Mapping participant deictics: A technique for discovering speakers' footing

This article presents a systematic technique for uncovering interactional patterns in conversation. While an indefinite number of verbal and paralinguistic cues can potentially establish interactional structure, one type of form often plays a central role. Deictics systematically index aspects of the context, and these forms often sketch out the framework of an interactional event. This article discusses and illustrates the methodological usefulness of one type of deictic in particular — participant deictics, or ‘personal pronouns’. It analyzes five minutes of a classroom conversation, and shows how systematic attention to participant deictics helps uncover the interactional dynamics. The paper ends by considering the limitations of this methodological technique.