Module |
Communication Strategies: Turn-taking, Topic Control, and Topic Shifting |
At the end of this module, I can:
Good hosts have the ability to handle different people and different situations. How do they do it? Consider a panel discussion that requires a moderator and at least two discussants who may have differing views on an issue. What characteristics must the moderator possess in order to successfully moderate the discussion, especially when the topic is controversial?
In a one-to-one encounter, who talks first? When does the other person respond? What topics must be avoided? All these considerations require strategies in order to avoid communication difficulty or breakdown. Among the commonly used strategies in this situation are turn-taking, topic control, and topic shifting.
Turn-taking pertains to the order by which people who engage in a conversation speak. Ideally, you wait for your turn to speak by listening to the person you are conversing with and waiting for him or her to finish talking. However, there are times when both parties in a conversation speak simultaneously. These instances usually happen when both parties are excited or eager to share their thoughts and opinions or when both are emotional. Notice how two angry people talk to each other. When a person fails to wait for his or her turn to speak, misunderstanding and arguments are likely to occur as a result, especially in situations where both parties are emotionally charged.
You may have been reminded many times before to wait for your turn to speak, especially when you were younger or prone to interrupting others’ conversations. This reminder holds true in most speaking situations because it is considered impolite to talk while another person is still talking. When interrupted, a person might object and say, “Let me finish!” or “I’m not yet finished!” Hence, it is important to wait for your turn to speak so as not to offend or irritate the person speaking. Thus, turn-taking as a communication strategy is highly encouraged.
However, in some instances, some people, regardless of age, forget to observe turn-taking. This occurs even in formal parliamentary setups such as congressional hearings where lawmakers often interrupt other lawmakers, a resource speaker, or a witness. These interruptions sometimes lead to arguments, forcing the presiding officer to raise a call to order.
Listening to verbal messages and observing nonverbal cues while another person is still speaking help you know when to speak.
Have you experienced being cut off while you were speaking? How did you feel?
Read the following dialogues. Supply the appropriate response that each line requires. Make sure to provide verbal hints that indicate that it is the first speaker’s turn to talk again.
Topic control is the strategy that limits the coverage of a discussion or conversation to things that are acceptable to the people involved in the communication process. If you are close to the person you are talking to and would not want to unduly irritate him or her, you avoid topics that he or she might not be interested in or keen on hearing about. Take, for example, a guest in a talk show who is asked by the host of questions that are not about the agreed-upon topic. If such is the case, the guest might feel uncomfortable, leading him or her to give winding, even incoherent, answers. At worst, the guest might even walk out.
Ignoring the topic that a speaker introduces at the start of the communication is unacceptable and can be interpreted as a sign of disrespect.
What do you think will happen if a pair or a group of people talks about different topics simultaneously? Have you experienced the same situation? What did you do about it?
Sometimes, teachers and preachers get sidetracked by the stories they incorporate into their lectures and sermons. Before they realize it, they have already veered away from the topic; and if they do not get back to what they should be talking about, they may waste time or bore their audience. Hence, knowing what to talk about and sticking to that subject matter or topic is an important communication strategy. It ensures that only the topic relevant to both (or all) parties is talked about and that only information related to that topic is shared by everyone involved in the communication situation. Topic control also ensures that the time and effort of those involved are not wasted.
Some common verbal cues used to control topics in everyday conversations include the following:
In more structured situations, like small group discussions, the following verbal cues are usually used:
To focus on one topic, you should know how to break down the main topic of a conversation into smaller subtopics. Doing so helps expand and make sense of the main topic. Given the following main topics, name five subtopics that can be introduced to contribute to the conversation.
Topic shifting is the strategy that requires listening intently to the person or people you are conversing with. If a topic is unpleasant to or uncomfortable for any one of you, one of you should bring up another topic instead of risking a communication breakdown. Topic shifting also applies when you want a more interesting or more pleasant topic to talk about instead.
Shifting to another topic is fine as long as you are polite in doing so.
In a panel discussion, for instance, the moderator must be quick to shift topics once a topic is becoming too sensitive or uncomfortable for any of the panelists. By shifting topics, the moderator ensures a congenial discussion, rather than a hostile one.
To ensure smooth topic shifting during informal communication situations, one may try the following prompts that steer a conversation or discussion to a new topic:
For formal communication situations, such as forums and panel discussions, the following prompts may prove useful:
Read the following dialogue and answer the questions that follow.
Share an experience where you and your friend were so excited to talk about a lot of things after not meeting each other for a long time. How did the conversation play out?
Watch a scene from the movie Doubt at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI6vVYge-c. Analyze the dialogues and explain how the following strategies are applied in the scene.
Track: Academic
You and your partner are communication researchers who are specializing in interpersonal communication under the speech communication department of a university. One of the requirements for the regularization of your employment is a paper presentation in a communication conference. The department chair instructed you to present your most recent research on the strategies of turn-taking, topic control, and topic shifting in interpersonal communication. Thus, you and your partner will conduct a short analysis of a conversation. To do this, you will record one conversation in a communication environment or situation of your choice. Then, create a slide presentation of the transcript of the conversation. Make sure to highlight and discuss the parts that show turn-taking, topic control, and topic shifting. Also, explain your insights on the nature of turn-taking observed in the conversation that you have recorded, considering the topic, relationships, and goals of the conversation. Finally, end your paper presentation by characterizing the nature of interpersonal communication in your chosen communication situation.
Watch the videos on the following websites for additional tips on how to practice appropriate communication strategies in the workplace.
Conversations are a regular, daily activity. From the moment you wake up, you probably converse with somebody, whether face-to-face or via technology. You also converse with differing degrees of formality depending on whom you converse with—from the members of your family or household to the school principal whom you meet along the corridor. Remember and apply the communication strategies of turn-taking, topic control, and topic shifting for smooth and successful interpersonal dealings regardless of your communication goals.