Dialogical Discourse Analysis: An Overview
Discourse studies are an essential component of linguistic research today, particularly in the context of cross-cultural communication. As language continues to play a vital role in shaping our societies, discourse analysis offers a deeper understanding of how language can both reflect and reinforce power structures, ideologies, and societal norms.
One approach to discourse analysis that has gained increased attention in recent years is dialogical discourse analysis (DDA). This method takes a social constructivist perspective that emphasises the importance of social interaction, and conceptualizes discourse as a joint construction of meaning through a process of negotiation between different participants.
DDA acknowledged that dialogues are not just individual instances of conversation, but are shaped by social and cultural norms, as well as the historical and contextual factors that influence interlocutors. This perspective highlights the importance of the context for meaning making and brings to light the relevance of factors such as socio-cultural identity, power relations, and positionality in shaping how language is used in interaction.
DDA is rooted in the work of Bakhtin, who conceptualised language as a dialogical process. He emphasised the importance of context and recurrent structures of language when investigating dialogical relationships. Later scholars such as Linell (2009) expanded upon this view to argue that communication is not a one-way process. Instead, individuals must engage in social interaction to construct discourse meaning. Linell also suggests that DDA discover communication obstacles and their role in dialogical construction of meaning.
Another significant contributor to the development of DDA is Wertsch, who argued that language is used to mediate social action. From this perspective, language is not just a tool for communication, but it is historically and culturally situated and is inseparably linked to the social practices that it mediates. Conversely, social practices are intimately tied to language practices and recognition of multilingual and multicultural aspects in dialogues (Linell, 2009). Language is not kept afloat in social action, and it affects social action; thus, social action shapes the language.
While DDA is a relatively new method compared to other discourse analysis approaches, it has become an increasingly popular and useful tool for studying language use across a range of contexts and disciplines. Its emphasis on the social and interactive nature of language has led to applications and extensions in various fields such as education, psychology, sociology, and anthropology.
DDA is not just a methodological tool but is also embedded in social practice theory (SPT), which contributed to developing the idea of communicative genres. SPT describes in detail how communicative genres emerge from social practices only to be latter used to reproduce social practices. Therefore, communicative genres can be referred to as the communicative language used in various social situations with certain purposes, like greetings, congratulatory, or persuasive speeches.
In education, DDA has been used to explore teacher-student interactions, the effects of different classroom activities on language use and acquisition of writing skills, and how academic writing and literacy practices can be taught in more meaningful and empowering ways. James (2014) highlights through his research the relational and dialogical nature of teaching and learning. Thus, pedagogue and students engage in collectively building meaning, often leading to knowledge co-construction.
In psychology, DDA has been applied to various cognitive-emotional processes, including the construction of identity, emotion regulation, and interpersonal communication. It can be an essential tool for exploring the dynamics of mental health and well-being, understanding the role of social structures in shaping the counselling process. DDA highlights the role of the dialogue in meaning-making, which sometimes leads to acceptance (Parker, Georgaca & Harper, 2005). Thus, the approach helps promote mutual understanding and empathy.
In conclusion, dialogical discourse analysis offers an alternative view that can be beneficial in examining the communicative language in various social practices. Its focus on dialogue is useful for unpacking the intricacies of how language is used to shape social interactions. By foregrounding negotiation and collaboration, DDA calls attention to the interaction that influences all communicative activities.
References
James, A. (2014). Real schools and classrooms. A psychologist reflects. London, Routledge.
Linell, P. (2009). Rethinking language, mind, and world dialogically. Information Age Publishing.
Parker, I., Georgaca, E., & Harper, L. (2005). Dialogical approaches to therapy: A partnership in dialogue. Oxford University Press.