conversation analysisn
also conversational analysis
a research tradition evolving from ethnomethodologywhich studies
the social organization of natural conversation (also referred to as talk-in-
interaction) by a detailed inspection of tape recordings and transcriptions.
Concerned with how meanings and pragmatic functions are communicated
in both mundane conversation and such institutional varieties of talk as
interviews and court hearings, conversation analysts have investigated such
topics as the sequential organization of talk, turn-taking, and the ways that
people identify and repair communicative problems.
see also adjacency pair, conversational maxim, discourse analysis,
role, speech act, turn-taking
conversational implicaturen
see conversational maxim
conversational maximn
an unwritten rule about conversation which people know and which
influences the form of conversational exchanges. For example in the
following exchange
a: Let’s go to the movies.
b: I have an examination in the morning.
B’s reply might appear not to be connected to A’s remark. However, since
A has made an invitation and since a reply to an invitation is usually either
an acceptance or a refusal, B’s reply is here understood as an excuse for
not accepting the invitation (i.e. a refusal). B has used the “maxim” that
speakers normally give replies which are relevant to the question that
has been asked. The philosopher Grice has suggested that there are four
conversational maxims:
aThe maxim of quantity: give as much information as is needed.
bThe maxim of quality: speak truthfully.
c The maxim of relevance: say things that are relevant.
dThe maxim of manner: say things clearly and briefly.
The use of conversational maxims to imply meaning during conversation is
calledconversational implicature, and the “co-operation” between speakers
in using the maxims is sometimes called the co-operative principle.
see also adjacency pair, coherence, reality principle
conversational openingsn
(in conversational interaction) the strategies a person uses to begin a con-
versation. These include clearing the throat, body movement, eye movement,
and repeating a previous part of the conversation.
see also turn taking
conversational openings