Rules, Structure & sequence of conversation.

1. Mehak Raheja

2. INTRODUCTION
Conversations are supposed to be
fun. They involve personal
interactions between two or more
people about something of interest.

3. What is Conversation?
As per chambers English dictionary,
1989 edition “Intercourse, talk,
familiar discourse, behavior or
deportment”
In other words, conversation is simply
talking to someone else, usually
informally.

4. THE RULES OF
CONVERSATION
 Conversation is a Two-Way Street
 Be Friendly and Polite
 Respond to what they are saying
 Use Signaling to Help the Other Person
 Create Emotional Connections

5. 1. CONVERSATION IS A TWO-WAY
STREET
The first and most important rule of
conversation is that it is not all
about you, but it’s not all about the
other person either.

6. 2. Be Friendly andPolite
•Build rapport
•Be nice
•Try to avoid contentious topics on first acquaintance.
•Small Talk’

7. 3. RESPOND TO WHAT THEY ARE
SAYING

8. 4. USE SIGNALING TO HELP THE
OTHER PERSON
Open questions
(How…?,Why…?)
Closed questions
(Don’t you agree?)

9. 5. CREATE EMOTIONAL CONNECTIONS
Conversation is also a way to explore
whether you wish to know someone
better and build a relationship with
them. It can therefore be useful to
understand how to use conversation
to create and build emotional
connections.

10. COMMUNICATION SKILLS AND TEACHING
Teaching Individuals and Groups
Communicating Caring
Communicating Caring
Interacting with Colleagues and
Supervisors

11. SEQUENCE AND STRUCTURES IN
CONVERSATION
Opening Conversations
Closing Conversations
Turn-taking
Gaps (Silence)
Overlaps
 Adjacency Pairs

13. OPENING CONVERSATIONS
(Summons-Answer Sequences)
Child: Mommy? Summons
Mum: Yes, dear. Answer
Child: Can I have chocolate? Reason for summons
Identification/ Recognition
A: (causes telephone to ring at B’s location) summons
B: Hello answer + display for recognition
A: Hi greeting 1claim that A has recognized B + claim that B can
recognize A
B: Oh hi! Greeting 2 + claim that B has
recognized A

14. CLOSING
CONVERSATIONS
Closing a conversation can be
done by saying, ‘ok, bye,
anyway, or other parting
phrase like See you, bye.

15. TURN-TAKING
The basic rule is that one person
speaks at a time, then they give a turn
to the next speaker, or the next
speaker takes up the turn without
being given.

16. TURN ALLOCATION COMPONENT
By Current Speaker
By Self-selection

17. EXAMPLE
 Sita: Would you like
some more drink, Jim?
 Jim: Well, I'd love to
 Sita: You? (to Sam)
 Sam: No, I am good
 Angel: Hey, how was
Maroon 5 concert last
night? (Asking to
Browdy and Brian)
 Browdy: What? Never
heard of. Ever you? (to
Brian)
 Brian: Jeez.. What
planet are you living
on, man?
 Angel : Ah, Browdy.
You'd better out of your
book cave and watch a
concert some time.

18. GAPS (SILENCE)
A lengthened transition space
results in a silence in the talk.
Example:
A: Is this seat taken?
(2 seconds)
A: Excuse me, is this seat taken?
B: Oh, no. (grab her bag) You may sit here.

19. OVERLAPS
Overlap happens when two speakers speaking at
the same time. In the transcription symbol,
overlap is represented by // = beginning of
overlap (both speakers attempt to
initiate talk).

20. ADJACENCY PAIRS
Adjacency pairs are utterances produced by two
successive speakers in a way that the second
utterance is identified as related to the first one
as an expected follow-up to that utterance
such as:
Hi there – Hello
Bye then – bye

21. TWO POSSIBILITIES OF PAIRS
Preferred
(Acceptance, Expected Answer)
Dispreferred
(Refusal, disagreement)

22. EXAMPLES
Form Q1 - Q2 - A2 - A1
(one adjacency pair
within another)
Agent: Do you want the early
flight? (= Q1)
Client: What time does it arrive?
(= Q2)
Agent: Nine forty-five (= A2)
Client: Yeah - that's great (= A1)
Mix of different
sequences possible
Jean: Could you mail
this letter for me?
(Req. 1)
Fred: Does it have a
stamp on? (Q2)
Jean: Yeah. (A2)
Fred: Okay (Acc. 1)

23. SITUATIONAL
CONVERSATIONS

24. MAKING AN APPOINTMENT
Claire: Hello, how may I help you?
Roy: I would like to make an appointment with Dr.
Smith, please.
Claire: What would you like to see him for?
Roy: I need my annual physical and also have a
shoulder problem. It is aching.
Claire: Dr. Smith has openings next week. Are you free
on Monday or Tuesday?
Roy: I am free on Tuesday afternoon.
Claire: We will schedule you for next week Tuesday at
3pm.

25. CONVERSATION BETWEEN TWO FRIENDS