Getting Things Done at Work: The discourse of power in workplace interaction(124 Pragmatics & Beyond New Series)

The linguistic study of workplace language is a new and exciting area of research. This book explores the expression of power in a New Zealand workplace through examination of 52 everyday interactions between four women and their colleagues. The main focus of this research is the expression of three types of "control acts", i.e., directives, requests and advice. The women include two managers who demonstrate an interactive participative style of management. They tend to minimise rather than exert power, although their status is still evident in their speech. The study is original in its combination of a quantitative and a qualitative approach, as well as in its combination of a detailed categorisation of head acts and an analysis of context and role relationships. Through the design of the study and the methodology used, the results which are brought forward challenge earlier research both on power and control acts. The data analyzed is drawn from the Wellington Language in the Workplace Project.

Table of Contents:
1. Acknowledgments; 2. 1. Introduction; 3. 2. Directives, requests and advice; 4. 3. Identifying control acts; 5. 4. Analysis of control act head acts; 6. 5. Modification of control act head acts; 7. 6. Exploring control acts in context; 8. 7. Control acts between Managers and their staff; 9. 8. Managers and power in the workplace; 10. 9. Language and power between equals; 11. Appendix A. Transcription conventions; 12. Appendix B. Main interaction purpose and word counts; 13. Appendix C. Directive head acts; 14. Appendix D. Request head acts; 15. Appendix E. Advice head acts; 16. Notes; 17. References; 18. Author Index; 19. Subject Index

Review :
The book, based on V's dissertation, focuses primarily on the use of 'control' speech acts [...], between managers and staff in a New Zealand workplace. The book presents a detailed and useful account of how such control acts and their modifications function in this environment. [...] Vine's book is an example of careful, meticulous and scholarly research. [...] Vine's study provides us with a clear and detailed account of some ways in which a linguist approaches the corporate world. In so doing she expands the possibilities and potential approaches of women in management research.