WK7 L14: Turn-Taking Part 2

• What is the title of the work by Levinson referenced in the study material?

  On the Human “Interaction Engine”
• According to Levinson, what lies at the roots of human sociality?

  A special capacity for social interaction
• How does language relate to social interaction according to the study material?

  Language evolved out of our existing capacity for social interaction
• What does Levinson argue about the principles of interaction?

  They are independent from the specifics of language and culture
• What are the universal properties of interaction that underpin turn-taking?

  1. Interaction characterized by action chains and sequences

  • Minimal adjacency pairs
  • Culturally specified sequences

  1. Reciprocity of roles

  • Alternation of speaker and listener roles

  1. Expectation of close timing

  • Timely responses to questions
• What is an example of a minimal adjacency pair in conversation?

  Greeting followed by a greeting response
• What is meant by the reciprocity of roles in interaction?

  Alternation between speaker and listener roles
• What does the expectation of close timing refer to in turn-taking?

  Responses are expected within a certain timeframe
• Why do we have a turn-taking system?

  We cannot speak and understand at the same time
• How does feedback function in conversation?

  It signals mutual understanding or lack thereof
• What does smooth timing in early interactions refer to?

  Characterized by smooth transitions with tight timing
• How does the emergence of speech affect timing in interactions?

  It disrupts smooth timing due to slower planning processes
• What did the longitudinal study explore regarding turn-taking?

  The timing of turn-taking in infancy
• How does children's turn-taking change as they develop?

  It becomes slower later on in development
• What influences the speed of children's turn-taking?

  Language production difficulty
• How does the amount of language children hear affect their vocabulary?

  It explains how quickly they grow their vocabulary
• What is the relationship between conversational turns and vocabulary growth?

  More turn-taking episodes lead to quicker vocabulary growth
• What factors influence turn-taking in conversation?

  • Knowing what to say
  • Knowing when to say it
  • Semantic information
  • Prosody
  • Visual information (gestures, facial expressions, gaze, body posture)
• What does knowing what to say involve in turn-taking?

  Preparing a response
• What does knowing when to say something involve in turn-taking?

  Predicting a turn-end
• How do constraining contexts affect responses in conversation?

  They lead to faster responses than unconstraining contexts
• What was the aim of Der Ruiter et al.'s (2006) study?

  To test the contribution of lexical/semantic information and pitch/intonation to turn-end prediction
• What did Der Ruiter et al. find regarding pitch/intonation and semantic content?

  Semantic content contributes to turn-end prediction, while pitch does not
• At what age could children begin to anticipate turn ends in questions?

  Approximately 2 years
• What factors help people know when to speak in conversation?

  Semantic/pragmatic content, prosody, visual information, gestures, facial expressions, gaze, body posture
• What is prosody in the context of conversation?

  • Refers to how something is said
  • Includes pitch, intonation, and rhythm
  • Influences turn-taking and understanding
• How does gaze affect turn-taking in conversation?

  It provides visual information that accompanies speech
• What was observed in the study by Beattie, Cutler, and Pearson (1982) regarding pitch and gaze?

  Fewer looks to the interviewer and faster pitch drop occurred when interrupted
• What is the purpose of the student task involving video snippets of conversations?

  • To observe non-verbal communication signals
  • To analyze conversation dynamics
  • To understand turn-taking in practice
• What are minimal adjacency pairs in conversation?

  Pairs of utterances where one prompts a specific response
• How does feedback contribute to effective communication?

  It helps signal mutual understanding
• What did the longitudinal study reveal about maternal pauses?

  Mothers leave longer pauses after their own utterances compared to responses
• What was the methodology used in the longitudinal study on turn-taking?

  Fine-grained temporal analyses of vocalizations
• How does semantic information influence turn-taking?

  It helps predict turn ends and prepare responses
• What role does visual information play in conversation dynamics?

  It provides cues that accompany speech
• What is the main focus of the study by Beattie, Cutler, and Pearson (1982)?

  Prosody and gaze in action
• What happens to the number of looks to the interviewer when a speaker is interrupted?

  Fewer looks to the interviewer occur and there is a faster drop in pitch when interrupted
• What are the key observations regarding gaze in conversation?

  • Speakers look at interlocutors less than listeners.
  • Speakers avert gaze before or at the start of a long utterance.
  • Speakers look towards the interlocutor at the end of a long utterance.
• What is the prediction theory in turn-taking?

  People must predict what the speaker will say to take turns smoothly
• What does early response preparation in conversation depend on?

  It is possible if the turn is predictable