Analyzes the distribution of 33 linguistic markers of complexity across 23 spoken and written registers of English. Identifies a five-dimensional model and uses it to describe the complexity characteristics of spoken and written registers. Finds that, whereas written registers exhibit profiles differing widely in extent and kind of complexity,…

Presents an interpretive theory assigning all text to "Linguistic Worlds" (LWs). Shows how a special deictic LW (needed for default attribution to the speaker and useful for describing parentheticals, evaluative adjectives, and epitheticals) gives the capacity to characterize shifts in point of view accompanying the indirect first-person speech of…

Explains rhetorical structure theory's conception of relations and why it has appeal in the domain of text generation. Outlines problems resulting from the widespread adoption of the relational concept. Surveys suggestions about how a standard set of relations could be motivated. Presents a new methodology consisting of gathering and classifying a…

Identifies five speech act exchange forms and their communicative functions as forms that the conversational partners used in the course of their interactions. Identifies variables that influence the use of these exchanges within the interaction. (SR)

Finds that when paired with older adults simulating dementia, the young adults' instructions were longer, more informative, and more repetitious; however, the young adults did not alter their prosody or grammatical complexity. Suggests that young adults adjust their speech to the perceived communicative needs of older listeners by varying…

Contributes to research on speech acts, power, and the negotiation of shared meanings. Argues that a primary off-record purpose of ostensible lies and of ostensible speech acts in general is to assert or affirm a status or power difference between speaker and addressee. Shows how ostensible lies are speech acts that flout the rules governing the…

Contributes to communication theory and research by adding to a discussion of a computational model called latent semantic analysis (LSA). Argues that LSA does not handle all aspects of language processing, but offers a biologically and psychologically plausible mechanistic explanation of the acquisition, induction, and representation of verbal…

Investigates the relevance of a Gricean model for accounting for coherent discourse in courts of law. Identifies 19 rules of discourse congruent with Grice's Cooperative Principle in transcripts of eight trials. However, finds courts must coerce participants to be cooperative. Concludes that Grice's theory does not account adequately for coherent…

Illustrates the existence of meanings in conversation that are not based on the listener's interpretations by analyzing the conversations from a family therapy session. Transcripts of the conversations are appended. (HTH)

Describes a study of the use of the terms "will" and "gonna" in the speech of two three-year-old girls. The results suggest that one of the functions of "will" and "gonna" is to impart different causal relations to the two practices of "undertaking" and "planning." (HTH)

Advances the development of a classification system, based on the salient speech act distinctions made by ordinary people, which can be of practical use in characterizing extended segments of discourse. Presents an attempt to use speech act theory in the quantitative study of interpersonal communication. (HTH)

Presents results of a study indicating that constructive and dramatic play contexts affected language to the extent that children use more exophora in the constructive context and more linguistic verbs, third-person pronouns, and displaced reference tenses in the dramatic context. (HTH)

Analyzes the interaction strategies employed by a conversational participant who is unsure that he or she understands the content or the context of the interaction well enough to contribute appropriately to it but feels impelled to continue participating anyway. (FL)

Suggests that a factor underlying the complex analysis of prose is amount of elaboration. Reports findings of two experiments supporting this idea. (FL)

Examines the role played by relative clauses in American Sign Language. (FL)