Conversation Analysis

 

Muna Alfadlilah 

Conversation Analysis

This paper will discuss about conversation analysis. Before writer explain about it first writer explain about the Discourse analysis. "Discourse" means what people say or write. It also analysis of the text from people says or writes and will divide to group it. We are, as the student in the University might want to look into what people say or write for many reasons: and their particular reason will play a large part in deciding just what sort of saying and writing they choose to study. Students of history, cultural and media studies, and politics, among other disciplines, will want at times to identify a "discourse" as a collection of metaphors, allusions, images, historical references and so on that populate some cultural phenomenon (the discourse of modernity, for example, or the discourse of cyber culture, or the discourse of Human Resource Management; all current scholarly projects). In discourse will be explained how the people could the analysis also people could understand what the writer or speaker says. (Alasuutari. P, 2008)

The sort of discourse analysis talking about in this paper is a social scientist: people discourse’s as an organization of talk or text that does something, in the broad social world, or in the immediate interaction, or in both. Where discourse taken to be social action made visible in language. What kind of social action? Different ones, according to the interests of the analysis. The familiar way of setting out this difference is to range the interests from global to local. As we shall see later on, this distinction is itself a matter of dispute. However, for the moment let us keep with it. At the more global end, discourse analysts can be interested in actions at the overarching level of social regulation, expressed though official and unofficial discourses like laws, media coverage or advertising texts; actions that have their effect not just in what is explicitly said, but what the analyst finds left unsaid. In discourse analysis, we could analyze all about the field not only in scientist but also in the entire field that have a text and could be analyze. Not only in a text in the paper but also in social media which has had a different placed to give a discourse but the same a text (Alasuutari. P, 2008)

At that level, those doing the action (and those suffering it) may be classes of people, or 'society' in general. At the local end, the analyst might be interested in discourse that acts at the level of interaction, through conversationalists' activities, realized in the allocation, organization and internal design of turns at talk. Therefore, discourse analysis also explains the text in conversation analysis, which has a meaning in that text.

According to Sacks and Schegloff and Jefferson (1974), Convertsation analysis is about derives from sociology and ethno methodology. It argues that conversation has its own dynamic structure and rules. It looks at the methods used by speakers to structure conversation efficiently. Conversation analyzed in turns. One speaker and then the next a turn consists of one or more turn constructional units. Conversation is about how the activates doing in well with a basic by human to make a relationship with another person. Such as with conversation, people could be express their feeling and thinking and giving some information with their needed. In general conversation has in formal and nonformal, following the way they speak with their partner (adjacency pair) is partner minim to be a basic of fulfill the process conversation  The end of a turn constructional unit  is a point during a turn when another speaker can intervene. This point called a turn transitional relevant point.

 Conversation Analysis (CA) generally attempts to describe the orderliness, structure and sequential patterns of interaction, whether this is institutional (in the school, doctor’s surgery, courts or elsewhere) or casual conversation. Nunan (1993: 84) conversation analysts attempt to describe and explain the ways in which conversation work. Interest in the analysis of conversation by scholars working in a number of different academic disciplines is hardly surprising as conversation is probably the basic form of communication. “...conversation is clearly the prototypical kind of language use, the form in which is all first exposed to language – the matrix for language acquisition”. (Levinson 1983: 282).

According to Sidnell (2013: 1), CA is the dominant approach to the study of human social interaction across the disciplines of Sociology, Linguistics and Communication. As a method, CA is not suitable for all research questions pertaining to language use and/or social interaction, but it is well – suited to those concerned with understanding the structural underpinnings of everyday conversation as well as spontaneous naturally occurring social interaction among lay persons and/or professionals Corversatition Analysis. Studies the organization of conversation there are four the material will be explain in this paper in this paper, sequence organization, turn design, and repair.

1)      Turn-taking procedures address the recurrent problems of ‘who speaks next?’ and ‘when do they start?’ by coordinating the ending of one turn with the start of the next (Sacks et al., 1974). Turns are composed of one or more turn-constructional units (TCUs), which consist of linguistic units (words, phrases, clauses, etc.) that form a recognizably complete utterance in a given context. The turn-taking organization thus provides for the orderly distribution of turns-at-talk for conversation.

2)      Sequence organization refers to how successive turns link up to form coherent courses of action (Schegloff, 2007). The adjacency pair is the basis of this organization: two turns/actions, produced by different participants, where the first pair part (FPP) is followed in next position by a type-matched second pair part (SPP), which, were it not produced, would be ‘noticeably absent’. Examples of adjacency pairs include greeting greeting, question-answer, invitation acceptance/declination, complaint-account, and so on. The property that unites FPPs and SPPs called conditional relevance because the relevance of the second action is contingent upon the production of the first. Multiple adjacency pairs can be strung together to form complex courses of action by processes of sequence expansion. Adjacency pairs are a type of sequence, along with:  Insertion sequences, Pre-sequences, Post-sequences. Conversational encounters can be described in terms of an overall organization, that is, a schematic description of the types and order of a conversation’s turns and sequences.

-          Adjacency pairs : An adjacency pair is a unit of conversation that contains an exchange of one turn each by two speakers. The turns are functionally related to each other in such a fashion that the first turn requires a certain type or range of types of second turn.

E.g.:

·         A greeting–greeting pair

·         A question–answer pair

-          Functions of adjacency pairs

·         Adjacency pairs are used for starting and closing a conversation

·         Adjacency pairs are used for moves in conversations

·         First utterance in adjacency pair  has the function of selecting next speaker

·         Adjacency pairs are used for remedial exchanges

·         Components in adjacency pairs can be used to build longer sequences.

-          Adjacency pairs

·         Question – answer

·         Greeting – greeting

·         Offer – acceptance

·         Request – acceptance

·         Complaint - excuse

-          Question and answers

The level of response varies according to the type of question used. Questions can be divided into closed and open questions. ‘Wh-’ questions and ‘how’ questions are generally opened, as they leave a fairly open agenda for the speaker who answers. Closed questions are also called yes-no questions.

-          Types of questions

The “openness” of a question varies with the context.

DAVID: how's your dogs (.) alright?

ANDREW: yeah (.) they're in the kennels

      David asks two questions in one turn, an open one and a closed one. While the first question seems an open, interested and genuine enquiry, the second is closed and signals that this is just a comment in passing. D. has probaby already assumed that the dogs are fine and is seeking for confirmation and nothing more. Some questions, therefore, are not meant to get a real lenghty answer, but just to structure the conversation. How much a question throws open a topic depends on the nature of the question and on the context.

-          Tag Questions

One of the most interesting types of questions are tag questions. The way in which they operate depends on the intonation used and on the context they appear in. They can show tentativeness:

–        This is a good match, isn’t it?

They can show assertiveness:

–        You’re not leaving, are you?

You will learn more about tag questions on April 12.

It is difficult to avoid answering repeated questions and as the urgency of the question increases, the length of the question decreases. In other words, short sharp questions are forceful in provoking a response.

-          Activity

Are the following open or closed questions?

Did you enjoy the spaghetti bolognese?

Do you love her?

I think the Labour candidate’s the best, don’t you?

Are you going to put up with that?

What plans have you for the next few years?

·         Possible types of answers

·         Answer

·         Assurance of ignorance

·         Suggestion for asking someone else (re-routing)

·         Postponement

·         Refusal to provide an answer

·         Challenge to presuppositions of question

·         Challenge to questioner’s sincerity

 

-          “Preference” organization

            Adjacency pairs have “preferences”:

•         Preferred response = granting

•         Dispreferred response = refusal

Dispreferred responses are often

– Delayed

– Marked (preface marking dispreferred status).

-          Insertion Sequence

      An insertion sequence is a sequence of turns that intervenes between the first and second parts of an adjacency pair.

A: Shall I wear the blue shoes?

B: You’ve got the black ones

A: They’re not comfortable

B: Yeah, they’re the best then, wear the blue ones.

      The topic of the insertion sequence  is related to that of the main sequence in which it occurs and the question from the main sequence is returned to and answered after the insertion.

A: I wanted to order some more paint.(Request)

B: Yes, how many tubes would you like, sir? (Question 1)

A: Um, what's the price with tax? (Question 2)

B: Er, I'll just work that out for you. (Hold)

A: Thanks. (Acceptance)

B: Three nineteen a tube, sir. (Answer 2)

A: I'll have five, then. (Answer 1)

B: Here you go. (Acceptance)

-          Insertion Sequences as a kind of Delay

A delay is an item used to put off a dispreferred second part. A dispreferred second part is a second part of an adjacency pair that consists of a response to the first part that is generally to be avoided or not expected.

–        A refusal in response to a request, offer, or invitation

–        A disagreement in response to an assessment

–        An unexpected answer in response to a question

–        An admission in response to blame.

The following exchange contains delays as a repair initiation in the second turn, insertion sequences in the fourth and fifth turns, and the well, pause, and self-repair in the sixth turn:

1. A: Can you do it?

2. B: What?

3. A: Can you take care of it?

4. B: Now?

5. A: If that’s all right.

6. B: Well, [pause] I mean, no, I’m afraid not.

–        Fillers as a kind of Delay

          In conversation analysis they are also known as a ‘preface’, that is, an audible device, such as one of the following, used within a turn to put off a dispreferred response:

•         Items like well

•         Token agreement

•         Indications of appreciation, apology, or qualification

•         Self-repair

E.g.:

Um, yes, thanks, but you--I mean, I’ll just do it myself.

3)      Turn design refers to how speakers format their turns to implement some action, in some position, for some recipient(s) (Drew, 2013). A basic assumption in CA is that participants use talk and other conduct to produce recognizable actions, often-employing particular grammatical formats as resources to do so (see Levinson, 2013). To make an offer, for example, speakers can design their turn as a conditional (if your husband would like their address, my husband would gladly give it to him), declarative (I will take her in Sunday), or interrogative (do you want me to bring the chairs?), each of which systematically occurs in particular sequential positions (Curl, 2006).

4)      Repair is a correction of what has been said by the speaker about the previous statement they said during the conversation. Repair is a broader concept than simply the correction of errors in talk by replacing an incorrect form with a correct one, although such corrections are a part of repair (Jefferson, 1987; Schegloff et al., 1997). According to Sidnell (2013: 229) the domain of repair was first defined by Schegloff, Jefferson and Sacks (1997) as the set of practices whereby a co-interrupts the ongoing course of action to attend possible trouble in speaking, hearing or understanding the talk. According to Schegloff (2007b: xiv) in Sidnell (2013: 229) repair is used to ensure “that the interaction does not freeze in its place when trouble arises, that intersubjectivity is maintained or restored, and that the turn and sequence and activity can progress to possible completion”. Repair practices address troubles in speaking, hearing, and understanding (Schegloff,Jefferson, & Sacks, 1977). A repair procedure includes three basic components: trouble source (e.g., an unfamiliar word), repair initiation (i.e., a signal that begins a repair procedure), and four repair solution (e.g., a rephrasing of the unfamiliar word). Either the speaker of the trouble source (self) or its recipient (other) can initiate a repair procedure and/or produce a repair solution. Thus a distinction is made between, for example, self-initiated self-repair (e.g. so he didn’t take Sat- uh Friday off), in which the speaker of the trouble source initiates and executes the repair procedure independently, and other-initiated self-repair (e.g., A: so he didn’t take Saturday off. B: Saturday? A: Friday.), in which a recipient of the trouble source initiates the procedure and the speaker produces the solution.

Here are two types of repairs found in this movie. Paltridge (2000: 93) stated that there are two types of repair, self-repair and other-repair. According to Paltridge (2000: 95), Self-repairs are repairs done by speaker about what has been said before. Paltridge (2000: 95) stated other repairs are repairs done by another speaker as interlocutor. For example:  

1. Self-Repair

a. A: I’m going to the movies… I mean the opera.

From the example above, can be explain that example (1) the speaker correcting the utterance what has been said before, with she/he said “I mean the opere”. In the conversation of the text above, the bold text utterance has self-repair.

 b. A: I'm heading off to Sue's-- I mean Mary's house tonight.

From the example above, can be explain that example (2) the speaker correcting the utterance what has been said before, with she/he said “I mean Mary’s house tonight”. In the conversation of the text above, the bold text utterance has self-repair.

2. Other Repair

a. Example of other repair (the other person might repair what we have said (other repair):

A: I’m going to that restaurant we went to last week. You know the Italian one Ratalui?

B: You mean Ratatui,  don’t you?

A: Yeah. That’s right Ratatui.

On the other hand, example (2) the correcting utterance that is another speaker as interlocutor. The speaker A say “Ratatui”, and the other speaker B repair with the utterance “You mean Ratatui?”. In the conversation of the text above, the bold text utterance has other repair.

b.   A: I need more storage space on my computer, so I need to get a new umm....

B: A hard drive?

A: Yeah, that's right, a hard drive.

From the example above, can be explain that example (2) the correcting utterance that is another speaker as interlocutor (speaker B). The speaker A say “a new umm..” and the other speaker B repair with the utterance “A hard drive?”. In the conversation of the text above, the bold text utterance has other repair.

According to Sidnell (2013: 255) repair is a generic order of organization in talk-in-interaction which is used (with local variations) across linguistic and cultural communities. There are two types of repair, self repairs and other repairs (Paltridge 2000: 95). The function of repair with uses pragmatic context, there are: to clarified, to ask, to replaced, to suggest, to assert, to explain and to convince. To measure this study, there are several theories relate to this study. Conversation are the ideal form of communication in some respects, since they allow people with different views on a topic to learn from each other. A speech, on the other hand, is an oral presentation by one person directed at a group. Fof a successful conversation, the partners must achieve a workable balance of contributions. A successful conversation includes mutually interesting connections between the speakers or things that the speakers know.

Fairclough (2000: 9) stated “conversation is systematically structued, and that there is evidence of the orientation of participants to these structures in the way in which they design their own conversational turns and react to those of others”. Conversation is analysed in turns. One speaker and then the next a turn consists of one or more turn constructional units. The end of a turn constructional unit  is a point during a turn when another speaker can intervene. This point is called a turn transitional relevant point.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Hoey, E. M. & Kendrick, K. H. (in press). Conversation Analysis. In A. M. B. de Groot & P. Hagoort (eds.), Research Methods in Psycholinguistics: A Practical Guide. Wiley Blackwell.

ANTAKI, C., 2008. Discourse analysis and conversation analysis. IN: Alasuutari. P., Bickman L, and Brannan, J. (eds.). The SAGE Handbook of Social Research Methods, London, Sage, pp. 431-446.