Embodied reference: A study of deixis in workplace interaction

Abstract This paper contributes to a growing body of work concerned with the empirical investigation of referential practice in everyday settings. It uses audio-visual recordings of work within a telecommunications control centre to explore the ways in which colleagues establish, if only momentarily, mutual orientation towards ‘objects’, such as (features of) documents and computer screens. The paper addresses three key themes. Firstly, it highlights the ways in which visual conduct, in concert with talk, is used to accomplish demonstrative reference — an often overlooked feature of referential practice. Secondly, it examines the interactional production of demonstrative reference, noting the ongoing and dynamic co-ordination of actions in the collaborative achievement of mutual orientation. Thirdly, it reflects on the ways in which the production and intelligibility of referential actions are grounded in the activities, or common business, in, through and for which they emerge.

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