Dialogue – The Mixed Game: (10 Dialogue Studies)

The ‘Mixed Game Model’ represents a holistic theory of dialogue which starts from human beings’ competence-in-performance and describes how language is integrated in a general theory of human action and behaviour. Human beings are able to adapt to changing conditions and to pursue their interests by the integrated use of various communicative means, mainly verbal, perceptual and cognitive. The core unit is the dialogic action game or ‘the mixed game’ with human beings at the centre acting and reacting in cultural surroundings. The key to opening up the complex whole is human beings’ nature. The Mixed Game Model demonstrates how the different disciplines of the natural and social sciences and the humanities are mutually interconnected. After a detailed overview of the state of the art, the fundamentals of the theory are laid down. They include a typology of action games which ranges from minimal games to complex institutional games. The description is illustrated by analyses of authentic games.

Table of Contents:
1. Preface; 2. Introduction: The simple and the complex; 3. I. Rethinking theory: Patterns & beyond; 4. 1. The state of the art; 5. 2. The turning point in theorizing: Starting from the integrated whole; 6. II. The Theory of Dialogic Action Games or the Mixed Game Model; 7. 1. Premises about the object: From human affairs to language; 8. 2. The methodology: Principles of Probability; 9. 3. To sum up: The mixed game of human competence-in-performance; 10. III. Minimal action games or the issue of a speech act taxonomy; 11. 1. Minimal versus complex action games; 12. 2. Controversial issues in setting up a taxonomy of speech acts: The state of the art; 13. 3. The issue of a dialogic taxonomy of speech acts; 14. 4. To sum up; 15. IV. The architecture of complex action games; 16. 1. Extending the minimal game; 17. 2. Complex human affairs: Dialogue in the stream of life; 18. 3. Literary action games or touching on the mystery of life; 19. 4. To sum up: Dialogue in human affairs; 20. Summary and outlook: Towards an understanding of the dialogic species; 21. References; 22. Appendix; 23. Index

Review :
Professor Edda Weigand’s new book “Dialogue - The Mixed Game” offers an entirely new look at language use. It focuses on the complexity of human communication in a holistic approach by analyzing how human beings tackle the challenges of social life in dialogic interaction. Dr. Weigand claims that language use cannot be separated from the use of other human abilities. Consequently, only an integrative approach can explain the complexity of human dialogic interaction. The book is full of intriguing ideas, insightful observations and makes a rigorous analysis of language use. It certainly is a must read to all who are interested in any aspect of language. Professor Weigand’s new book marks a fundamental renewal of the language sciences and most notably linguistic pragmatics by developing a new theory of ‘language as dialogue’ which conforms to recent discoveries in neuroscience. She lays out the principles which constitute dialogic action in its fundamentals and draws up a typology of ‘dialogic action games’, by means of which she fundamentally renews classical speech act theory. This is an extremely important book: informed, rigorously argued, innovative, and free of dogmatism. It proposes a new paradigm for the social sciences and humanities that will inspire researchers who are looking for an approach that will unify the human sciences and the natural sciences. Dialogue - The Mixed Game embraces the complexity of life and uses it to reveal the beauty of language as it unfolds in human interactions. Edda Weigand’s book gives us a fresh perspective on dialogue and language and shows the many points in common between human language and human performance. Its implications are both theoretical and methodological. If you are interested in language, you must study who’s speaking it: human beings. Weigand succeeds in proposing an innovative theory of language-in-use named the “Mixed Game Model” that severs ties to traditional speech act theory in an attempt toward a more holistic understanding of human interaction. Her model is truly interdisciplinary and includes linguistic, sociological, and biological premises as the foundation for her claims. [...] Ultimately, Weigand’s book expands the way that linguists understand dialogue by bringing the human actors engaging it to the forefront. Her theory is pragmatic to the core, and heralds the return of humanist concerns to the study of linguistic dialogue studies. Because of the intense interdisciplinary composition of this theory, audiences interested in Weigand’s work will likely come from various fields. [...] Weigand has written a book that will undoubtedly provoke some and inspire others. Her willingness to challenge paradigmatic assumptions is to be lauded, and her insistence upon the inclusion of a fully rational, skilled human actor is refreshing. Furthermore, unlike many books that claim interdisciplinary roots, Weigand’s writing in this book allows individuals from disciplines other than linguistics entrance into her complex ideas by developing her ideas logically and incrementally.