Understanding Dialogue: Language Use and Social Interaction
Published: 9 December 2020
A new book by Professor Simon Garrod and Professor Martin J. Pickering
Understanding Dialogue: Language Use and Social Interaction
Martin J. Pickering (University of Edinburgh) and Simon Garrod (University of Glasgow)
Linguistic interaction between two people is the fundamental form of
communication, yet almost all research in language use focuses on isolated
speakers and listeners.
In this innovative work, Garrod and Pickering extend the
scope of psycholinguistics beyond individuals by introducing communication as
a social activity. Drawing on psychological, linguistic, philosophical and
sociological research, they expand their theory that alignment across individuals
is the basis of communication, through the model of a ‘shared workspace
account’. In this workspace, interlocutors are actors who jointly manipulate and
control the interaction and develop similar representations of both language and
social context, in order to achieve communicative success. The book also
explores dialogue within groups, technologies, as well as the role of culture more
generally. Providing a new understanding of cognitive representation, this
trailblazing work will be highly influential in the fields of linguistics, psychology
and cognitive linguistics.
'What could be easier than having a conversation with another person? But behind this apparent ease hides a complex world of cognitive and social mechanisms. Presenting
state-of-the-art research, Pickering and Garrod give the reader a guided tour of the science of dialogue, explaining convincingly why dialogue is humankind's most remarkable achievement. This book is a milestone in our understanding of dialogue that will influence the field for decades.'
- Robert Hartsuiker, Professor of Psychology, Ghent University
For more information, and to order, visit: www.cambridge.org/9781108461931 and enter the code UNDDIA21 at the checkout for 20% off
First published: 9 December 2020
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