Quirky conversations: How people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia do dialogue differently

Abstract:

People with a diagnosis of schizophrenia (PSz) have difficulty engaging in social interaction, but little research has focused on dialogues involving PSz interacting with partners who are unaware of their diagnosis. Using quantitative and qualitative methods on a unique corpus of triadic dialogues of PSz first social encounters, we show that turn-taking is disrupted in dialogues involving a PSz. Specifically, there are on average longer gaps between turns in groups which contain a PSz compared to those which do not, particularly when the speaker switch occurs from one control participant to the other. Furthermore, the expected link between gesture and repair is not present in dialogues with a PSz, particularly for control participants interacting with a PSz. As well as offering some insights into how the presence of a PSz affects an interaction, our results also demonstrate the flexibility of our mechanisms for interaction.

Research areas:

• Dialogue
• Repair
• Schizophrenia
• Gesture
• DRiPS

Year:

2023

Type of Publication:

Article

Journal:

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B

Note:

In press