The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations
In conversation, speakers can mobilize a variety of prosodic cues to signal a switch in topics. This paper uses a mixed-methods approach combining Conversation Analysis and Instrumental Prosody to investigate the prosody of topic transition in American English, and analyzes the ways in which speaker...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Published: |
2017
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60741 |
| _version_ | 1848760631320117248 |
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| author | Riou, Marine |
| author_facet | Riou, Marine |
| author_sort | Riou, Marine |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | In conversation, speakers can mobilize a variety of prosodic cues to signal a switch in topics. This paper uses a mixed-methods approach combining Conversation Analysis and Instrumental Prosody to investigate the prosody of topic transition in American English, and analyzes the ways in which speakers can play on register level and on register span. A cluster of three prosodic parameters was found to be predictive of transitions: a higher maximum fundamental frequency (F0), a higher median F0 (key), and an expanded register span. Relative to speakers’ habitual profiles, the mobilization of such prosodic cues corresponds to a marked upgraded prosodic design. This finding is consistent with the general assumption that continuation constitutes the norm in conversation, and that departing from it, as in the case of a topic transition, requires a marked action and marked linguistic design. The disjunctive action of opening a new topic corresponds to the use of a marked prosodic cue. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T10:18:51Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-60741 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T10:18:51Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-607412018-05-07T03:58:19Z The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations Riou, Marine In conversation, speakers can mobilize a variety of prosodic cues to signal a switch in topics. This paper uses a mixed-methods approach combining Conversation Analysis and Instrumental Prosody to investigate the prosody of topic transition in American English, and analyzes the ways in which speakers can play on register level and on register span. A cluster of three prosodic parameters was found to be predictive of transitions: a higher maximum fundamental frequency (F0), a higher median F0 (key), and an expanded register span. Relative to speakers’ habitual profiles, the mobilization of such prosodic cues corresponds to a marked upgraded prosodic design. This finding is consistent with the general assumption that continuation constitutes the norm in conversation, and that departing from it, as in the case of a topic transition, requires a marked action and marked linguistic design. The disjunctive action of opening a new topic corresponds to the use of a marked prosodic cue. 2017 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60741 10.1177/0023830917696337 restricted |
| spellingShingle | Riou, Marine The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title | The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title_full | The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title_fullStr | The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title_short | The Prosody of Topic Transition in Interaction: Pitch Register Variations |
| title_sort | prosody of topic transition in interaction: pitch register variations |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/60741 |