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Article published In: Gesture
Vol. 17:1 (2018) ► pp.98–127

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Some pragmatic functions of conversational facial gestures

 | University of Victoria
 | Fraser Health Authority
Published online: 19 October 2018
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/gest.00012.bav
Abstract
Conversational facial gestures are not emotional expressions ( (1997). Should we call it expression or communication? Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research, 10 (4), 333–344.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar). Facial gestures are co-speech gestures – configurations of the face, eyes, and/or head that are synchronized with words and other co-speech gestures. Facial gestures are the most frequent facial actions in dialogue, and the majority serve pragmatic (meta-communicative) rather than referential functions. A qualitative microanalysis of a close-call story illustrates three pragmatic facial gestures in their macro- and micro-context: (a) The narrator’s thinking faces (Goodwin, Marjorie H. & Charles Goodwin (1986). Gesture and coparticipation in the activity of searching for a word. Semiotica, 62 (1/2), 51–75.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar) occurred as the narrator was getting started, and they accompanied verbal collateral signals of delay, such as “uh” or “um”. (b) The narrator pointed at his hand gestures with his head and eyes (Streeck, Jürgen (1993). Gesture as communication I: Its coordination with gaze and speech. Communication Monographs, 60 (4), 275–299. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar), drawing the addressee’s attention to depictions that would later be crucial to the close call. (c) The meta-communicative functions of smiles included marking the narrator’s description of danger as ironic or humorous, hinting at key elements, and acknowledging errors.
Article outline
  • Distinguishing between facial gestures and emotional expressions
    • Ekman’s position
    • A survey of faces in dialogue
    • Referential functions
    • Experimental studies
    • Pragmatic functions
    • Experimental evidence
    • Summary
  • Facial gestures with pragmatic functions: A narrative example
    • Thinking faces as collateral signals
    • Summary
    • Pointing with gaze and head
    • Summary
    • Smiles have many functions
    • Summary
  • Conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
References (43)
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