Language-as-productHistoryGeorgeMiller’s(1962) information processingapproachtocognitionChomsky’s(1957,1959) generativelinguisticsApproachTreatlanguageasaproduct,orexpression,ofpeople’scompetenceina language. Focus is on the cognitive processes by which listeners recover, and speakers create, linguistic representations.Questions Howdopeopleproduceandunderstandthesentencesoftheir language?Whatisthelinkbetweenlanguageuseandthegrammarofthelanguage?(Clark, 1996; Trueswell&Tanenhaus , 2005)Language-as-productExperimental approachFocusisontheindividual-a single person in the act of reading or speaking(Trueswell&Tanenhaus , 2005)Language-as-actionHistoryOxfordphilosophersoflanguageuse(e.g.,Austin,1962;Grice,1957;Searle,1969) Conversationalanalysis(e.g.,SchegloffandSachs,1973tiApproachTreatlanguageasaclassofhumanactions.Focusisonhowpeoplesimultaneouslymanage speaking and listening to use language in face-to-face conversations, on the phone, in court trials, or talking to oneself.QuestionsWhatdopeopledowithlanguage?;Whataretheirgoals,theirintentions? Bywhatprocessesdotheyachievethesegoals?(Clark, 1996; Trueswell&Tanenhaus , 2005tiLanguage-as-actionExperimental approach Focusisonpartners–multiple participants engaged in interactive conversation using natural tasks with well-defined behavioral goals. Language-in-use(Trueswell&Tanenhaus , 2005)Types of Knowledge Underlying CommunicationKnowledge structurePhonological rulesMorphological rulesSyntactic rulesSemantic rulesKnowledge of useConditions on speech actsHow to communicate intentConversation PrinciplesContextual constraintsManagement rulesSpeech ActsWe are trying to get things done with utterancesAustin (1976ti 3 forces possessed by sentence1)Locutionary force: literal meaning2) Illocutionary force: what speaker is trying to get donewith the utterance3)Perlocutionary force: effect utterance has on the actions and beliefs of listenersSpeech ActsCan you pass the salt?1)Locutionary force: literal meaning Do you have the ability to pass the salt2) Illocutionary force: what speaker is trying to get done with the utteranceI am requesting that you pass the salt3)Perlocutionary force: effect utterance has on the actions and beliefs of listenersMy food needs seasoningSpeech Acts can be CategorizedRepresentative statement of factI ride a bikeDirective getting listener to do somethingDo you ride a bike?Commissivespeaker commits to future actionIf you ride with me, I’ll give you $5.Expressive speaker reveals psychological stateI’m sorry to hear you don’t like to ride a bikeDeclarative speaker brings new state of affairsWe are no longer friends because you don’t ride a bikeDirect vs Indirect Speech ActsPlease pass the salt.Is the salt at your end of the table?This food is a bit bland.Sources of UnderstandingLiteral interpretationInterpretation based on presumptionsThe Cooperative Principle - GriceConventional ImplicatureDerived from what is literally saidConversational ImplicatureDerived from knowledge of the application of the cooperative principle in addition to what is literally meantThe Cooperative Principle - Grice“Nixon is dead”1970’s headlineConventional implicature“no longer alive”Conversational implicature“cantit continue as president”1990’s headlineConventional implicature“no longer alive”Conversational implicature“no longer alive”Cooperative Principle Maxims of ConversationQuantity be as informative is required; don’t give too muchQuality be truthfulRelation be relevantManner be clear; avoid ambiguityConversation ManagementCommunication is governed by social conventionsSpeakers/participants take turnsTopic management skillsInitiationMaintaining (gaze, backchannel, gesture)TerminateTurn takingRemarkable control less than 5% of turns overlapUh, um, gesture, gazeConvergence in conversationGet in synch, become more like our conversational partner acrossRate of speechSemantic and syntactic choice/styleLength of speaking turnAccent, pitchGesture, postureEntrainment, alignment, synchronyInteractive Alignment(Pickering and Garrod, 2004tiCollaboration in Communication“everything is different since nine-eleven”.How is it that their audience can understand what they are referring to?Date September 11thSeptember 11th, 2001Al Qaeda-led attacksCommon GroundOne’s knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and assumptions about the world, and about the current and previous communicative exchangesOne’s understanding of other’s beliefs, knowledge, attitudes, etc.Recognition of this shared knowledgePhysical world in which the interaction is situatedCritical context for complex communicationCollaboration in ConversationWhen two people use language, it is like shaking hands, playing a piano duet, or paddling a two-person canoetiIt takes coordination, even collaboration, to achieve.(Herbert H. Clark, 1992, p. xvi)Documenting Collaborative ReferencingThe Barrier Task SessionsBarrier Task GameGoal: Matcher needs to place cards on his/her board so they match director’s boardRules: Communicate freely, but don’t look over barrierPlay 6 trials, in each of 4 sessionsProvides repeated opportunities for pairs to reference target cards in a meaningful activityCollaborative ReferencingAccuracy of Card PlacementOvert collaborative effort declinesReduced words, turns, timeEstablish unique card labels (conceptual pactsti Labels evolve & simplifyIncreased use of definite reference (audience designtiSituated CommunicationSituated communication take as a whole the internal and external resources and processes that are tied together in the ongoing organization of particular activities as people work to achieve particular goals....And the histories of those systemschains of activities across *me multiple trajectories are always presentSituated Communication is Distributed Across Functional SystemsPeople ResourcesHistoriesPeopleDistributing the acts of speaking & listeningSpeaking others’wordsGoffman’s production formatanimator + author + principalReported speechMultiple listenersGoffman’s participation frameworkratified listeners + bystanders + overhearersSocial rolesResourcesDistributing meaning across semiotic resourcesVerbal resourcesLanguageOther semiotic resources Gestures,silence,laughing,sound effects Objects,locationsMeanings of actionsServiceencountersDoingtheexpectedPeople draw on diverse resources to “orient themselves verbally, perceptually, and physically to each other and to their social world”(Hanks, 1996,