Conducted a series of experiments in German, Dutch, French, Italian, and English to show that four factors systematically interact when people interpret spatial expressions: the reference object being intrinsically oriented or not; the preposition that is used; the social characteristics of the discourse situation; and the prepositional inventory…

Examines "it"-clefts and "wh"-clefts in English and their Chinese equivalents in a universal, functional perspective that consists of assigning "participant roles" in processing a clause. The analysis shows that a functionally-oriented and semantically-motivated approach to the focusing constructions provides greater insight into the discourse…

This study investigated the ability of 10 children (ages 6-7) with specific language impairment (SLI), 10 children of the same chronological age, and 10 children at similar levels of language functioning to maintain conversational topics. Results found that subjects with SLI contributed more inappropriate utterances and demonstrated difficulty…

Verbal interactions of 41 initial consultation interviews were analyzed using Bergan's (1977) Consultation Analysis Record procedures. Consultants were graduate students participating in an upper-level graduate course on school-based consultation, while consultees were field-based educational and psychological professionals. Results indicated both…

Discusses the role of rule in language as well as the role of the linguist in preserving and/or altering the rules. The article lists three terms and the distinctions among them emerging from Harris's viewpoint: law of nature, rule, and regularity. (14 references) (CK)

Examined children's naturally occurring arguments sampled from transcripts of discussions in fourth-grade classrooms. Found that children's arguments had vague referring expressions, sometimes did not contain explicit conclusions, and seemed to lack explicit warrants to authorize conclusions. Missing or oblique information was usually given in the…

Describes the validation of a taxonomy designed to classify teacher verbal strategies to foster interaction through the Hawaii Interactive Television System operated for distance education at the University of Hawaii. Highlights include Kappa Coefficients; Z-scores; and recommendations for future use. (Author/LRW)

Argues that the construction of a performance script permits the modification of the original text in order to render that original theatrically communicative in the present. Notes that the dominant concerns of script modification are in how to negotiate audience expectations. Describes three types of textual deviation: nonverbal alteration;…

The Social Interactive Coding System (SICS) assesses the continuous verbal interactions of preschool children as a function of play areas, addressees, script codes, and play levels. This paper describes the 26 subjects and the setting involved in SICS development, coding definitions and procedures, training procedures, reliability, sample…

Twelve hearing and 12 hearing-impaired mothers were videotaped during work and play tasks with their hearing daughters, aged 8-12. Significant differences observed among 11 interaction patterns included less verbal interaction, more nonverbal interaction, and fewer maternal questions between hearing-impaired mothers and their daughters than…

Studied whether there were differences between using anatomically correct dolls, drawings, or verbal descriptions in the accuracy and completeness of sexual abuse information using girls (N=45) ages 9 to 10. Determined children in group using either dolls or drawings obtained more correct responses than those in the verbal group, but the…

Examined effects of a structured learning time interval (SLTI) in growth groups on member self-esteem, perceived level of group interaction, and verbal participation in 81 undergraduate college students. Found use of SLTI had no significant effect on self-esteem, perceived interaction, or verbal participation. (Author/ABL)

Shows why truthfulness, because of its link to spirituality, was the foremost standard for speech in ancient India, and how its practice was defined, emphasizing the consequences of truthfulness and deceit for speakers themselves. Considers possible contributions to current rhetorical and ethical studies. (SR)

Explored the power of intonation of speech addressed to adults and preverbal infants to convey meaningful information to 80 adult listeners. Listeners used intonation to identify speaker's intent with greater accuracy in infant-directed speech than adult-directed speech. (RJC)

Discusses the reasons that newborns and young infants cry, the communicative effect and perception of crying, crying in sick and healthy infants, the sound spectograph, and crying for the use of clinical diagnostics. (RJC)