Conversation Management

1. Conversation Management Turns and turn-taking Adjacency pairs Preferred and dispreferred second parts Insertion, side, repair sequences Preference organisation

2. Turns and Turn-Taking • Conversational partners trade off the roles of speaking/listening. Turn • the opportunity to speak at some point during a conversation • one or more 'turn-constructional units' (= sentences, clauses, phrases, words) Transition relevance place (TRP) • a point in the conversation where a 'natural' transition (speaker change) may occur back

3. Floor-holders Floorholders may • exploit TRPs for the purpose of allocating the right to speak to another conversationalist (turn-allocation rules!): • directly, e.g. It's my pleasure to introduce Robert Bentley What do you think Bill? Now we'd like to hear Jim's view on this • indirectly, e.g. Any other opinion on this matter? • ignore TRPs by creating unnatural breaks in mid-sentence in order to continue across the next upcoming 'real' TRP • 'mask' TRPs by emitting a more or less 'threatening' sound at potential transition points back

4. Non-floor-holders Non-floor-holders may • provide 'back-channelling' support, e.g. I see Right • intervene by taking the floor, preferably at a TRP, e.g. Yes but Well yes but Surely . . . back

5. The turn-taking mechanisms Turn-taking mechanisms, i.e. the ways in which speakers hold or pass the floor • vary between cultures and between languages • involve non-verbal signals • depend on the relative status of the speakers • vary between types of conversation (e.g. face-to-face, phone, video conferencing) back

6. Adjacency pairs • two subsequent utterances which constitute a conversational exchange; the utterance of one speaker makes a particular kind of response very likely • types (illocutionary force): e.g. 'greeting-greeting', 'order- compliance', 'invitation-acceptance' etc. [question-answer] [summons-answer] [greeting-greeting] [invitation-acceptance] What time is it? About eight-thirty. Mummy - Yes dear Hello - Hi Maybe we go for a walk. - That'd be great. • conditional relevance: given a first part of an adjacency pair, the second part is relevant and expectable • preferred and dispreferred second parts back

7. Preferred and dispreferredsecond parts A: Could you help me moving tomorrow morning? B1: Sure, no problem. B2: Well, uh, let me see, I have to take Cindy to school and take my mother-in-law to the doctor and somebody is coming over to fix the washing machine ... • preferred second parts: short, direct, straightforward • dispreferred second parts: delay, prefaces (appreciation, apology), explanations etc. back

8. Preferred and dispreferredsecond parts: examples Offer Acceptance (preferred) Refusal (dispreferred) Assessment Agreement(preferred) Disagreement (dispreferred) Question Expected answer (preferred) Unexpected answer (dispreferred) back

9. Compliment options A: That was an excellent paper you wrote B: Yes it was excellent (self praise taboo) B: Oh, it isn't really that good (downgraded) B: Yeah, but it still needs work (qualified) B: It is only because of your help (reassigned credit) B: Your paper was excellent too (return) back

10. Example: compliment opening opening compliment thanks agreementacceptance/shift of credit A: Hi Beth, how are you? B: Fine. A: What a beautiful scarf. B: Oh thanks, it is, isn't it? I'm so embarrassed. Kevin gave it to me and you know these aren't cheap. A: Oh I know. B: mm -- so how have you been? back

11. Insertion sequences (related topic) • strict adjacency is not necessary • insertion sequences may occur in between first and second part Ricky: May I have a bottle of gin? Shop keeper: Are you twenty one? Ricky: No. Shop keeper: No. back

12. Side sequences (unrelated topic) • strict adjacency is not necessary • side sequences may occur in between first and second part Eileen: I'm dying to know – where's my watch by the way? Fiona: What? Eileen: What Gillian's aerobic sessions are like HA HA HA HA Fiona: What aerobic sessions?It's here. Eileen: Gillian does aerobic sessions every evening. LEADS them. Thanks. Can you imagine. back

13. Repair sequences Alan: So I was trying to pick up this chick when . . . Beth: Excuse me, did I hear that right? Alan: Awfully sorry, I mean, woman . . . Beth: PICK UP? Alan: Awfully sorry, I mean, meet . . . Glyn: what have you got to do this afternoon Hugh: oh I'm going to repair the child bar Glyn: what do you mean CHILD bar Hugh: uh --- it's --- uh --- the metal bar goes acr- has to be fixed from one side of the car I mean from one side of the back seat to the other for the BABY seat to go on Glyn: AH ... What I really meant was . . .(self repair) Sorry; I don't quite get what you mean(repair by others) back

14. Pre-sequences • turns that are built to prepare the specific action that they precede • they draw attention to, or prepare the ground for, the kind of turn a speaker is going to take next Right! OK, let's get started! Listen . . . Did I tell you about . . . ? Oh I wanted to ask you . . . To sum all this up Let me add a last comment . . . back

15. Pre-request I wonder if you have . . . Do you by any chance have . . . Arthur: Do you have hot chocolate? Waiter: Yes, sir. Arthur: Okay, can I have hot chocolate with whipped cream then? Waiter: Sure. Meryl: Do you have Mexican burger today? Shop keeper: Yes we do. Would you like one of those? Meryl: Yes please. Shop keeper: Okay. [turns to get] back

16. Pre-invitation Alan: Are you free tonight? Beth: Yes. Alan: Like to go to that film? Dan: What are you doing this weekend? Eve: Nothing much, why? Dan: Do you want to go out? Eve: Yea, sure. Ken: Are you doing anything tonight? Jane: Why are you asking? Ken: I thought we might see a movie. Jane: Well, no, nothing in particular. What do you want to see? back

17. Pre-closing • It is common to use a pre-sequence which signals impending closure, echoed by the other participant, followed by farewells: A: I'll ring you Thursday night then B: all right ring us Thursday A: yes I will B: bye bye then dear A: bye Right Well Anyway So Ok then back