Abstract
Goffman’s intellectual legacy (cf. Collins, 1980; Jacobsen and Smith, 2022) remains a significant reference point in contemporary social science, influencing disciplines such as sociology, linguistics, psychology, and political science. The enduring relevance of his work can perhaps best be attributed to Goffman’s conceptual framework for analyzing human interaction, especially the three key areas introduced in this book—the self, the body, and participation in social interaction. The latter has contributed to reshaping linguistic and sociological models of social interaction (Hoey and Rawls, 2022). This volume however engages with Goffman’s work from the perspective that existing interpretations have not fully captured the complexity of his theoretical contributions, particularly when it comes to Ethnomethodology (EM) and Conversation Analysis (CA). These two approaches, which share historical and philosophical origins, are together referred to as EMCA (Maynard and Heritage, 2022).
EM is a sociological approach that systematically examines and documents social members’ methods for how they achieve mutual understanding when executing social actions (e.g. when someone says ‘meet at the subway at 7 PM’, both assume the nearest major station and that ‘7 PM’ means arrival time, not departure. This shared interpretation, rooted in everyday tacit knowledge, exemplifies how social norms shape implicit communication (Garfinkel, 1967). CA, building on EM as a foundation, focuses exclusively on the sequential organization of talk-in-interaction (i.e. when a caller asks ‘Do you have time tomorrow?’ at the start of a phone call, this isn’t seen as an innocent information-seeking query. It’s a ‘pre-question’—perhaps a pre-invitation or pre-request. People usually answer ‘Yes, what’s up?’ or ‘No, what’s wrong?’ (Schegloff, 2007). This volume is fundamentally anchored in Goffman’s theories (notably ‘co-presence’ and ‘interaction order’, see below). However, integrating empirical methods and EMCA as a conceptual perspective transcends Goffman’s original framework.
Structurally, this book begins with an overview of Goffman’s key ideas to outline the links between the author’s work and the EMCA tradition. That takes up Chapter 1, whereas the following chapters present theoretical (Chapters 2–5) and empirical (Chapters 6–13) sections. The theoretical sections critically examine Goffman’s concepts of ‘co-presence’ (Goffman, 1964) and ‘interaction order’ (Goffman, 1983), through the lens of current EMCA approaches. Goffman defines ‘co-presence’ as the condition of mutual awareness and reciprocal self-presentation inherent in face-to-face communication. His concept of the ‘interaction order’ suggests that social interaction entails a distinct moral and institutional system, akin to family systems, educational institutions, and religious organizations. In other words, interaction is governed by norms and rules that demand compliance. For example, the ‘question-answer sequence’ exemplifies an interaction order: a question requires a reply or disclaimer. Skipping a response triggers reminders or sanctions, proving interaction functions as a real institution with binding rules. While Goffman’s original formulations set out a basis, contemporary EMCA research—focusing on turn-taking distribution, evidence of message reception, mechanisms for attracting, retaining and displaying attention, participant identification—has refined and expanded the understanding of dynamic processes in co-presence and interaction order (Drew and Wootton, 1988).
In addition to Goffman’s theories, EMCA also builds on Garfinkel’s (1967) theory of ‘commonsense reasoning’. The latter refers to interlocutors’ reasoning methods to achieve mutual understanding in social interaction (e.g. in telephone conversations, the initial ‘Hello’ is recognized as a greeting, whereas a ‘Hello’ uttered in the middle of the interaction functions as a re-summon). The theoretical part of this volume systematically examines the foundation and expansion of EMCA on Goffman, which begins by interrogating the intellectual relationship between Goffman and Garfinkel. Chapter 2 demonstrates the affinity between Goffman’s interaction order and Garfinkel’s notion of an ‘interactional system’. Both argue that interaction has its own rules and norms. However, Goffman asserts rules of interaction are culturally governed, while Garfinkel argues that rules are locally emergent. Chapter 3 contrasts Goffman’s framing of rules as guides for actors versus EMCA’s conception of rules as interactive resources (e.g. Goffman argues that hospital rules shape doctor-patient talk, while EMCA posits that their identities come from the interaction itself. For example, in follow-up visits where doctors engage in small talk with patients, they might construct a friendship-like relation by invoking interactional rules dynamically. Chapter 4 illustrates how Goffman’s theory of face (social interactions involve managing personal and others’ social images through cultural norms to maintain respect and autonomy) intersects with the conversation analytical preference structure framework. People organize responses into ‘preferred’—direct, unqualified—and ‘dispreferred’—that is, delayed, justified—types through interactive sequences. Finally, Chapter 5 argues that Goffman’s seminal contribution to the social sciences was partly attributable to his innovative writing style. It also cautions that EMCA’s prevailing focus on technical refinement in data collection and analysis may sideline Goffman’s conceptual innovation.
The empirical section extends Goffman’s work in ways he might not have anticipated. Although he expressed skepticism about video-recording micro-social practices, current EMCA methodologies do actually use technology. The empirical studies in this volume showcase the productive integration of Goffman’s theoretical framework with modern analytical approaches across diverse research contexts, including: prosodic and gestural analyses of self-presentation strategies in aphasia (Chapter 6); social-semiotic decoding of strain grunts in physical exertion (Chapter 7); functional examination of skeptical facial displays in interaction (Chapter 8); recipient design analysis in multiparty indirect complaints (Chapter 9); face-work adaptation patterns in personality disorders (Chapter 10); interactional construction of co-presence as a social accomplishment (Chapter 11); revealing analyses of how auction interactions constitute economic order (Chapter 12); and the relationship between cognitive processes and interactional organization (Chapter 13). Collectively, these studies illustrate how current research both extends and, where warranted, refines Goffman’s original ideas through EMCA’s empirical rigor.
The studies in this volume illustrate how EMCA reinterprets Goffman’s interaction order as a locally managed achievement, rather than a culturally predetermined rule (Broth et al., 2014). Methodologically, video-based EMCA analysis enables granular multimodal investigation, overcoming some limitations of Goffman’s approach. Overall, this book is valuable for scholars studying Goffman’s theory and EMCA. It comprises both theoretical and empirical sections but doesn’t clearly distinguish the EM and CA research domains. Readers also need to already possess some basic knowledge of Goffman and EMCA before embarking upon this volume.