Approaches to Discourse Analysis demonstrates the importance of the diverse perspectives that various approaches to discourse bring to bear on human communication. Linguists and other readers interested in the interplay of language and culture will gain new insight and understanding from this rich compilation.

What is Discourse Analysis? is an accessible introduction to an empirical research approach which is widely used in the social sciences and related disciplines. This book explores the idea of how meaning is socially constructed and how 'talk' and text can be interpreted. The challenges of discourse analysis are outlined as well as helpful ways to approach them - from finding the right starting point, processing and interpreting data through to building an argument. Discourse analysts work with language data, including talk, documents and broadcast material. Researchers in different traditions study interactions and social practices, meaning-making and larger meaning systems, and contests and conflicts around collective identities, social norms and subjectification. What is Discourse Analysis? addresses new researchers and other academics interested in language and its associated practices. The book outlines the history of discourse analysis, its key concepts and theorists and its uses and challenges. Discussions of published studies illustrate the use of the approach to investigate a range of research topics, such as gender, health and national identities. The book also addresses the practical aspects of discourse analysis, providing clear guidance on data collection and data processing, including transcription and selection. Covering important topics, What is Discourse Analysis? draws from recent articles to show how discourse analysis works in action. Common questions about discourse analysis are presented in a lively and accessible Q&A format. This book will be an essential resource for all researchers working with discourse analysis.

A systematic introduction to discourse analysis as a body of theories and methods for social research. Introduces three approaches and explains the distinctive philosophical premises and theoretical perspectives of each approach.

An exploration of how any language produced by man, spoken or written, is used to communicate for a purpose and within a context.

Perspectives on Discourse Analysis: Theory and Practice provides the student/reader with the basic theoretical knowledge and the empirical tools of some of the most relevant approaches to the analysis of discourse. It has been mainly conceived of as a general (university) course on Discourse Analysis, but it can also be useful for any person or group whose main concern is to acquire the basic necessary knowledge and skills for analyzing any type of discourse. The subject matter of the book could not only be of use for linguists or prospective linguists: given its interdisciplinary character, its findings can be (and in fact are) used and applied by practitioners and scholars from different fields, such as sociology, psychology, medical science, computer science, and so on. Thus the book can be used by any person who, having certain linguistic knowledge, is interested in exploring the fascinating world of discourse. All the chapters contain both a theoretical and an empirical section, the latter containing examples of analysis, as well as exercises (Practice) and self-evaluation questions, whose answers can be found at the end of the book (in the Practice key and Key to self-evaluation questions sections). The book is divided into 12 chapters. The first two introduce basic information about discourse analysis and text linguistics, as well as the necessary techniques for gathering data, including a very brief introduction to corpus linguistics. Chapters 3-11 present and discuss some of the most prominent and well-known approaches to discourse analysis, namely Pragmatics, Interactional Sociolinguistics, Conversation Analysis, The Ethnography of Communication, Variation Analysis and Narrative Analysis, Functional Sentence Perspective, Post-Structuralist Theory and Social Theory, Critical Discourse Analysis and Positive Discourse Analysis, and Mediated Discourse Analysis. Finally, Chapter 12 deals with crucial and further issues, such as the type of discourse chosen for the analysis, the strategies and functions of discourse, or the problem of choosing an appropriate unit of analysis which will suit the aims of research. Perspectives on Discourse Analysis: Theory and Practice may prove of value to all those who are professionally involved in the area of discourse and pragmatic studies, or simply to those who wish to acquire the necessary basic knowledge and techniques for analyzing any type of discourse, from medical, journalistic or political discourse to computer-mediated, humoristic, or hegemonic discourse (where the use and abuse of power is an important issue), just to name a few of the innumerable possibilities. A desirable and intended effect of this book is also the development of an open and tolerant mind, which will eventually lead to a better understanding of the different and varied manifestations of language, culture and communication in human society.

This open access book presents new approaches for researching values as they are performed or materialized. Values have been an important topic in academic literature for a long time; they are at the core of institutional theories and are often connected to ideals in organisations or ways of valuing. The various values-constructs are typically highlighted to underpin discussions of identity, ethos, and the purposive institutional work of leaders and employees. However, there is a need for more research on how values link and sustain actions and institutions. Contributors in this volume map and discuss useful methodological ways in which values and values work can be investigated and how research on values has been and can be applied. The chapters present different methods for collecting data, including interviews, observation and shadowing, as well as various methods for analyzing data, such as thematic, discourse and narrative analysis. Chapters also consider the role of the researcher and participant validation as a procedure to enhance the trustworthiness of the study. Finally, the book presents various empirical projects and issues related to and exemplifying values research. This book is a valuable guide for researchers and students who are looking for a practical understanding of how to research values and values work in organisations. The volume is a follow-up of the open access book, Understanding Values Work: Institutional Perspectives in Organisations and Leadership published by Palgrave Macmillan. Gry Espedal is Associate Professor at the master's program in values-based leadership at VID Specialized University, Norway. Beate Jelstad Løvaas is Associate Professor at the master ́s program in values-based leadership at VID Specialized University, Norway. Stephen Sirris is Professor of organisation and leadership at VID Specialized University, Norway. Arild Wæraas is Professor of organisation and leadership at VID Specialized University, Norway.