Discusses the emergence of language and social interaction as a scholarly field and how the field can improve its impact on members of the general public. Proposed in terms of conversation analysis, suggestions are offered for communicating the benefits to a wider audience. (Author/VWL)

Free-standing acknowledgement tokens are contrasted with tokens that begin full turns. Jefferson's theory is tested and supported that "yeah" displays greater speakership incipiency than "mm hm." Two research traditions that guide the present inquiry are reviewed. (17 references) (LB)

The authors respond to comments on their article, "Back Channels Revisited." The current state of the art in acknowledgement token research is outlined with particular reference to the turn-initial token "yeah." Contrastive uses of acknowledgement tokens are described. (20 references) (LB)