³ ~socgum1.13 º UP: <[LINK]> ³
³ The object of study in Gumperz's º NEXT: open ³
³ work is verbal interaction. º <[LINK] - ³
Gumperz aligns with Hymes in embracing the ethnomethodological
approach, which is oriented toward understanding emic societal
constructs by means of studying interactions within a community
rather than positions or intuitions of individuals within
communities <[LINK] -interact> He writes that "Verbal
interaction is a process in which utterances are selected in
accordance with socially recognized norms and expectations."
Following in the footsteps of phenomenologists, Gumperz finds
this social recognition to be part and parcel of the interactions
themselves. {<[LINK]> (Gumperz 1972b "The Speech Community" 219)}
His chief assumption is that the community determines the
individual, who is then free to interact with other communally
determined individuals in communally determined, and therefore
predictable, ways. By focusing on synchronic analysis, he can
leave unattended issues of whether or not individual actions can
change social norms over time. (see <[LINK]> for more on
synchrony/diachrony)