Power in theory, in data and in pragmatics research

Authors

  • Kristine L. Fitch University of Iowa Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/sols.v4i2.463

Keywords:

multilingualism, conversation analysis, discourse, critical theory, intercultural communication, interaction, power imbalances, relationships

Abstract

In this review I examine the different approaches to power theorized in this collection, attending particularly to the power dynamics of language choice in multilingual, multicultural encounters. Together the essays demonstrate a considerable range of conceptual positions on the spectrum of critical discourse analytic and sociolinguistic approaches to language use. A particularly significant difference in the approaches taken by these works is the extent to which claims and observations are grounded in concrete details of transcripts, as opposed to inferences about internal states - emotion, intention, cognition, perception - drawn from recorded and transcribed interactions. Those differences, I propose, amount to grounding claims of power difference primarily within data (transcribed details of talk) as opposed to critical theory. The range of positions represented on those deeply contested issues is an especially valuable component of the collection.

Author Biography

  • Kristine L. Fitch, University of Iowa
    Kristine L. Fitch received her BA in Spanish from the University of Texas at Austin and her PhD from the University of Washington. She is currently Professor of Communication Studies and Associate Dean for International Programs at the University of Iowa. She studies personal relationships and persuasion based on ethnographic fieldwork in Colombia, Spain, England and the U.S. She has published three books and more than 30 articles and book chapters in Communication Monographs, Oralia, Communication Theory, and other communication-based and interdisciplinary journals. She was editor in chief of the journal Research on Language and Social Interaction from 2005-2009.

Published

2011-01-16

How to Cite

Fitch, K. L. (2011). Power in theory, in data and in pragmatics research. Sociolinguistic Studies, 4(2), 463-468. https://doi.org/10.1558/sols.v4i2.463