The assumption that one person is trying to change another often makes the encounters between staff developers and teachers tenuous and delicate. The coordination and negotiation over role and status is seen in two different interactions. In the first encounter, between a staff developer and two teachers, the staff developer was the problem solver, attempting to achieve agreement on a solution to a disciplinary problem and maintaining control of the situation by doing most of the talking and giving explicit directions. The teachers reflected their positions as students or advice-seekers by taking notes. By fostering and building on a mutual understanding of their roles, the participants were able to accept a plan of action. In another situation, the staff developer met with a teacher who ostensibly wanted to talk about planning, but actually wanted job information. The teacher initially played "host", while the staff developer was a somewhat bored and passive "guest". The role of staff developer had to be reasserted to gain more control over the interaction. The staff developer gained control by interrupting the teacher, using body language, and by using the tag-question "right?". It is questionable if a trusting relationship was negotiated and to what degree the teacher was able to accept the staff developer's suggestions for change. For positive change to occur, all participants must understand their relative roles and the purpose of the situation. (FG)