Ethnographic Analysis of Speech Midterm IDs

Conversation Analysis (CA)

an approach within the social sciences that aims to describe, analyze, and understand talk as a basic and constitutive feature of human social life

talk-in-interaction

the study of naturally occurring spoken interaction, focusing on how participants use talk to accomplish social actions and coordinate their activities moment by moment

“machineries” / organizations of practice

the underlying interactional systems—such as turn-taking, sequencing, and repair—that operate simultaneously and shape how talk unfolds

rather than viewing speech as the product of an individual speaker’s thoughts, conversation analysis treats utterances as the product of multiple intersecting organizations of practice that guide interaction

turn-taking

the organized system through which participants in conversation take turns speaking

this system governs when speakers can begin and end turns and helps maintain orderly interaction with minimal overlap or silence

sequence organization

the structured ordering of actions in conversation, where one action creates expectations for particular next actions

repair

the set of practices used to identify and fix problems in speaking, hearing, or understanding in conversation

recipient design

the way speakers shape their talk with specific recipients in mind

speakers select words, references, and forms of expression based on what they assume the listener knows, recognizes, or can understand

naturalistic data

recordings of naturally occurring talk-in-interaction, rather than invented, remembered, or experimentally produced examples

conversation analysts prefer these because they capture the actual complexity and details of real interaction, which may not be imaginable or remembered accurately

audio/video recording

the primary way CA researchers collect data on interaction

provide a replayable, durable record of what actually happened, allowing analysts to repeatedly examine the talk and interactional details

transcript

a written representation of recorded talk-in-interaction

transcription

the process of repeatedly listening to recordings and writing down the speech and relevant interactional details

helps analysts notice subtle features such as intonation, pauses, timing, and overlaps, which may be important for understanding how participants interpret and respond to talk

transcription conventions

standardized symbols used to represent details of talk in transcripts

single case analysis

closely examining one instance of interaction in detail to analyze how participants orient to particular features of talk (such as timing, wording, or sequential position)

comparative / next-turn analysis

the method of examining how the next speaker responds to a prior turn in order to understand what action the prior turn was doing

turn-at-talk

a stretch of speech produced by one participant in a conversation before another speaker takes the floor

turn-constructional unit (TCU)

the basic building block of a turn

a unit of talk that can potentially complete a turn and make speaker transition relevant

transition relevance place (TRP)

a point at which a turn reaches possible completion and a change of speaker may occur

self-selection (turn allocation)

if no next speaker is selected, any participant may begin speaking; the first person to start gains the next turn

other-selection (turn allocation)

the current speaker selects the next speaker, often through devices like addressing someone by name or asking them a question

one-at-a-time principle

the organizational tendency for conversation to maintain one person speaking at a time

the turn-taking system works to minimize both silence (gaps) and simultaneous speech (overlap), although exceptions such as laughter or collective responses do occur

overlap

occurs when two or more speakers talk at the same time

interruption

a type of overlap in which a speaker cuts into another speaker’s turn before a projected completion point, often disrupting the current speaker’s turn and claiming the floor

action formation

refers to how a speaker’s utterance is designed so that others can recognize what social action the speaker is performing (e.g., asking, offering, complaining)

involves the relationship between practices of speaking (such as grammatical forms, intonation, or wording) and the action those practices accomplish in context

social action (e.g. request, assessment, complaint)

the activity accomplished through talk in interaction—what participants are doing with their words

CA focuses on identifying these by examining how they are produced and how recipients respond to them

next-turn proof procedure

a method used by conversation analysts to determine how an utterance was understood

relies on examining how the next speaker responds, since their response displays their interpretation of the prior turn

adjacency pair

a basic sequence structure in conversation composed of two related turns produced by different speakers

a sequence of paired actions

conditional relevance

describes the relationship created by the first part of an adjacency pair: once a first action occurs, a particular type of response becomes expected next

intersubjectivity

the shared understanding between participants in conversation

in talk-in-interaction, this shared understanding is continually produced and updated as speakers respond to one another’s turns

accounts

explanations or justifications given for an action, often when a speaker does something unexpected, problematic, or dispreferred

provide reasons that make the speaker’s behavior understandable within the interaction

preference organization

the systematic ways conversation structures certain responses as more socially expected or interactionally favored than others

these preferences are not about what speakers personally want, but about the structural organization of talk, where some responses align with the action of the first turn and others resist it

preferred action

the response that aligns with and supports the activity initiated by the first pair part

dispreferred action

a response that does not align with the activity initiated by the first pair part

agreement

usually produced quickly and may even be upgraded

typically the preferred action in conversation

disagreement

often delayed or softened and may involve mitigation or explanation

typically the dispreferred action in conversation

acceptance

supports the proposed action and is typically direct and immediate

typically the preferred action in conversation

rejection

resists the proposed action and is usually delayed, mitigated, or explained

typically the dispreferred action in conversation

mitigation (hedges, delays, accounts)

conversational strategies used to soften dispreferred responses and reduce their social impact

these features help make a refusal or disagreement more socially acceptable

turn shape

the typical structural design of responses depending on whether they are preferred or dispreferred

preferred turn shape

usually immediate (no delay), brief, direct

dispreferred turn shape

often includes delay or pause, prefaces (well…, uh…), mitigation or appreciation, accounts/explanations

sequence organization

how actions in conversation are ordered across multiple turns, typically through adjacency pairs and their expansions

describes how participants build coherent interactional sequences (such as question–answer or invitation–acceptance) and how these sequences can be expanded before, within, or after the base pair

explains how turns relate to one another to accomplish social actions over time

first pair part (FPP)

the initial action in an adjacency pair that makes a particular kind of response relevant next

second pair part (SPP)

the responsive action that follows and completes the adjacency pair by responding to the first pair part

conditionally relevant after the FPP—participants expect it next

base sequence

the core adjacency pair consisting of the first pair part and second pair part (FPP–SPP)

pre-sequence

occurs before the first pair part of a base sequence and prepares the ground for a projected action

it often checks whether conditions are appropriate before performing the main action

these help avoid dispreferred responses (like rejections)

pre-invitation

“Are you busy tonight?” → checks availability; leads to an invitation

pre-request

“Do you have a pen?” → checks resource; leads to a request

pre-announcement

“Guess what happened?” → checks knowledge; leads to a telling

insert expansion

a short sequence inserted between the FPP and SPP of a base sequence to resolve some issue before the response can be given

often handle clarification, repair, or preconditions for the response

post-expansion

occurs after the second pair part, extending the sequence beyond the basic adjacency pair

repair

the organized set of conversational practices participants use to address and resolve problems of speaking, hearing, or understanding in talk

these problems might include mispronunciations, wrong word choices, mishearings, or unclear references

helps maintain mutual understanding (intersubjectivity) in conversation

trouble source

the specific part of talk that creates the problem that needs repair

ex. a mispronounced word, a vague reference (“that thing”), a word the listener does not recognize, a statement that was misheard

self-initiated repair

occurs when the speaker of the trouble source signals that something is wrong with their own talk

often happens within the same turn as the trouble source

other-initiated repair

occurs when a listener signals that there is a problem with the previous speaker’s talk

this usually produces a small repair sequence across turns: trouble source → repair initiation by the other person → repair (clarification/correction)

self-repair

the speaker of the trouble source fixes their own talk

other-repair

another participant corrects or supplies the repair

repair preference for self

speakers are typically given the first opportunity to correct their own talk

repair initiation device

a word, sound, or phrase used to signal trouble with the previous talk and initiate repair

indicate a possible problem with the immediately preceding talk, prompting the original speaker to clarify or repeat

“Huh?”, “What?”, “Sorry?”, “Who?”, “Where?”, “You mean…?”

multi-unit turn

a turn composed of two or more TCUs produced by the same speaker

allows speakers to elaborate, clarify, provide additional info, maintain the floor longer

turn-beginning

the initial portion of a speaker’s turn, where the speaker launches their talk

can show how the speaker is responding to the prior turn or positioning their upcoming action

increment

an additional piece of talk added after a TCU has already reached a possible completion point

extends the turn without starting a new grammatical structure, usually remaining grammatically dependent on the previous unit

effectively re-complete the turn after it was already possibly finished

parenthetical / appositional unit

a brief insertion within a turn that adds extra information or commentary, but is not structurally necessary to the main utterance

functions like a side comment embedded inside the turn

“She—you know, the neighbor next door—was complaining again.”

projectability (of turn completion)

the ability of listeners to anticipate when a speaker’s turn is approaching completion based on grammar, intonation, action/context of the turn

this is what allows listeners to start their next turn exactly at the right moment without long gaps or overlaps

contiguity preference

the interactional tendency for related turns to occur immediately next to each other with minimal delay

story / narrative

a sequence of talk in which a speaker recounts past events or experiences in an organized way

treated as interactional accomplishments: they are collaboratively produced, require recipients’ attention and participation, and typically extend across multiple turns rather than a single short utterance

story preface

a brief introductory utterance that signals a forthcoming story and seeks recipients’ attention or permission to tell it

functions to project an extended telling, allowing the speaker to claim the conversational floor for a longer stretch of talk

story slot (sequence position for telling)

the interactional moment or sequence position where a story becomes relevant and appropriate to tell in conversation

story recipient

the participant who listens to the story and displays engagement through responses such as minimal acknowledgments (“yeah,” “right”), laughter, assessments, or questions

recipiency

the ways listeners demonstrate that they are attending to, understanding, and affiliating with the story while it unfolds

story climax / upshot

the key moment or point of the story—the event, twist, or outcome that gives the story its significance

often where the teller expects a strong response from recipients, such as laughter, surprise, or evaluation

story response

the recipient’s reaction after the story’s climax or completion

includes assessments (“That’s crazy!”), laughter, sympathy, or follow-up questions, which display understanding and affiliation with the teller’s stance

story as multi-unit turn

usually consists of multiple turn-constructional units (TCUs) produced by the same speaker in sequence

during storytelling, ordinary turn-taking rules are partially suspended so the teller can hold the floor long enough to complete the narrative

opening sequence

the organized set of conversational actions through which participants initiate an interaction and establish a conversation

these actions solve several interactional tasks, such as gaining the other person’s attention, recognizing who is speaking, greeting each other, and establishing readiness to talk

closing sequence

the structured set of actions through which participants bring a conversation to an orderly end

instead of stopping abruptly, speakers typically move through recognizable steps that signal the interaction is winding down and allow both parties to exit mutually

summons–answer sequence

a preliminary exchange used to secure the attention and availability of another participant before the main conversation begins

establishes participation roles, showing that one person is ready to speak and the other is ready to listen

identification / recognition sequence

the interactional work through which participants figure out who the other person is and confirm that they have reached the intended interlocutor

how-are-you / greeting sequence

an exchange that acknowledges the relationship between participants and establishes a friendly interactional frame

helps (re)constitute the relationship between speakers and display mutual recognition and social alignment before moving to the main business of the conversation

pre-closing

a conversational move that signals that the conversation may be coming to an end, giving the other participant a chance to either accept the closing or reopen the talk

“okay,” “alright then,” “so…”

terminal exchange

the final adjacency pair that completes the closing sequence, typically consisting of reciprocal farewell expressions

“bye–bye”

topic

the matter or subject that participants are talking about at a given moment in interaction

not treated simply as content but as something participants collaboratively produce and manage through interactional practices

topic initiation

the practice of introducing a new matter for talk so that participants begin discussing it

often occurs at moments where no topic is currently active, such as the opening of a conversation or after a previous topic has closed

topic shift / topic change

occurs when participants move from discussing one topic to another

may happen abruptly (a clear break between topics) or gradually through linking devices that connect the new topic to the previous one

usually interactionally managed rather than explicitly declared

topic maintenance

the practices through which participants continue developing the current topic rather than shifting away from it

done through actions such as adding related information, asking follow-up questions, producing assessments or stories related to the same matter

shows that participants orient to it as still relevant for the ongoing conversation

topic termination

the closing or completion of talk on a topic, after which the conversation may: shift to another topic or move toward closing the interaction

stepwise topic movement

a gradual transition from one topic to another through intermediate links, rather than an abrupt shift

speakers connect the new topic to the previous one by introducing something related or belonging to the same class of activities or experiences

allows the shift to occur without participants explicitly marking a topic change

topic elicitor

a turn designed to invite the other speaker to introduce a topic, while remaining neutral about what the topic will be

elicit a candidate topic from the next speaker without specifying the subject themselves

context (as invoked-in-interaction)

not treated as a fixed background but as something participants actively invoke and make relevant through their talk and actions

speakers display which aspects of the situation matter (e.g., teacher–student roles, rules of a game, institutional roles) by referring to them or orienting to them in interaction

context-free organization

structures of talk that operate independently of particular settings, such as turn-taking, repair, or adjacency pairs

these mechanisms organize conversation across many types of interactions

context-sensitive organization

aspects of talk that are shaped by the specific situation or activity, such as institutional roles, tasks, or identities

participants orient to these contextual features when producing and interpreting actions

membership categorization

a practice in which speakers refer to people using social categories (e.g., “mother,” “teacher,” “tourist,” “doctor”) that carry shared expectations about identity, roles, and behavior

participants can invoke these categories to make certain interpretations or actions relevant in the interaction

category-bound activity

an action or behavior conventionally associated with a particular membership category

when someone performs or refers to such an activity, it can invoke the relevant category and help establish the interactional context

recipient design (as contextualization)

refers to the way speakers shape their talk for a specific audience, taking into account what recipients know, who they are, and their relationship to the speaker

as contextualization, this means speakers display their understanding of the situation and participants through how they design their utterances

institutional talk

interaction occurring within institutional settings (e.g., courtrooms, classrooms, medical consultations)

characterized by: orientation to institutional goals or tasks, constraints on contributions, specialized inferential frameworks for interpreting talk

ordinary conversation

everyday interaction without a specific institutional task

turn-taking is locally managed by participants, and actions are relatively unconstrained

“interaction order”

a concept from Erving Goffman referring to the organized system of norms and practices governing face-to-face interaction

CA adopts this idea to study the systematic methods people use to coordinate interaction, such as turn-taking, repair, and sequence organization