ERIC Number: EJ1340793
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 28
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0163-853X
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
The Primacy of Multimodal Alignment in Converging on Shared Symbols for Novel Referents
Discourse Processes: A Multidisciplinary Journal, v59 n3 p209-236 2022
When people interact to establish shared symbols for novel objects or concepts, they often rely on multiple communicative modalities as well as on alignment (i.e., cross-participant repetition of communicative behavior). Yet these interactional resources have rarely been studied together, so little is known about if and how people combine multiple modalities in alignment to achieve joint reference. To investigate this, we systematically track the emergence of lexical and gestural alignment in a referential communication task with novel objects. Quantitative analyses reveal that people frequently use a combination of lexical and gestural alignment, and that such multimodal alignment tends to emerge earlier compared to unimodal alignment. Qualitative analyses of the interactional contexts in which alignment emerges reveal how people flexibly deploy lexical and gestural alignment in line with modality affordances and communicative needs.
Descriptors: Interpersonal Communication, Communication Strategies, Nonverbal Communication, Task Analysis, Novelty (Stimulus Dimension), Language Usage, Prediction, Comparative Analysis, Foreign Countries, Naming
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Netherlands
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Author Affiliations: N/A