ERIC Number: EJ1020892
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0163-853X
EISSN: N/A
Gestural Viewpoint Signals Referent Accessibility
Debreslioska, Sandra; Özyürek, Asli; Gullberg, Marianne; Perniss, Pamela
Discourse Processes: A Multidisciplinary Journal, v50 n7 p431-456 2013
The tracking of entities in discourse is known to be a bimodal phenomenon. Speakers achieve cohesion in speech by alternating between full lexical forms, pronouns, and zero anaphora as they track referents. They also track referents in co-speech gestures. In this study, we explored how viewpoint is deployed in reference tracking, focusing on representations of animate entities in German narrative discourse. We found that gestural viewpoint systematically varies depending on discourse context. Speakers predominantly use character viewpoint in maintained contexts and observer viewpoint in reintroduced contexts. Thus, gestural viewpoint seems to function as a cohesive device in narrative discourse. The findings expand on and provide further evidence for the coordination between speech and gesture on the discourse level that is crucial to understanding the tight link between the two modalities.
Descriptors: Discourse Analysis, Language Processing, Connected Discourse, Language Usage, Nonverbal Communication, German, Context Effect, Speech Communication, Undergraduate Students, Foreign Countries, Groups, Cartoons, Narration, Laptop Computers, Coding, Interrater Reliability
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A