Gesture and Collaborative Planning

Written Communication Jul 2005

Joanna Wolfe University of Louisville Hospital

Abstract

When writers plan a document together, they rely on gestures as well as speech and writing in constructing a common representation of their group document. This case study of a student technical writing group explores how group members used gestures to create a conversational interaction space that they then treated like a physical text that they manipulated, wrote on, and pointed at. These gestures suggested a group pretext that helped group members translate abstract goals into concrete plans. However, the close proximity of gesture to the physical act of writing may mislead students into thinking that the tricky work of translating abstract ideas into final written form had already been completed. Gestures and adaptor movements (such as fidgeting with a pen) also seemed to conspire to help individuals control the conversational space and call attention to themselves as writers. Implications for future research on gesture and collaborative writing, gender, and writing technologies are discussed.

Journal: Written Communication
Published: 2005-07-01
DOI: 10.1177/0741088305278108
Open Access: Closed
Topics: qualitative research technical communication multilingual writers

Citation Context

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Cites in this index (3)

Wolfe et al. (2005)

The Computer Expert in Mixed-Gendered Collaborative Writing Groups

Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Haas et al. (2001)

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Embodied Knowledge

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