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,…

Describes how interactive hand gestures made during conversation help maintain the conversation as a social system. Relates the methods and results of three experiments designed to test this theory. Finds that interactive gestures maintain involvement with the interlocutor without interrupting the flow of conversation. (HB)

Discusses bilingualism in written cuneiform texts from ancient Babylonia and Sumeria. Describes the development of formats and techniques that enabled two or more languages on a single document to coexist harmoniously and productively. (SR)

A study examined a form of other-initiated repair which occurs later than next turn, a form which is produced by nonnative speakers of English whose native language is Mandarin. Data consists of transcriptions of naturally occurring conversations from 12 native speaker-nonnative speaker (NS-NNS) dyads, friends who ordinarily chat. Conversational…

Examines factors influencing language choice on the newsgroup soc.culture.punjab, a forum discussing the culture of the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. Finds that Punjabi is used only with interlocutors who are Punjabi community members. Accounts for limited usage in terms of intergenerational language shift, cultural ambivalence among…

This paper explores the question of interpreting complex texts, particularly scripts and multimedia presentations. The paper first reviews the literature on natural discourse, noting that although interpreting spoken natural language seems rather straightforward, many scholars have discussed what is required to make sense of discourse. The paper…

Finds in the "Lettres" (1895-98) of Marichette (a Franco-Acadian woman) graphic evidence of the effects of language contact with the socially and economically dominant English on her Franco-Acadian dialect. Explores her penchant for code-switching and relates this aspect of the writer's style to her political commentary. (SR)

Noting that intercultural understanding is a prime construct in the study of intercultural communication, this paper examines two questions that confront all intercultural communication researchers: (1) What are the underlying characteristics of intercultural understanding? and (2) What constitutes an interpretative perspective to intercultural…

Reports on a study of judges' strategies in clarifying their verbal explanations of constitutional rights to criminal defendants. Identifies six clarification processes and compares them with other studies of clarification processes and with the properties of simplified registers, particularly speech addressed to first- and second-language…

Examines the use of English in Japanese business communication. Finds that English is an important element of Japanese international business policy and that an awareness of both Japanese corporate commitment to employee English proficiency and of the complexities of the use of English for special purposes benefits business communicators involved…

Discusses how Type-Token Ratios (TTRs) have been used in a variety of research efforts in speech communication, including studies of the interactions between source credibility, motivation, cognitive states, and context with language use. Describes the two versions of a TTR computation program that are available in BASIC. Presents sources…

If language research is to arrive at valid analyses of speech behavior, both observation and elicitation methods of data collection will have to be used as necessary complements to one another. The advantages and disadvantages of different research methods are discussed. (CB)

Presents an overview (from a broad cultural and historical perspective) of the effect of two languages and cultures on the creation of literature, the cosmopolitanism, and bilingualism of writers, and the effects of the related phenomena of biculturalism and diglossia on the production of literary texts. Shows that bilingualism has been a feature…

Three stereotypes of male-female behavior as manifested in language were investigated. The stereotypes are: women are more verbose than men, women use more modifiers than men, and women are submissive to men. Eighty students were randomly assigned to one of two conflict resolution conditions--a business situation and an interpersonal…

Compares metaphors and intimate relationships, arguing that both may be viewed as relational and categorized into four distinct styles. Results indicated validity for assignment of three relationship types concluding that parallels exist between linguistic and social forms. (NKA)