Breathing behaviour and non-lexical vocalisations in talk-in-interaction

• Applicant: Dr. Jürgen Trouvain
• Subject Area: General and Comparative Linguistics, Experimental Linguistics, Typology, Non-European Languages
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 566490413

Breathing is necessary for speaking. Breathing behavior underpins many overlooked and underexamined sounds and actions in conversation: audible in- and out-breaths, and the clicks that often accompany them help to regulate turn-taking; laughter, which infuses talk and comments on it, and can produce moments of joint pleasure; sounds like sighs and gasps, which likewise contribute to displaying affective stances. These non-lexical vocalizations (NLVs) are all fundamental processes in natural conversation, yet they are also largely sounds that are not replicated in experimental data. This project will examine the role and use of breathing and breathing-related NLVs in everyday talk-in-interaction. Audio, video and respiratory kinematic data will be recorded from pairs of speakers in three languages (English, German and French). This will allow for a detailed investigation of the phonetic form, position and function of NLVs. The project will combine instrumental and interactional approaches to the phonetics of talk-in-interaction to explore and understand the emergent nature of turns at talk, marked by pauses, turn-taking cues, unfolding syntax, and signs of speech planning. We will thus develop new insights into linguistic organization.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: United Kingdom
• Partner Organisation: Arts and Humanities Research Council
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Richard Ogden