Why Gesture?
How the hands function in speaking, thinking and communicating
Editors
Co-speech gestures are ubiquitous: when people speak, they almost always produce gestures. Gestures reflect content in the mind of the speaker, often under the radar and frequently using rich mental images that complement speech. What are gestures doing? Why do we use them? This book is the first to systematically explore the functions of gesture in speaking, thinking, and communicating – focusing on the variety of purposes served for the gesturer as well as for the viewer of gestures. Chapters in this edited volume present a range of diverse perspectives (including neural, cognitive, social, developmental and educational), consider gestural behavior in multiple contexts (conversation, narration, persuasion, intervention, and instruction), and utilize an array of methodological approaches (including both naturalistic and experimental). The book demonstrates that gesture influences how humans develop ideas, express and share those ideas to create community, and engineer innovative solutions to problems.
[Gesture Studies, 7] 2017. vii, 433 pp.
Publishing status: Available
© John Benjamins
Table of Contents
-
Introduction
-
Chapter 1. Understanding gesture: Description, mechanism and functionSpencer D. Kelly, R. Breckinridge Church and Martha W. Alibali | pp. 3–10
-
Part 1. The function of gesture production
-
Section 1. The function of gesture production for language
-
Chapter 2. Representational gestures help speakers package information for speakingMartha W. Alibali, Amelia Yeo, Autumn B. Hostetter and Sotaro Kita | pp. 15–37
-
Chapter 3. Function and processing of gesture in the context of languageAslı Özyürek | pp. 39–58
-
Chapter 4. The asymmetric redundancy of gesture and speechJ.P. de Ruiter | pp. 59–75
-
Chapter 5. Gesture-speech unity: What it is, where it came fromDavid McNeill | pp. 77–101
-
Chapter 5 Supplement. Exchange on gesture-speech unity: What it is, where it came fromRenia Lopez-Ozieblo and David McNeill | pp. 103–125
-
Section 2. The function of gesture for cognition and social interaction
-
Chapter 6. The function of gesture in learning and memorySusan Wagner Cook and Kimberly M. Fenn | pp. 129–153
-
Chapter 7. Gestures highlight perceptual-motor representations in thinkingAutumn B. Hostetter and Rebecca Boncoddo | pp. 155–174
-
Chapter 8. One function of gesture is to make new ideas: The action-cognition transduction hypothesisMitchell J. Nathan | pp. 175–196
-
Chapter 9. Gesture in socio-moral reasoningLeanne Beaudoin-Ryan | pp. 197–212
-
Chapter 10. Multi-modal communication of common ground: A review of social functionsJudith Holler and Janet Bavelas | pp. 213–240
-
Part 2. The function of gesture comprehension
-
Chapter 11. Exploring the boundaries of gesture-speech integration during language comprehensionSpencer D. Kelly | pp. 243–265
-
Chapter 12. Computational gesture research: Studying the functions of gesture in human-agent interactionStefan Kopp | pp. 267–284
-
Chapter 13. Making and breaking common ground: How teachers use gesture to foster learning in the classroomMitchell J. Nathan, Martha W. Alibali and R. Breckinridge Church | pp. 285–316
-
Chapter 14. The function of gesture in mathematical and scientific discourse in the classroomMelissa Singer | pp. 317–329
-
Chapter 15. Gesture’s role in learning interactions: A focus on clinical populationsEve S. LeBarton and Jana M. Iverson | pp. 331–351
-
Chapter 16. The sound of silence: The functions of gestures in pauses in native and non-native interactionGale Stam and Marion Tellier | pp. 353–377
-
Part 3. Why gesture? Some theoretical implications
-
Chapter 17. Understanding gesture as representational action: A functional account of how action and gesture differ with respect to thinking and learningMiriam A. Novack and Susan Goldin-Meadow | pp. 381–396
-
Chapter 18. So how does gesture function in speaking, communication, and thinking?R. Breckinridge Church and Susan Goldin-Meadow | pp. 397–412
-
Author index
-
Subject index
Cited by
Cited by 20 other publications
Billot-Vasquez, Kiana, Zhongwen Lian, Yukari Hirata & Spencer D. Kelly
Bolens, Guillemette
Bryła-Cruz, Agnieszka
Cartmill, Erica A.
Cravotta, Alice, M. Grazia Busà & Pilar Prieto
Ienaga, Naoto, Alice Cravotta, Kei Terayama, Bryan W. Scotney, Hideo Saito & M. Grazia Busà
Kim, Zi Hyun & Hedda Lausberg
Levy, Rachel S. & Spencer D. Kelly
Masi, Silvia
Mlakar, Izidor, Darinka Verdonik, Simona Majhenič & Matej Rojc
Nair, Rukmini Bhaya
Sandler, Wendy
Welch, Lise E., Jessica F. Shumway, Jody Clarke-Midura & Victor R. Lee
[no author supplied]
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 4 march 2023. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.
Subjects
Communication Studies
Main BIC Subject
CFB: Sociolinguistics
Main BISAC Subject
LAN004000: LANGUAGE ARTS & DISCIPLINES / Communication Studies