This volume represents the growing interest in both interactional linguistics and multimodality in language. As Xiaoting Li points out, research on this topic in languages other than English, and the systematic investigation of the use of gesture in turn organization generally, have been sadly lacking. Li begins to remedy that gap with this book, which synthesizes and expands on what work has been completed on Mandarin turn-taking and gesture in interaction to provide a systematic overview of the turn organization system. She investigates three major topics: syntax, prosody, and body movement.
The relationship of syntax to turn organization is the subject of chapter 3. Li first focuses on topic-comment and copula-complement constructions, noting that these structures are much more salient for Mandarin turn organization that they are for English. Next, she investigates word order, specifically the variation of SVO and SOV constructions; utterance-final particles, which are entirely absent in English but occur immediately before a turn-exchange in slightly more than a third of all instances in Mandarin; and certain lexico-semantic constructions that project possible turn completion.
In chapter 4, Li explores various prosodic methods of organizing turns. In particular, she spends a great deal of time on the notion of the intonational unit and global intonational contours. While Li does find them to be relevant, she notes that the method of analysis must dramatically differ from similar studies on English because local intonational contours are employed in lexical tone. She finds that a final accent can signal possible turn completion.
Chapter 5 offers an analysis of ways that gesture can be employed in turn organization, in particular the use of hand movements and posture shifts. These frequently coincide with boundaries of both single- and multi- TCUs (turn-construction units). Li notes that gestures are employed in a variety of functions including holding turns, indicating a sequence of actions such as question and response, and signaling turn completion.
Finally, chapter 6 analyzes the interaction of each of these methods of organizing turns. Rarely does any one method exist in isolation and frequently the various signals used to organize turns conflict with each other or fail to coincide. Li did find a significant trend for syntax and body movements to signal possible turn-completion while prosody and certain pragmatic factors were more likely to signal turn-continuation.
This book is not meant to be a complete account of turn-taking in Mandarin. However, Li has elegantly chosen the most relevant features of syntax, prosody, and gesture to illustrate how the system as a whole functions. In providing this account of Mandarin turn organization and, in particular, the ways that many of its features differ from English turn organization, she has highlighted the need for more research on languages other than English, frequently offering suggestions for further research herself. This book is a solid and informative contribution to our knowledge of turn-taking systems and multimodality in language.
