Third person interpretation and the sociolinguistics of verbal communication
This thesis is addressed to analysts of talk in social scenes. Its principal aim is to develop a framework for systematically investigating third person interpretations of what communicates and what is communicated in the data products of everyday verbal exchange. The programme of research that is designed to meet this aim is based on analytic and descriptive techniques adopted from a wide range of disciplines concerned with the study of verbal communication, and particularly those associated with the work of John Gumperz (1982a; 1982b). By focussing on the nature of third person descriptions of what goes on and who is involved in various tape recorded products of talk, the research seeks to explore the nature of members' interpretive resources for recovering and warranting communicative norms that are not normally verbalised as talk is in progress. The investigative method developed for this purpose provides professional observers with an empirical means of citing evidence in support of their own analytic claims about what participants are doing in talk. It also provides an enabling device for generating and testing hypotheses about the communicative salience of different sociolinguistic factors, much as
McGregor, William Graham
Linguistics
Third person interpretation and the sociolinguistics of verbal communication. This thesis is addressed to analysts of talk in social scenes. Its principal aim is to develop a framework for systematically investigating third person interpretations of what communicates and what is communicated in the data products of everyday verbal exchange. The programme of research that is designed to meet this aim is based on analytic and descriptive techniques adopted from a wide range of disciplines concerned with the study of verbal communication, and particularly those associated with the work of John Gumperz (1982a; 1982b). By focussing on the nature of third person descriptions of what goes on and who is involved in various tape recorded products of talk, the research seeks to explore the nature of members' interpretive resources for recovering and warranting communicative norms that are not normally verbalised as talk is in progress. The investigative method developed for this purpose provides professional observers with an empirical means of citing evidence in support of their own analytic claims about what participants are doing in talk. It also provides an enabling device for generating and testing hypotheses about the communicative salience of different sociolinguistic factors, much as
third_person interpretation sociolinguistics verbal_communication addressed analyst talk social scene principal_aim develop framework systematically investigate third_person interpretation communicate data product everyday verbal exchange programme design meet aim base analytic descriptive technique adopt wide_range discipline concern study verbal_communication particularly associate work john person focussing nature third_person description involve various tape record product talk seek_explore nature member interpretive resource recover warrant communicative norm normally talk progress investigative method_develop purpose_provide professional observer empirical mean cite evidence_support analytic claim participant talk also_provide enable device generate test_hypothesis communicative salience different sociolinguistic factor much