Theorists for Language and Gender - Commands and Directives Flashcards
Who did a study in 1990?
West
What did West’s study look at?
Doctors and how they interacted with their patients. In particular looking at the commands that they used to address their patients
What did West’s study find?
The men and women Doctors used directives DIFFERENTLY
How did the women use directives in West’s study?
They used more mitigated (softening) directives
e.g. “shall we have a look at that”
(use of second person plural)
How did the men use directives in West’s study?
They used more aggravated directives such as imperatives.
e.g. “sit down”
(direct orders)
Who’s directives were more effective on their patients?
The women’s
Even though they were less assertive than the men’s were, the patients of the female doctors followed their orders more. This challenges the deficit model
Who did a study in the 1980s?
Goodwin
What did Goodwin’s study look at?
Looking at how young children used directives and commands in their play
What did Goodwin’s study find?
Boys used more explicit and aggravated directives “gimme”
Girls used more mitigated directives