Spoken Discourse and Social Interaction
Alan Firth

Spoken Discourse and Social Interaction is an indispensable guide to a burgeoning and fascinating field of study. In twenty concise and highly readable chapters, Alan Firth outlines the key concepts, dominant approaches and major findings in spoken interaction research over the last four decades. Rather than being tied to a particular approach or paradigm, the book offers a comprehensive and inclusive overview, where emphasis is placed on describing the interactional and contextual nature of spoken discourse in a variety of contexts and social encounters. Topics covered include beginnings, endings, approaches, context, culture and ethnicity, data and transcription, analysis, identity, power, gender, narrative, miscommunication, humour, institutional interaction, grammar and coherence, argument, and embodied discourse. This book will be essential reading for students of linguistics, sociology, communication and media studies, psychology, and anthropology.

The book includes discussion questions for each chapter, suggestions for further reading, and a glossary of key terms.

• Balanced, broad introduction to the field by a well-respected author
• Unique focus specifically on spoken discourse
• Each chapter followed by numerous discussion questions and research topics
  
  Table of Contents:
  Introduction
  Part 1: Theoreticals
  1. Approaches
  2. Contexts
  3. Data
  Part 2: Fundamentals
  4. Turns
  5. Sequences
  6. Topics
  7. Activities
  8. Analysis
  Part 3: Themes
  9. Beginnings
  10. Words
  11. Bodies
  12. Identities
  13. Stories
  14. Arguments
  15. Humour
  16. Institutions
  17. Cultures
  18. Power
  19. Miscommunications
  20. Endings