Listener responsiveness and the coordination of conversation.

Abstract

Listeners are often active in conversation, and the feedback they provide speakers can improve the communication. To examine how feedback influences conversation, we had 76 speaker subjects watch a movie and then summarize it to one or two listeners. The-listeners provided varying amounts of feedback to the speaker. When two listeners were present, one could influence the speaker through feedback and the other could only eavesdrop on the conversation. When speakers received more feedback, their narratives were more comprehensible; that is, both listeners understood the movie better. In addition, feedback individuated communication; that is, the listener who provided the feedback understood the movie better than the eavesdropper who listened to the same conversation. In part, feedback produced these effects by coordinating what the speaker said with what the listener needed to know. Listener feedback signaled listeners' prior knowledge of the movie, and speakers talked most efficiently about those sections of the movie about which listeners had prior knowledge.

The fading affect bias: Effects of social disclosure to an interactive versus non-responsive listener

“…The responsiveness of the listener during social disclosure could also impact on the type of information included by the speaker in their narrative. Kraut, Lewis and Swezey (1982) asked speakers to watch a film and summarised it to listeners who either sat and listened quietly, or provided feedback on the speaker's narrative. When listeners provided feedback, speakers changed their narrative in response; speakers elaborated their narrative to answer questions asked by the listener.…”

When words feel right: How affective expressions of listeners change a speaker's language use

“…Relying on affective cues to adopt the appropriate level of abstraction allows speakers to be responsive to the requirements of the conversation. It regulates the conversation process and implicitly helps speakers to efficiently maintain common ground (Krauss & Fussell, 1991;Krauss et al, 1977;Kraut et al, 1982). It is important to note, however, that conversation partners may not always strive to obtain full mutual agreement and understanding with each other.…”

A prosodic feature that invites back-channels in Egyptian Arabic

“…If taught early, there is the advantage that learners needing to interact with Arabic speakers can show polite attention through active listening, thereby increasing the chance that the speaker will produce more comprehensible utterances (Kraut et al 1982), and the chance that the dialog will continue long enough for the listener to understand.…”