1

Brandon McLeod
TSL 643 Discourse Analysis
Dr. Christopher Miles
8 November 2014
Getting Emphatic About Small Talk
This paper will examine small talk as a distinct form of conversation through the lens of
its applicability to the second language classroom. To that end, this paper will address why small
talk is vital for second language learners to study and practice, what constitutes this type of
communication, the four main topics of conversation within small talk, two of the most common
elements that small talk is made of, and ways of applying this knowledge within the classroom.
Why Small Talk?
(Doran and Forster, 2007)
01
Karen (narrating):
02
Harold:
03
Karen (narrating):

Harold nervously made small talk.

Yhave very ((gestures)) (.6) straight teeth.
Very small talk.

Small talk, frequently referred to as phatic communication in conversation analysis, is an

often discussed and crucial part of every day conversation although it is seldom addressed in the
language classroom. Diana Boxer, in Applying Sociolinguistics: Domains and Face-to-face
Interaction, wrote, Phatic communication, or small talk, is an important social lubricant. In the
words of Erving Goffman, The gestures which we sometimes call empty are perhaps in fact the
fullest things of all(Boxer, 2002, p. 49). As demonstrated by the analyzed quote from the film
Stranger than Fiction, small talk is a critical skill for interlocutors, but is something that many
second language learners struggle with. It is a delicate balance of conversational and social
elements that must be utilized in coordination by the interlocutors. Unfortunately, however, in the
second language classroom the pieces that small talk is comprised of are typically treated in their

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separate parts (i.e. greetings, how-are-you sequences, leave-takings, etc.)if these parts are
directly addressed at allor they are discussed as components of other forms of talk (phone
conversations, introductions, and the like). Phatic communication, however, is unique from these
other types of talk and requires some different types of skills, many of which depend on social
pragmatics and familiarity with idioms. Moreover, unlike other forms of talk, small talk
frequently received condescending remarks. In fact, the first known reference to small talk,
describes it as a characteristic of Folly(small talk, 2014). Even the name implies that it has
little value, but the truth is that small talk is just as complex and requires as much subtleness,
nuance, and elements of conversation as any other form of talk. Laver, 1975, wrote,
phatic communion is a complex part of a ritual, highly skilled mosaic of
communicative behaviour whose function is to facilitate the management of interpersonal
relationships. The information exchanged between the participants in this communicative
process is not primarily referential information, but rather is indexical information about
aspects of the participants social identity relevant to structuring the interactional
consensus of the present and future encounters. (p. 236)
Lavers sentiment expresses only a tiny portion of the importance of small talk. It is an
imperative part of social interaction, and like other forms communication, the lubricating nature
of phatic communication is not unique to one social, ethnic, national, or economic group. It is
present in all of the worlds cultures and all of the worlds languages. Or, as Malinowski (1923)
describes it, in use as much among savage tribes as in a European drawing-room (p. 313).
Small talk is essential for several reasons: it is necessary, builds rapport with those around us,
and utilizes scores of language features.
What is Small Talk?
Phatic communication was first labeled as a type of talk by Charles Malinowski in his
essay The Problem of Meaning in Primitive Languages. When discussing small talk,
Malinowski wrote,

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What is the raison dtre, therefore, of such phrases as How do you do? Ah, here you
are, Where do you come from? Nice day to-dayall of which serve in one society
or another as formulae of greeting or approach? I think that, in discussing the function of
Speech in mere sociabilities, we come to one of the bedrock aspects of mans nature in
society. There is in all human beings the well-known tendency to congregate, to be
together, to enjoy each others companyThe breaking of silence, the communion of
words is the first act to establish links of fellowship. (1923, pp. 313-314)
At the heart of small talk is the desire to socialize. Whether this emanates from fear of losing
face by remaining silent, wanting to relieve social tension, or for any other reason is highly
personal and situational. Malinowski describes a persons silence as a face-threatening situation.
In fact, he goes further and describes silence with the words alarming and dangerous (p.
314). Conversely, phatic communication, he describes as guiding people into a pleasant
atmosphere of polite, social discourse (p. 316). More recently, Burgess wrote, "Speech to
promote human warmth: that is as good a definition as any of the phatic aspect of language. For
good or ill, we are social creatures and cannot bear to be cut off too long from our fellows, even
if we have nothing really to say to them. (Burgess, 1964). Unlike some other forms of
communication, small talk is not centered on information transfer or completing a task. In fact,
apart from setting talk (which will be discussed later), small talk is often void of any connection
to the current situation of the interlocutors. In addition, unlike phone conversations, phatic
communication is not limited to a particular medium, and unlike prepared speech, phatic
communication is typically impromptu (though it does rely heavily on clichs, idioms, and other
standardized exchanges). Small talk occurs in a variety of situations that demand special
adjustments for the interlocutors. However, the location and theme of the gathering actually has a
less significant role in the kinds of conversational elements that are utilized than one would
expect.

4
Phatic communication is integral to maintaining social relationships. Even with low
stakes disagreement or dispreferred responses, attempts are made to repair the social tension. The
skills needed to recognize this tension are a matter of social pragmatics, and as egarac and
Clark put it, intuition (1999, p. 329). According to them, there are three types of intuition
involved with phatic communication. First, is that the content of an utterance may be different
from the intention of that utterance. For example when giving a setting assessment (i.e. weather)
to a stranger, the intention is more about sociability and less about the weather. Second, is that
some phatic utterances have become standardized (i.e. Whats up and How are you), and
requires the second-pair-part to infer if the question is meant to be answered or simply given the
standard responses (p. 329). The third is in regards to a damaged social relationship.
Suppose, for example, that two partners in a long-term relationship have had an argument
and then not spoken for a few days. This would make it more likely that anything either
of them says to the other would be understood as phatic (the fact that they have spoken is
more important than exactly what they say). (p. 329)
This reaffirms the role of phatic communication in building and maintaining social relationships.
In transcript 2-1, you can see how the tension created by dispreferred utterances is delicately
navigated by the interlocutors. The skills necessary for recognizing and responding appropriately
to the dynamic situations and inferred meanings within small talk are difficult for second
language learners to achieve. These skills need to be addressed in the speaking and listening
classroom. Nguyen (2007) states, a balance needs to be reached between rapport and
instructional tasks (Nguyen, 2007, p. 284). Role play, cloze, matching, and think-pair-share
exercises are all excellent ways to help achieve this balance.
The Four Main Subject Matters
The four main subject matters of small talk among English-speaking Americans are
health, family, school/work, and setting talk. While these might seem like diverse topics, they are

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similar in that they are all personally relatable, non-face-threatening, and can be used within the
same conversation without it seeming disjointed. In addition to the four main topics of
discussion, there are three anti-topics. These are often referred to as the taboo topics for work,
school, and family gatherings. In other words, they are to be reserved for when speaking in
private, friendly company, with like-minded individuals. The well-known subjects are sex,
religion, and politics. Discussion of these within a small talk setting is widely considered a
violation of social pragmatic rules. As these do not often occur within small talk, because of their
prohibited nature, they will not be explored in depth.
The main topics of phatic communication, unlike small talk itself, are not necessarily
universalnot even within the same country. A community of model train enthusiasts might
discuss the latest development in their hobby or reminisce about the so-called good ol days.
While this example and many other topics are certainly plausible for phatic communication, the
goal of this paper is not to dissect all possible small talk conversation subjects, but to explore
what appear to be the four most prominent categories, which I chose because they are universally
applicable (everyone has family, health, school/work (or lack of work) to talk about) and broad
topics, which can cover a significant number of sub-topics. For instance, farmers may use small
talk to converse about heirloom seed varieties or conversation analysts talk about their latest
research, but both of these could fall under the umbrella of the work category. Through
examining the way these topics are used within phatic communication, we can better understand
the ways they can be presented to second language learners.
Health
The theme of health is something to which all can relate and with which we can easily
build rapport. This topic is typically employed by those who are already acquainted and often

6
know some of their co-conversants health issues. However, that does not have to be the case.
For example, in the waiting room of a hospital or doctors office, it is common practice to
discuss health issues with strangers. In many ways, that type of situation can be a face-saving act
reassuring the others that you do not have a highly contagious disease. For those that are
already acquainted, however, it often a genuine sign of concern about the others health or
interest in their health problems.
(T-1-2)
04
05
06
07
08
09

B2

10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21

B1
T

B2
T
B2

T
B2
D
B2
T
B2
T
B2
T

Ya anything that dont have cinnamon

(3.4)
Thats terrible (aint it)
(.8)
(Nothin without [cinnamon?)
[I dint realize how much stuff I ate that actually had
cinnamon in it
(
)
Are you allergic to cinnamon?
(.)
Oh
Cinnamon, shellfish, a:::nd gluten ana ana (what)
[Umm]
[Thesaid my levels watnt high enough (.) tsay Is allergic to m
Right
They just told me [(.) dont consume a whole lot hh
[Minimize
Be prepared swhat they said.
Wow

The full text of the transcript attached at the end of this paper shows that the health talk about
allergies continued for multiple minutes and was even reintroduced as a topic (T-1-3) about 15
seconds after it had seemingly concluded and talk was focused on dessert (setting talk). Of
course, there are those who avoid this topic because of over-sharing. It is not uncommon,
especially when conversing with elderly persons, for health issues to be described in impressive
detail. In addition, some interlocutors end up with a litany of health problems and selfdiagnoses. Even in these situations, however, the function of small talk remains the same. Health

7
as a conversational topic is important for developing and maintaining our interpersonal
relationships.
Family
Family is another critical topic for developing social cohesion. Inquiries about someones
family show the other participant that you are both interested and concerned. It is common for
this talk to increase with age (in much the same way that health talk increases). Additionally
family talk can develop relationships among people from different families as well as within the
same family. It is customary for brothers and sisters (with children) to inquire about the other
partys children or to share the latest news about a cousin. Many of these things would not be
described as necessary information to be transferred. It is simply for the cohesion of this
community.
(T-1-1)
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08

B1
D
B2
T
D
T
D
T

09
10

D
D

01

B1

02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09

I feel like yer sons looking older and older.

Us too.
[(
)]
[Maybe the] new haircut or somethin
Well hes lettin his hair grow
>I think thats what it is< [the hair.
[(Now he wants) the longer [hair
[The longer hair
look yeah they all go through [that
[(Hes get-)
Hes gettin ta:ller hes-

(T-1-4)

W
T
D
T
W
T

>So< how old is your son? Iszis his senior year in high school?
[This year.
[He is. He:s seventeen just turned seventeen
(3.6)
So.
hhh
yeah ( )
(
) about to leave the nest huh?
yeap
then youll just have girls thatll be strange

8
10
11
12
13
14

W
T
W
T
B1

yes
hh
itll be fun for Michael Im sure.
hhh
hhh

In both of these excerpts, the speaker B1 (male) inquired about the womens sons ages. Both
times, the conversation was then dominated by the speaker T, who is female, and the respective
mothers of the children. Within phatic communication in the United States, it is not unusual for
talk about children to be dominated by the females in the group. Though the transcripts do not
contain enough evidence to allow for a study, there is likely a gender bias against men speaking
at length about children, since women are still seen as the primary caregivers for children. Even
if that is the case, inquiring about another partys children is considered standard practice within
small talk, regardless of gender.
School and Work
The topics of school and work were grouped together because of their similar nature. As
can be seen in the transcripts, phatic communication relies heavily on adjacency pairs, especially
question and answer pairs. These adjacency pairs often become the next focus of the
conversation. Transcript 1-4 demonstrates a great example of how questions about family can
lead into questions about school/work. For instance, B1s questions about Ws sons music idol
becomes a discussion about his forthcoming graduation and the plans he has for his college
education.
(T-1-4)
25
26

B1

.hh Does he have a saxopho-=

=>The only saxophonists I know< are Kenny G (.) and Bill Clinton. (.) So
>Does he have a saxophone I do- >Benny Golson< is he a
>saxophone<
(.) player?
27
W
I:: dont kno:w. I. >An you know< he changes so much in his: love for
things. Because when he first started in- playin I mean he was all
about
that saxophone (.) That hes discovered now that he can play

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different
And uhm he just
gift. But um.
music< in
28
T
29
30
W
be his
might minor

things like hes taught himself how to play the piano. (.4)
an its nothin that weve done its all God givin him that
He loves ta play on the guitar an (.) so >I think he just love
general.
Is he gonna study music (.) in school?
((announcer talking in background from 26:42 until 27:03))
Actually <he wants to> um (.) he wants to teach (.) someday in a
seminary. So hes gonna major in English right now as his- gonna
major when he goes to school. (2.2) An I think (.3) I think he
(.4) in music.

When it comes to school/work small talk, Coupland (2014) describes institutional settings
distinguishing it from socio-relational frames from talk (p. 6). This division is intuitive. As
previously stated, the setting can change the topics focused on within small talk. The transcript
examples for this paper were taken from community events, so the school/work talk did not take
precedence over talk of family, health, and setting. However, in a work environment, the
likelihood of work related phatic talk is much greater.
Setting Talk
The final topic distinction is setting talk (comments on the weather, food, dcor, etc.).
This is a broad category and changes depending on the location, time of day, season, weather,
type of event, etc. Setting talk, however, is typically used in the same way, regardless of the
modifying factors. It is used as a means of building camaraderie among the interlocutors. Setting
talk generally takes the forms of assessments. As with other assessments, the preferred response
leads to a greater rapport among the conversants. And, conversely, dispreferred responses lead to
discord and often the occurrence of small talk ends quickly. Since it is the nature of small talk to
develop positive social relations, disagreement, except for special situations (see Pomerantz,
1984; Sifiano, 2012), is the dispreferred response. In the following except, two women, U and L,
are complaining about how cold the rooms were, when a third woman, A, provides a dispreferred
response, quickly ending the conversation with L making a leave-taking soon after As comment.

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(T-2-1)
01

02
03

L
A

04
05
06
07
08
09

L
A
L
A
L
A

10

11
12

A
L

13
14

A
L

I was in the prayer room and I was shiverin. Thats why Im shakin. It
was like ice in there.
Ye:s
I think they cut the heat off in there cause when we first- thats our
[Sundy school room
[O:::h okay
And when we first got in there it was like a sauna
O::[::h]
[An as th-] the time went
O::[kay]
[It got] cooler n cooler n cooler=so somebody mustve cut the heat
[off to] that room
[Ill bet] (so because)I said Ill bet the children outside were warmer than
we were
[ehhhhhhhh]
[They were outside playin so $they were warmer than we were$] = cause
it was cold in there.
[Yeah it was getting co:ol when we left out]
[Yall have a good afternoon hh okay]

In line 10, L, tries to repair the schism caused by As dispreferred response by making a joke and
a repetition (line 12). Speaker A recognizes this attempt and gives weak agreement in line 13. Ls
leave-taking comes in the next line and was met with no response by A. It should be noted,
however, that speaker A may have viewed speakers U and Ls comments as face-threatening, thus
prompting the dispreferred response to the assessment. Speaker A is the wife of the minister, who
is associated with the runnings of the church, and may have viewed the remark as a negative
assessment associated with her husband. Given this possibility, it is not unlikely that her
comments at lines 3 and 5 were attempts at repairing the perceived social damage.
Small talk can begin in a range of ways. From my own observations, they tend to start
with setting talk or greetings. Setting talk seems to be preferred by those who are not closely
acquainted. Since small talk is a means of socializing, setting talk allows the interlocutors a
means of breaking the proverbial ice. Breaking the ice can be a difficult task for many
conversants and we have all seen people at social events standing or sitting near one another, but

11
not speaking at all. Setting talk is an easy way to immediately build common ground with the
other person. Developing this rapport is an essential aspect of engaging in small talk. Phatic
communication is a social skill. In order to socialize we must be able to build rapport with those
around us. With those whom we are already acquainted, greetings are the typical first interaction,
but this is quickly followed by setting talk, how-are-you sequences, or news reports.
Elements of Phatic Communication
Phatic communication consists of a large variety of conversational elements. For
brevitys sake (and since the main focuses of this paper is discussing the distinctness of small
talk as a form and its applicability in the classroom) most will not be discussed here. However, a
more in depth examination of all of the communicative elements present in small talk can and
should be done. A short list of the elements present only in the transcripts attached to this paper
are: assessments, mitigation, tokens, leave-taking, closings, topic-initial elicitors, partial
repetitions, and repair strategies. Even with the small sampling of authentic speech provided,
there are a significant number of communicative components and it would demand too much
space to examine all of them. For this paper, two elements will be discussed: how-are-you
sequences and tokens.
How-are-you Sequences
How-are-you sequences within phatic communication need to be distinguished from
actual inquiries into someones well-being or situation. The sequences within small talk are
considered pleasantries and should not be taken seriously. The how-are-you sequences can take
the form of the traditional How are you but may be adapted to suit the social group (i.e.
Whats up, Hows it going, and Sup). These sequences do not always elicit a response
about ones health or condition, but are really a type of greeting sequence. When a response is

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given, it is expected to be at least neutral in tone (Fine or in the case of Whats up the
preferred response is Not much). Negative responses are strongly dispreferred. In addition, they
should not be confused with the actual health inquiries discussed previously. The ability of
interlocutors to negotiate the meaning of these sequences, without interpreting the wrong context
and appearing foolish, is a common problem for second language learners. As language
instructors can attest, it is not unusual for students to ask how to respond to Whats up? As
seen in egarac and Clarks (1999) paper, the how-are-you sequence can be used as a repair
mechanism for a damaged social relationship or even to express sympathy. How-are-you
sequences can also be used to diffuse social tensioneither by breaking silence (egarac and
Clark) or by changing the subject from a dispreferred topic. For example, imagine a young
married couple trying to establish their careers attending a family gathering (i.e. Thanksgiving).
A relative engages in small talk inquiring when the two are going to start having children (a
significant amount of small talk revolves around life milestones). For many reasons, this may be
a dispreferred topic. Perhaps the couple is incapable of children, does not want children, is not
financially stable enough to have children, or a variety of other motives. In my own observances,
it is common for people to exit the dispreferred talk by directing the topic toward the other party
(for example by saying, So, how have you been? after some mitigation or vague responses).
Response Tokens
In much the same way that how-are-you sequences are used to maintain social stability
and build/repair relationships, tokens also play a crucial role in phatic communication.
Regardless of setting or topic, conversational tokens are used extensively to indicate to the other
person that you are interested (even if you are not), what they are saying is interesting (even if it
is not), and that you want to continue that topic (even if you do not). In the transcripts below,

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there are approximately fifteen conversational tokens in ninety-eight turn constructional units.
While this may not seem like a significant portion of the talk, it still constitutes just over fifteen
percent of turn constructional units (TCUs). Furthermore, it is worth noting tokens do not
necessary occur in all types of speech. For example, a prepared speech has talk that is directed
one-way. As such, there is no benefit to the other party using tokens (an exception to this would
be in some Christian churches, it is common for the congregation to use response tokens of
amen, thats right, preach it, and the like). Given that it is unnecessary in these types of
situations, the use of response tokens is extremely limited.
With small talk, however, response tokens are not only common, they are expected. In
addition, del (2011) states, Backchannels, such as yeah, mm and ok, do contribute to
prolonging a given interaction, indicating keep going, Im listening, so in that sense they could
be seen as building rapport (p. 2944). Additionally, del makes the necessity of teaching
response tokens (she uses the term backchannels) very clear with a table of high frequency
words in typical communication. The table is comparing online communication to face-to-face
communication. The difference is expected, but still striking. Response tokens were absent from
online list, but were some of the most frequent words in face-to-face communication. She wrote,
Merely scanning the frequency lists reveals some of the differences between the two sets of
material; for example, it is particularly noticeable that the face-to-face material consists of
spoken discourse in that discourse markers and backchannels such as yeah, so, okay, you know
and right occur at the top of the list (p. 2937). Given that response tokens are frequent in
authentic speech and rapport building, and they serve a role in maintaining social relationships, it
is essential that they are given increased attention in the language classroom.
Classroom Applications

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Since there is a clear need for attention to be paid to phatic communication, and the
communicative elements that make it up, the questions become: How do teachers teach
something so subconscious that most people do not even realize it is happening? Moreover, how
do we present the material in such a way that it is both engaging and informative? Unfortunately,
there is no single answer; because students learn best in different ways, there is no proverbial
silver bullet to teach phatic communication. Some advantages, however, are that much of small
talk utilizes elements of speech that are typically covered in other parts of the class and that
small talk is usually viewed as low risk, lowering the students affective filters and allowing for
better learning. Depending on which educational methodology is preferred, it may be necessary
to adjust these activities to suit the method, pace, and timing desired.
Adjacency Pairs
Adjacency pairs are a great place to start. They are short and with phatic communication
often have predetermined responsesespecially when considering the strong pressure for a
preferred response. A great way to teach adjacency pairs (and this applies to openings, closings,
assessments, how-are-you sequences, and the like) is through an extended lesson plan that begins
with the students being given a quiz with half of a set of adjacency pairs from the target
communicative element. Half of the students will be given one set and the other half will be
given the other pair parts. The adjacency pairs will be in scattered order, so the students will have
to work in pairs to try and appropriately combine the adjacency pairs. Once the students have
matched the pairs to the best of their abilities, have the students announce a set and explain why
they paired those two utterances together. This will force the students to think critically about the
situations in which these adjacency pairs are used. Additionally, lexical chunking can also be

15
used as a supplemental technique to help students remember adjacency pairs (especially those
with standardized responses).
After going through the worksheet and having the students explain their reasoning (and
correcting the ones that needed correctingusing the three before me method where students
must ask three other students before being allowed to ask the teacher for an explanation), explain
the different components of the adjacency pairs and how they are used (including examples from
authentic speech). Additionally, this same schematic can be applied to idioms and assessments
with preferred and dispreferred responses, as well as adapted for any level.
Role Play
Role play is the most beneficial method of practicing phatic communication. Since small
talk is made up of so many communicative elements, it is possible to complete this task by
dividing it into smaller constituents (openings, closings, how-are-you sequences, etc.) in the
beginning and slowly building them into a cohesive scenario.
Following the explanation of parts, have the students role play various adjacency pairs (or
whichever communicative element you are focusing on) impromptu by assigning (secretly) a
specific first pair part for one student (A) to use, and, then, following a partially scripted
conversation, have the student (A) utilize the first pair part with student (B) responding
(hopefully) appropriately.
With more advanced students, it is truly important to instruct them in the ways of small
talk. Since they have sufficient vocabulary, people they encounter will expect them to be able to
engage in the norms of phatic communication, including using appropriate language and body
language. Often with phatic communication, people modify their language to suit their partner.
For example, most are unlikely to converse with a grandparent in the same language they use to

16
converse with a friend. Role play is an excellent way for students to practice changing their
language based on the audience. Students can be assigned different roles such as: friend, parent,
classmate, and grandparent. Then, have the students stand in concentric circles, with one of the
circles having an assigned role (inner circle) and the other circle the students as themselves
(outer circle). All students will converse about the same topic (health, for example) with their
partner. Students will have listened to, analyzed, and practiced the language from transcripts 1-2
and 1-3. After one minute, the students will rotate giving them new partners and a different type
of phatic language to use on the same topic. After all students (outer circle) have conversed with
all of the different roles (inner circle), the students switch positions and the activity repeats until
all students have spoken to all role players. This can be repeating for discussions about family,
utilizing transcripts 1-1 and 1-4 as examples, and school, with transcript 1-4.
Body Language
Another crucial element within this activity is to have the students employ response
tokens with their partner. This is not limited to uh huh, yeah, and ok, but also includes
nodding, using the hands to indicate surprise, and crossing the arms to indicate weak
disagreement. These are the simplest forms of body language to introduce to the students and are
easy to imitate and practice.
In order to practice body language, it is best to combine the lesson with repair practices.
An excellent way to introduce this is to play the audio clip from transcript 2-1. Have the students
listen and analyze the language use. Ask them to identify any dispreferred utterances, attempts at
social repair (not to be confused with repair practices), and have the students explain their
choices. Following this, the teacher should model more advance body language use (raising the
eyebrows for astonishment, furrowing the brow for disappointment or confusion, tightening the

17
lips for displeasure, etc.). After the authentic text (and audio) has been examined and the students
have practiced the more advanced body language, have the students role play face-threatening
situations similar to that in transcript 2-1. These situations can be created by the students prior to
the role play by having the students volunteer different scenarios, making of use of the Language
Experience Approach (L.E.A.) to instruction. While it is necessary to use authentic texts for
study, it is also beneficial for the students to be able to personally relate to the situations they role
play and for the role plays to be applicable to their lives. As such, in an intensive English
program, it is unlikely that the students would benefit greatly from replicating the situation in
transcript 2-1, but the type of language used, as well as the body language that may have been
used, in recording is still of great value.
Expansion of Scenarios
Furthermore, for many students, the goal of learning English is to find employment.
Since face-threatening situations can and do occur in most work environments, it is vital for
students to practice responding in the appropriate way. To that end, in addition to the situations
presented by the students, the teacher should add face-threatening situations that include
controversial issuesspecifically those that are political or religious. Though these topics are
discouraged in small talk, it is very likely that the students will encounter them at some point.
The third taboo topic, sex, is also something that comes up in the workplace from time to time,
but practicing these situations in the classroom is not appropriate. Moreover, the full length
scenarios, in which the students will use several elements of phatic communication in one
session, can be set in waiting rooms, business meetings, cocktail parties, bus stops, waiting in
line at the store, and a wide variety of other situations proposed by the students and the teacher.
Additionally, off-task type discussion can be used at the beginning or end of class to help

18
facilitate phatic communication among the students. Since phatic communication is a universal
attribute of language, students already have experience shooting the breeze in their first
languages. As with other language commonalities, it should be discussed and practiced.
Conclusion
As research has shown, the primary goal of phatic communication is sociability. The
purpose of the assessments, how-are-you sequences, compliments, adjacency pairs, repair
practices, and all of the other components that make up small talk is to develop and maintain
social relationships (even those which all parties know are temporaryi.e. waiting in line at the
supermarket and complaining about how slow it is, or the weather, or the person at the front of
the line that has coupons or price-checks for every item). All of these things help build positive
rapport with those around us. These phatic utterances constitute a mode of action just in their
being voiced. In short, a phatic utterance communicates not ideas but attitude, the speaker's
presence, and the speaker's intention of being sociable (Landon, 2013). Phatic communication
is, possibly, the most common type of communication between people. Other situations, which
are frequently practiced in the language classroom (ordering at a restaurant, calling the water
company, participating in an interview, and giving prepared speeches), are all limited in their
applicability. Considering the limitless scenarios in which phatic communication is utilized and
its prevalence in everyday communication, the lack of attention it receives in the language
classroom is neglectful. The significance of phatic communication in maintaining social
relationships, the subjects discussed (health, family, school/work, and setting talk), and the
communicative elements used (which are applicable in many situations) all lead to the
conclusion that small talk needs greater emphasis in the second language classroom.

19
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http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=17111&fileI
d=S0022226799007628

Transcripts
1. Community Event Mixed Group
Seven people sit around a table eating salad, loaded baked potato soup, and dessert.
Conversations focus on family, school/work, and health.
Speakers: B1, T, B2, D, W
1-1
FAMILY TALK
BEGIN:
13:53
01
B1
I feel like yer sons looking older and older.
02
D
Us too.
03
B2
[(
)]
04
T
[Maybe the] new haircut or somethin
05
D
Well hes lettin his hair grow
06
T
>I think thats what it is< [the hair.
07
D
[(Now he wants) the longer [hair
08
T
[The longer hair
look yeah they all go through [that
09
D
[(Hes get-)
10
D
Hes gettin ta:ller hesEND:
14:05
1-2
HEALTH TALK
BEGIN:
14:19
01
D
Wkinna dessert yuh want.
02
B2
Ah I dont know
03
D
Anything that duttin have cinnamon.
04
B2
Ya anything that dont have cinnamon
05
(3.4)
06
B2
Thats terrible (aint it)
07
(.8)
08
T
(Nothin without [cinnamon?)
09
B2
[I dint realize how much stuff I ate that actually had
cinnamon in it
10
B1
(
)
11
T
Are you allergic to cinnamon?
12
(.)

22
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
END:

T
B2
D
B2
T
B2
T
B2
T
T
B2
B2
T
B2
T
B2
T
B2

Oh
Cinnamon, shellfish, a:::nd gluten ana ana (what)
[Umm]
[Thesaid my levels watnt high enough (.) tsay Is allergic to m
Right
They just told me [(.) dont consume a whole lot hh
[Minimize
Be prepared swhat they said.
Wow
(4.7)
Cinnamon thats an odd one >tbe allergic to< I feel like.
Yea thas an odd one
(.7)
Yep it jus (.) i- it makes mlips an tongue swell up
hm[:::
[It aint went down my throat yet. so
oh well thats good
yeah [they sa[for the surprise element
slongs it stays in that ki:nna in that position Ill be alright. I still hafta
take Benadryl everyday

15:16

1-3
HEALTH TALK CONTINUED
BEGIN:
15:30
01
B1
So02
D
No not the pican Im sorry the (pumpkin)
03
B1
Is thissa n- new allergy?
04
B2
mhm yawp this year
05
B1
wow
06
T
this [year?
07
B2
[s::sprang on
08
T
can you eat nuts too? or.=
09
B2
= mhm yeah (
)
10
T
huh
11
B2
I can eat any kinna nut (07) uhm
12
T
Usually thats the more common one.
13
B2
yeah um nut allergies they tested me for (.) nuts an tree nuts, peanuts (.3)
um
14
D
his gluten [levels were a- a little high
15
B2
[gluten (levels)
END:
15:58
1-4
FAMILY/ SCHOOL TALK
BEGIN:
25:16
01
B1
>So< how old is your son? Iszis his senior year in high school?

23
[This year.
02
W
[He is. He:s seventeen just turned seventeen
03
(3.6)
04
W
So.
05
T
hhh
06
D
yeah ( )
07
T
(
) about to leave the nest huh?
08
W
yeap
09
T
then youll just have girls thatll be strange
10
W
yes
11
T
hh
12
W
itll be fun for Michael Im sure.
13
T
hhh
14
B1
hhh
15
D
How did the parade go this yesterday
16
W
It was good It went real well
17
(
)
18
W
(They did) a good job
19
B1
So20
W
And yall go the Kannapolis parade
21
D
I guess the weather was good
22
W
It was. it was nice.
23
W
=Dijall get rain.
24
(
)
25
B1
.hh Does he have a saxapho-=
26
=>The only saxophonists I know< are Kenny G (.) and Bill Clinton. (.) So
>Does he have a saxaphone I do- >Benny Golson< is he a
>saxaphone<
(.) player?
27
W
I:: dont kno:w. I. >An you know< he changes so much in his: love for
things. Because when he first started in- playin I mean he was all
about
that saxophone (.) That hes discovered now that he can play
different
things like hes taught himself how to play the piano. (.4)
And uhm he just
an its nothin that weve done its all God givin him that
gift. But um.
He loves ta play on the guitar an (.) so >I think he just love
music< in
general.
28
T
Is he gonna study music (.) in school?
29
((announcer talking in background from 26:42 until 27:03))
30
W
Actually <he wants to> um (.) he wants to teach (.) someday in a
seminary. So hes gonna major in English right now as his- gonna
be his
major when he goes to school. (2.2) An I think (.3) I think he
might minor
(.4) in music.
31
W
He wants to go [ta (.) North Greenville University in South Carolina.=
32
T
[Oh
33
W
=And theyve told im: that they have an uh (.) iner disciplinary (.3)
study >where they can kinna< tailor [their (.8) [so I-

24

END:

34

35

36
37

T
W

38
39
40
41

T
B1
T
W
27:37

[their (.8) [>a lot of colleges have that

now<
We wonder if hes gonna (3.1) go that route. So dont know. (5.1) But he
does plan (.) to continue (.) music.
Yeah
Hes gonna ya know be in the marching band. I think try to be in some (.)
maybe the jazz band n things like [that
[yeah that would help
Its good for scholarships too
[Yeah.
[Yeah.

2. Church Event
Two women talk after a church service. The first speaker was unseen. Conversation focuses on
the temperature within the church.
Speakers: A, L, U
2-1
SETTING TALK
BEGIN:
1:47
((lots of background talk))
01
U
I was in the prayer room and I was shiverin. Thats why Im shakin. It
was like ice in there.
02
L
Ye:s
03
A
I think they cut the heat off in there cause when we first- thats our
[Sundy school room
04
L
[O:::h okay
05
A
And when we first got in there it was like a sauna
06
L
O::[::h]
07
A
[An as th-] the time went
08
L
O::[kay]
09
A
[It got] cooler n cooler n cooler=so somebody mustve cut the heat
[off to] that room
10
L
[Ill bet] (so because)I said Ill bet the children outside were warmer than
we were
11
A
[ehhhhhhhh]
12
L
[They were outside playin so $they were warmer than we were$] = cause
it was cold in there.
13
A
[Yeah it was getting co:ol when we left out]
14
L
[Yall have a good afternoon hh okay]
END:
2:17