CONFLICT TALK - SOCIOLINGUISTIC CHALLENGES TO SELF-ASSERTION AND HOW YOUNG GIRLS MEET THEM

Cultural stereotypes which interpret girls as less forceful or less assertive than boys in pursuing their own agendas, particularly during conflict episodes, are questioned. A theory of double-voice discourse is proposed to characterize a type of conflict talk that has a dual orientation, in which speakers negotiate their own agenda while simultaneously orienting toward the viewpoint of their partner. In double-voice discourse, self-assertion is enmeshed with addressee-oriented mitigation. Examples of such discourse in 3- and 4-year-old middle-class white girls' conflict talk are analyzed. Gender differences in conflict talk are seen to be contextualized variations that reflect differences in the organization of same-sex groups. Girls' use of the pretend frame in negotiating is discussed. Also highlighted is the importance of analyzing children's language in the context of conversational turns in order to develop a fuller interpretation of utterances.