Week 4b - Talk in all female groups (Non-essay)

Question 1

Who spoke about friendship contexts?

Answer 1

Johnson and Aries 1998

Question 2

What is talk amongst female friends like?

Who and when?

Answer 2

Johnson and Aries 1998

• Self-disclosing intimate topics
• Personal problems
• Intimate relationships
• Doubts and fears
• Daily activities
• Hobbies

Question 3

What is talk amongst male friends like?

Who and when?

Answer 3

Johnson and Aries 1998

• Matters peripheral to the self
• More sociability than intimacy
• Work
• Sports

Question 4

What did Johnson and Aries’ study consist of?

Answer 4

• 20 white females
• Interview in New England City
• Q’s about role of friendship in their life
• Reported personal talk, saying can’t talk to husband same as close friend

Question 5

What was the conclusion of Johnson and Aries study?

Answer 5

• Close female friendship due to women’s historical social position
• Sex segregation
• Mutual support
• Sex-typical work roles

Question 6

What was another study other than J+A?

Answer 6

Coates 1996

Question 7

What did Coates study consist of?

Answer 7

• Based on recordings of female friends informal private conversations
• Also group of adolescent girls self-recorded over 4yrs (12-15yrs)
• Post-recording interviews

Question 8

What did Coates say were the topics of female conversation?

Answer 8

• People, experiences and life
• Work, children, family
• Domestic matters, moral issues
• Fashion

Question 9

What did Coates say was the structure of female conversation?

Answer 9

Story —-> discussion

or

[Story —-> discussion] + [Story —-> discussion] +
[Story —-> discussion]

CAN BE LESS STRUCTURED

Question 10

What example can you give of Coates study?

Answer 10

Two women discussing family and health problems, follows the structure

Question 11

What is the conclusion of Coate’s study?

Answer 11

• Same subject
• Discussion aimed at preceding story
• Topic gradually shifts
• Participants build convo
• Mirroring of each others stories, same topics
• Collaborative

Question 12

Who wrote about stories, when?

Answer 12

Johnstone 1993

Question 13

What did Johnstone’s study consist of?

Answer 13

• 58 personal stories
• 33 female and 25 male story-tellers
• White middle class
• 14-70 yrs

Question 14

What did Johnstone say about Women’s stories?

Answer 14

• Protagonists often other people
• About violating social norms/embarrassments
• People helping other people
• Friends
• Stress
• Reported convos
• Details about characters

Question 15

What did Johnstone say about Men’s stories?

Answer 15

• Storyteller usually protagonist
• Protagonist acts alone and is successful
• Heroism
• Other men as co-present buddies
• More detail about place, time and objects

Question 16

What is the conclusion of Johnstone’s study?

Answer 16

• Rejects women’s stories as examples of their powerlessness
• Says community is the source of women’s power
• Less distinction between story-teller and audience due to collaboration

Question 17

What does friendly talk consist of?

Answer 17

• Jointly constructed utterances
• Spontaneous
• Incomplete utterances

Question 18

Define overlapping speech?

Answer 18

Two or more voices contributing to an utterance at one time.

Not competitive as contributions are on same topic

Question 19

What does collaborative floor consist of?

Answer 19

Jointly constructed utterances and overlaps, shorter turns, more repetition and jokes.

Shared space, voice of group

Question 20

How do females use front-stage/back-stage to construct their femininities?

Who, when?

Answer 20

Coates 2000/Goffman 1959

Frontstage:

• Performance carefully controlled
• Much more susceptible to politeness

Backstage:

• Norms subverted
• Distinction between performer and audience blurred