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Small talk is an informal type of discourse that does not cover any functional topics of conversation or any transactions that need to be addressed.〔(How to Master the Art of Small Talk - For Dummies )〕 Small talk is conversation for its own sake. The phenomenon of small talk was initially studied in 1923 by Bronisław Malinowski, who coined the term "phatic communication" to describe it.〔Malinowski, B. (1923) "The problem of meaning in primitive languages", in: Ogden, C. & Richards, I., ''The Meaning of Meaning'', Routledge, London〕 The ability to conduct small talk is a social skill; hence, small talk is some type of social communication. Early publications assume networked work positions as suitable for social communication.〔(COMPUTER NETWORKS AS SOCIAL NETWORKS: Collaborative Work, Telework, and Virtual Community )〕 == Purpose == In spite of seeming to have little useful purpose, small talk is a bonding ritual and a strategy for managing interpersonal distance.〔Bickmore, T. (1999) ''A Computational Model of Small Talk'', accessed online at (media.mit.edu )〕 It serves many functions in helping to define the relationships between friends, work colleagues, and new acquaintances. In particular, it helps new acquaintances to explore and categorize each other's social position.〔Laver, J. (1975), "Communicative Functions of Phatic Communion", in: Kendon, A. / Harris, R. / Key, M. (eds.), ''The Organisation of Behaviour in Face-to-Face Interaction'', pp.215–238, The Hague: Mouton.〕 Small talk is closely related to the need for people to maintain positive face — to feel approved-of by those who are listening to them. It lubricates social interactions in a very flexible way, although the desired function is often dependent on the point in the conversation at which the small talk occurs:〔Holmes, J. (2000) "Doing collegiality and keeping control at work: small talk in government departments", in: J. Coupland, (ed.) ''Small Talk'', Pearson, Harlow UK.〕 # Conversation opener; When the talkers do not know each other, it allows them to show that they have friendly intentions and desire some sort of positive interaction. In a business meeting, it enables people to establish each other's reputation and level of expertise. Where there is already a relationship between the two talkers, their small talk serves as a gentle introduction before engaging in more functional topics of conversation. It allows them to signal their own mood and to sense the mood of the other person. # At the end of a conversation; Suddenly ending an exchange may risk appearing to reject the other person. Small talk can be used to mitigate that rejection, affirm the relationship between the two people, and soften the parting. # Space filler to avoid silence; in many cultures, silences between two people are usually considered uncomfortable. Tension can be reduced by starting phatic talk until a more substantial subject arises. Generally, humans find prolonged silence uncomfortable, and sometimes unbearable. This can be due to human evolutionary history as a social species, as in many other social animals silence is a communicative sign of potential danger.〔Joseph Jordania. "Times to fight and times to relax: Singing and humming at the beginning of Human evolutionary history". Kadmos 1, 2009: 272-277〕 In some conversations there is no specific functional or informative element at all. The following example of small talk is between two colleagues who pass each other in a hallway: : ''William'': 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「small talk」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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