Talking about work during a manicure appointment – a study at the intersection of conversation analysis and cognitive linguistics

Dorota Rancew-Sikora

Uniwersytet Gdański
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0608-9136

Magdalena Steciąg

Uniwersytet Zielonogórski
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6360-2987


Abstract

The article juxtaposes parallel analyses of one research material from two different perspectives – conversation analysis, rooted in social sciences, and cognitive linguistics, one of the branches of linguistics. The material is a spontaneous conversation conducted
during a manicure appointment. Since the main topic of the conversation is work, the
attention is focused, firstly, on its role in the dynamics of the interaction and relationship
between the participants, and secondly, on the reconstruction of the metaphorical image
of work that emerges from the conversation. The aim of the article is not only to analyse
the structure of the conversation and its meaning due to the specific institutional context,
but also to look back at analytical tools and research methods. Both presented approaches
see human experiences as grounded in material space and tangible nature, which are
a source of both cognitive metaphors and basic interactional competencies. An analysis
at the “intersection” of the disciplines shows the value of interdisciplinary systems
in research projects aimed at searching for new paths within existing approaches.


Keywords:

everyday conversation, conversation analysis, cognitive metaphor theory, methodology of orthography, interdisciplinarity


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Published
2025-12-11

Cited by

Rancew-Sikora, D., & Steciąg, M. (2025). Talking about work during a manicure appointment – a study at the intersection of conversation analysis and cognitive linguistics. Papers in Linguistics, 27(4), 51–66. https://doi.org/10.31648/pj.11839

Dorota Rancew-Sikora 
Uniwersytet Gdański
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0608-9136
Magdalena Steciąg 
Uniwersytet Zielonogórski
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6360-2987