Introduction
Last week, you identified both the explicit request and the embedded presuppositions in not-knowing questions. The research articles showed that these presuppositions have measurable effects. This week, you'll document the process in which embedded presuppositions become accepted in the dialogue. The analysis focuses on how co-construction happens, step by step, in the dialogue that follows the question.
McGee et al. (2005) proposed a 10-step micro-model that specifies how not-knowing questions work interactively. These 10 steps often happen in only a few minutes or even seconds:
Learning Objectives
McGee et al. (2005), page 375 to the end of the article (you downloaded this article last week).
Exercise
The purpose of the exercise is to make this rather abstract model concrete and specific-- something you can actually see happening.
1. Download the new ELAN (“Week 9 ELAN-Example and Exercise”) for "Glad to be Alive" in the “Downloads, IMA Online Course” Dropbox for this week. Add your initials to the title of the ELAN. Although the ELAN for this week is different, it uses the same “Glad to be Alive” video as last week so you can connect to it in the Week 8 sub-folder in the course folder on your computer
2. The example question, its context, and annotations for all 10 steps of the model are in 12 tiers between 009:06.810 and 11:04.930. The question occurs between 10:09.880 and 10:18.370, " So, how did you know, it was time to walk away?
3. Here are the 10 steps, each with an explanation of what would answer it:
Step 1. The question requires an answer. Explain why this particular question elicits an answer from the client.
Step 2. The client must make sense of the question. Is the question clear? Does it require some context? What is the explicit request and what are the embedded presuppositions?
Step 3. The question orients and constrains the client. What particular aspect of his experience is the client constrained to focus on?
Step 4. The client has to do review work in order to answer the question. What must the client search for between the question and the answer?
Step 5. The client can comment on the presuppositions. Where can you see that he did or did not do this?
Step 6. If necessary, the therapist can correct the presuppositions. Where can you see that she did or did not do this?
Step 7. The client's answer implicitly accepts the presupposition(s). What tells you this?
Step 8. The client owns the answers; it is from him, not the therapist. Explain how we can tell this.
Step 9. After his answer, the initiative returns to the therapist. Where can you see that the therapist has the initiative again?
Step 10. It quickly becomes difficult to return to the presupposition(s). As the conversation moved on, why would it have been difficult to return to the embedded presupposition?
4. Your exercise is between 07:08.770 and 8:55.100, and the question occurs between 08:06.980 and 08:13.650: " So (pause) What--Your family's supportive of that idea or…? “ Using the same tiers as in the example, annotate your answers to each step of the model for this question.
5. Save your completed ELAN with your initials on it and then upload it to the Week 9 sub-folder in “Uploads, IMA Online Course.”
Postings
1. Questions
a.) What did you learn about therapeutic (or coaching) questions that you may or may not have noticed before?
b.) Does this model (and the exercise) make co-construction visible for you? Explain.
(Questions post is due by midnight Saturday evening, April 8.)
2. Comparison
a.) Look over two or three other postings to see how others did their analysis .
b.) Select one other class member’s ELAN file, and compare your analysis to that person’s analysis in detail. Where were you similar and different?
(Comparisons post is due by midnight Monday evening, April 10.)
PDF of instructions
© International Microanalysis Associates
Last week, you identified both the explicit request and the embedded presuppositions in not-knowing questions. The research articles showed that these presuppositions have measurable effects. This week, you'll document the process in which embedded presuppositions become accepted in the dialogue. The analysis focuses on how co-construction happens, step by step, in the dialogue that follows the question.
McGee et al. (2005) proposed a 10-step micro-model that specifies how not-knowing questions work interactively. These 10 steps often happen in only a few minutes or even seconds:
- Questions require answers.
- The client must first make sense of the question.
- The question orients and constrains the client to a particular aspect of his or her experience.
- In order to answer, the client must do considerable on-the-spot review work.
- The client does not ordinarily comment on the embedded presuppositions.
- An embedded presupposition is malleable and can be corrected.
- The very act of answering the question implicitly accepts the embedded presuppositions as common ground.
- The answer is owned by the client, not the therapist.
- After the client has answered, the initiative returns to the therapist.
- As the conversation moves rapidly ahead, it becomes increasingly difficult to return to earlier embedded presuppositions.
Learning Objectives
- Understand McGee’s 10-step model of how questions contribute to what is built between therapist and client in a co-constructed dialogue.
- Trace this process in a therapy session.
- Identify how therapists' questions introduce presuppositions that affect the direction of the dialogue.
McGee et al. (2005), page 375 to the end of the article (you downloaded this article last week).
Exercise
The purpose of the exercise is to make this rather abstract model concrete and specific-- something you can actually see happening.
1. Download the new ELAN (“Week 9 ELAN-Example and Exercise”) for "Glad to be Alive" in the “Downloads, IMA Online Course” Dropbox for this week. Add your initials to the title of the ELAN. Although the ELAN for this week is different, it uses the same “Glad to be Alive” video as last week so you can connect to it in the Week 8 sub-folder in the course folder on your computer
2. The example question, its context, and annotations for all 10 steps of the model are in 12 tiers between 009:06.810 and 11:04.930. The question occurs between 10:09.880 and 10:18.370, " So, how did you know, it was time to walk away?
3. Here are the 10 steps, each with an explanation of what would answer it:
Step 1. The question requires an answer. Explain why this particular question elicits an answer from the client.
Step 2. The client must make sense of the question. Is the question clear? Does it require some context? What is the explicit request and what are the embedded presuppositions?
Step 3. The question orients and constrains the client. What particular aspect of his experience is the client constrained to focus on?
Step 4. The client has to do review work in order to answer the question. What must the client search for between the question and the answer?
Step 5. The client can comment on the presuppositions. Where can you see that he did or did not do this?
Step 6. If necessary, the therapist can correct the presuppositions. Where can you see that she did or did not do this?
Step 7. The client's answer implicitly accepts the presupposition(s). What tells you this?
Step 8. The client owns the answers; it is from him, not the therapist. Explain how we can tell this.
Step 9. After his answer, the initiative returns to the therapist. Where can you see that the therapist has the initiative again?
Step 10. It quickly becomes difficult to return to the presupposition(s). As the conversation moved on, why would it have been difficult to return to the embedded presupposition?
4. Your exercise is between 07:08.770 and 8:55.100, and the question occurs between 08:06.980 and 08:13.650: " So (pause) What--Your family's supportive of that idea or…? “ Using the same tiers as in the example, annotate your answers to each step of the model for this question.
5. Save your completed ELAN with your initials on it and then upload it to the Week 9 sub-folder in “Uploads, IMA Online Course.”
Postings
1. Questions
a.) What did you learn about therapeutic (or coaching) questions that you may or may not have noticed before?
b.) Does this model (and the exercise) make co-construction visible for you? Explain.
(Questions post is due by midnight Saturday evening, April 8.)
2. Comparison
a.) Look over two or three other postings to see how others did their analysis .
b.) Select one other class member’s ELAN file, and compare your analysis to that person’s analysis in detail. Where were you similar and different?
(Comparisons post is due by midnight Monday evening, April 10.)
PDF of instructions
© International Microanalysis Associates
