A social pragmatic model of talk: Implications for research on the development of children's social understanding

We present a social pragmatic model of talk-as-interaction, Talk consists of observable and orderly sequences of turns by means of which participants together construct and interpret action. The meaning of a speaker's turn, the action accomplished, is observable in the manifest details of that turn and responses to it. We discuss methodological implications and illustrate the relevance of th is social pragmatic model for theory and research on human development through an analysis of the role of talk in the development of children's understanding of mental states. Copyright (C) 1999 S. Karger AG, Basel.