When Not Talking is ‘Talking’: The Functions of Silence

Abstract

Analyzing material drawn from a corpus of over one hundred telephone conversations mainly between native English speakers recorded in a customer service centre, this paper identifies the various functions of silence in these workplace interactions. Focusing on the detail of the interactional exchanges between the customer service representatives and their customers, I use a number of authentic examples to illustrate the functions of silence, among other communication strategies employed by the participants. Two very different outcomes are identified. Silence can be interpreted as a power-asserting device when uncooperative turn-taking is evident. In other contexts, silence can indicate cooperation when listening to customers’ complaints. It seems that this linguistic phenomenon cannot be defined in absolute terms. The presence of silence is a result of ongoing negotiation between speakers and its functions and implications are often significant. Reference: Jaworski, A. 1993. The power of silence: Social and pragmatic perspectives. Newbury Park, California: Sage.