Misunderstanding and Repair in Tactile Auslan

This article discusses ways in which misunderstandings arise in Tactile Australian Sign Language (Tactile Auslan) and how they are resolved. Of particular interest are the similarities to and differences from the same processes in visually signed and spoken conversation. This article draws on detailed conversation analysis (CA) and demonstrates the power of this methodology for uncovering the subtleties of misunderstanding and repair in deaf-blind communication. In doing so, it aids our understanding of the challenges deaf-blind people encounter in adapting a visual sign language for tactile delivery. Above all, this article demonstrates that experienced tactile signers have a range of strategies at their disposal to resolve interactional trouble and deploy them quickly and effectively when misunderstandings arise.