Therapist's positive evaluation of children with hearing impairment: A conversation analysis perspective

In speech-language therapy, the evaluation of children with atypical speech embodies the practical expertise of the therapist and the therapeutic goal of facilitating rehabilitation by guiding these children toward more typical speech behaviors. This study aims to provide an interactional explanation of how positive evaluations given by speech therapists are sequentially formatted, constructed, and oriented in therapy practice and what interactional consequences they have on the interpretation and learning of children with hearing impairment. Adopting conversation analysis as a methodology, this empirical study delves into naturally occurring conversations between speech therapists and children with hearing impairment within the context of Chinese speech-language therapy, focusing specifically on instances of positive evaluations in the third-turn position. The analysis reveals a prevalent occurrence of positive evaluations during therapeutic interactions, showcasing a diverse range of formats employed, spanning from explicit to implicit expressions. A fine-grained conversation analysis demonstrates the delicate and intricate nature of therapists’ positive evaluations, in terms of their indexicality (the function of being referential), and sensitivity to local contingencies. Furthermore, these positive evaluations serve as a critical site for displaying the epistemic asymmetry and its negotiation in and through therapist-client interactions. By providing an empirical demonstration of the interactional skill involved in speech-language therapy and advocating for evaluations characterized by clear indexicality and recipient-orientedness, this study contributes to enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of rehabilitation practices while shedding new light on the atypical interactions involving people with communicative impairments.