Models of Turn Taking in Conversational Interaction

This paper reviews current attempts to understand the mechanisms by which turns are exchanged and considers three major approaches: stochastic models, signalling models, and sequential-production models.

Abstract

The routine exchange of turns is a fundamental structural feature of conversational interaction. This paper reviews current attempts to understand the mechanisms by which turns are exchanged and considers three major approaches: stochastic models, signalling models, and sequential-production models. Conceptual and empirical strengths and limitations of each approach are examined, and it is suggested that a synthesis combining some ideas from the signalling approach with the sequential-production approach offers the greatest promise. Attention is directed to three major concepts: conversational events as resources; the functions of social organisational, relational, and sequential contexts in the management of turn taking; and the interactional construction of turns.