semiotica, Co-Libri, P.O.…

Maintaining that the nonverbal elements of communication are ultimately more significant than the verbal elements in determining the eventual success or failure of the journalistic interview, this paper attempts to assist journalists in understanding the complex and subtle nonverbal characteristics of the interview environment. Based on the…

This paper studies meaning as a construct of human interaction. Basic to this approach is the concept of the act of communication, which may be realized verbally or non-verbally. In order to integrate non-verbal behaviors into descriptions of discourse and interaction, a series of functional, not anatomic, categories is needed. For the kinesic…

This handbook of Colombian and U.S. gestures was prepared originally as an aid to English teachers in Colombia. The Colombian gestures were collected via personal observations and interviews with Colombian informants. Approximately 20 informants from various regions of the United States were also interviewed. To this orginal collection, published…

Study of the relationship between differences in deaf haptic behavior and level of individual's language skill. Two types of haptic behavior were distinguished: self-directed and interpersonal. The communicative role of haptic behavior varies according to age and spoken language skills. (Author/LMO)

Communication cannot and should not be studied as the simple, isolated phenomenon known as language, because language occurs in a cultural context and its messages are shaped by nonverbal elements. The basic structure of total communication includes language, paralanguage (vocal-nonverbal communication), and kinesics (communication through…

The present paper is part of a long range research project in Developmental Kinesics. The gist of the project is empirical: the object is to find out what happens rather than look for anything in particular or test a hypothesis. The methodology for the analysis is ethological in approach. Empirical observations are carefully described.…

This is a report on a proposed research project on the interaction processes (verbal, non-verbal, and kinesic) present in a seminar situation, with a view towards positing a model of interaction in this type of situation. The seminar was chosen as a setting because it provides a structured context with a variety of discursive acts, favoring the…

As a botanist uses specific, non-judgmental descriptions that are part of a conceptual framework to help see different varieties and characteristics of plants, so teachers can see more clearly what they do if they describe rather than judge what is done. If the purpose of using a framework or model to discuss lesson presentations and classroom…

This paper investigates the potential relationship of Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) to gesture and second language learning. It is asserted that the ZPD is both a tool and a result, not a tool for result; it is both product and process at the same time. The process of learning a new language/culture in the case of a person who is…

Body language, also called kinesics, is the discipline concerned with the study of all bodily motions that are communicative. An understanding of kinesics across cultures necessitates a close look at posture, movement, facial expression, eye management, gestures, and proxemics (distancing). The popularity of one posture over another and the…

The correlation of verbal, paralinguistic, and kinesic features in the context of student-student and student-teacher interaction is studied in a semester linguistics course at Vanderbilt University. The purpose of the research is to delineate some of the major problems of group interaction in the college classroom and to show how the various…

Culture-specific non-verbal communication is regarded here as an essential "language" that has been neglected in modern language teaching pedagogy, though the substance of culture is often referred to in the curriculum. A distinction is drawn between the public aspects of culture commonly experienced by the second language learner and the private…

This study investigates the ways adult second language learners deal with errors and trouble sources in their conversations with one another. Specifically, it describes the repair work done by the second language learners, the extralinguistic features accompanying these repairs and the differences between repairs made by speakers at different…