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This study demonstrates how sequence analysis, which is a method for identifying common patterns in categorical time series data, illuminates the nonlinear dynamics of dyadic conversations by describing chains of behavior that shift categorically, rather than incrementally. When applied to interpersonal interactions, sequence analysis supports the identification of conversational motifs, which can be used to test hypotheses linking patterns of interaction to conversational antecedents or outcomes. As an illustrative example, this study evaluated 285 conversations involving stranger, friend, and dating dyads in which one partner, the discloser, communicated about a source of stress to a partner in the role of listener. Using sequence analysis, we identified three five-turn supportive conversational motifs that had also emerged in a previous study of stranger dyads: discloser problem description, discloser problem processing, and listener-focused dialogue. We also observed a new, fourth motif: listener-focused, discloser questioning. Tests of hypotheses linking the prevalence and timing of particular motifs to the problem discloser’s emotional improvement and perceptions of support quality, as moderated by the discloser’s pre-interaction stress, offered a partial replication of previous findings. The discussion highlights the value of using sequence analysis to illuminate dynamic patterns in dyadic interactions.
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Abstract This article articulates conceptual and methodological strategies for studying the dynamic structure of dyadic interaction revealed by the turn-to-turn exchange of messages between partners. Using dyadic time series data that capture partners’ back-and-forth contributions to conversations, dynamic dyadic systems analysis illuminates how individuals act and react to each other as they jointly construct conversations. Five layers of inquiry are offered, each of which yields theoretically relevant information: (a) identifying the individual moves and dyadic spaces that set the stage for dyadic interaction; (b) summarizing conversational units and sequences; (c) examining between-dyad differences in overall conversational structure; (d) describing the temporal evolution of conversational units and sequences; and (e) mapping within-dyad dynamics of conversations and between-dyad differences in those dynamics. Each layer of analysis is illustrated using examples from research on supportive conversations, and the application of dynamic dyadic systems analysis to a range of interpersonal communication phenomena is discussed.more » « less
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This study examines messages that problem disclosers and supportive listeners enact during conversations about everyday stressors. We coded 402 dyadic interactions between strangers, friends, and romantic couples using Stiles’s (1992) verbal response modes (VRM) and Burleson’s (1982) verbal person centeredness (PC) typology to explore whether (a) listener and discloser utterances coalesce into types of speaking turns, (b) listener turn types vary in person-centered quality, (c) listener turns relate to discloser responses, and (d) discloser responses relate to listener turns. Analyses revealed a typology for both listener and discloser turns: acknowledgment, advisement, question, elaboration, hedged disclosure, and reflection. The relative proportion of those types varied as a function of conversational role and relationship context, and these speech acts varied only minimally in PC. Configural frequency analyses revealed four greater-than-chance contingencies across data sets. The discussion highlights implications for a dyadic and dynamic understanding of supportive communication.