   
Next: Human-Human Conversation vs. Human-Computer Up: The Discourse of Human-Computer Previous: The Discourse of Human-Computer
>
Discourse Analysis and Conversation Analysis
In the previous sections, user and system utterances as well as the context of human-computer interaction were discussed. However, since a single utterance does not (always) make a conversation, the discourse of human-computer interaction will now be analyzed.
According to Levinson, there are two major approaches to the analysis of conversation, namely discourse analysis and conversation analysis (286-288). While Levinson regards both as competing approaches, Saeed considers conversational analysis as a sub group of discourse analysis (204). In this paper, the methods of conversation analysis will be used.
The most popular approach to conversation analysis is the comparison with a market economy (Yule 71). The commodity in this economy is the right to speak which is called the floor. A turn is defined as having control over the floor, while turn-taking is the attempt to get the control. Turn-taking takes place according to a local management system which regulates when it is possible to take a turn and when not; possible points are called transition relevance places (TRP). If two speakers try to make utterances at the same time, this is called an overlap, except for the signals which a listener sends in order to let the speaker know that he is still listening which is called a backchannel. A pause is a hesitation in an utterance, while silence is a longer pause.
>
Next: Human-Human Conversation vs. Human-Computer Up: The Discourse of Human-Computer Previous: The Discourse of Human-Computer
Tom Alby
2000-05-30
|