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1 - Action Ascription in Social Interaction

from Introduction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 February 2022

By
Arnulf Deppermann  and
Michael Haugh
Edited by
Arnulf Deppermann  and
Michael Haugh
Arnulf Deppermann
Affiliation:
Universität Mannheim, Germany
Michael Haugh
Affiliation:
University of Queensland
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Summary

Action ascription can be understood from two broad perspectives. On one view, it refers to the ways in which actions constitute categories by which members make sense of their world, and forms a key foundation for holding others accountable for their conduct. On another view, it refers to the ways in which we accountably respond to the actions of others, thereby accomplishing sequential versions of meaningful social experience. In short, action ascription can be understood as matter of categorisation of prior actions or responding in ways that are sequentially fitted to prior actions, or both. In this chapter, we review different theoretical approaches to action ascription that have developed in the field, as well as the key constituents and resources of action ascription that have been identified in conversation analytic research, before going on to discuss how action ascription can itself be considered a form of social action.

Keywords

social actionspeech actsaction formationaction ascriptionintersubjectivityaccountabilityinference
Type
Chapter
Information
Action Ascription in Interaction , pp. 3 - 28
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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