5SSEL014 Analysing Interaction Assignment Brief 2026 | King's College London

5SSEL014 Analysing Interaction Assignment

Instructions 

The assignment counts as 100% of the overall module mark. This will be a written piece of 2,500words, excluding bibliography and appendices. The assignment is due at5pmonTuesday 5th May 2026.

Option 1

Identify an interactional segment of ca. 30-60 seconds on YouTube or another internet platform where something interesting happens (think of the social actions that are being performed and how they are oriented to). 

Transcribe this segment using CA transcription conventions and analyse the conversation while drawing on the interactional practices taught in the module. Are there any incomplete adjacency pairs? Awkward silences? Overlaps thatcould count as interruptions? How do the participants orient to these?

Provide an interpretation drawing on CA concepts (and relevant CA literature)and discuss whether more could be said about the analysed interaction if additional contextual factors were taken into account.

Option 2 

This is a more technical approach, where you’d be focusing on one interactional phenomenon, such as overlaps, dispreferred responses, insert expansions, etc. You would need to assemble a collection of 10-15 instances of this phenomenon.

For this type of assignment, please transcribe the identified instances of your chosen phenomenon plus 1-2 lines leading up to, and following it. Identify how different instances of the phenomenon vary, and whether they do so systematically throughout your collection. Back your discussion up with relevant literature.

I will be offering individual meetings where you will be able to bring your data and discuss your assignment with me. This will take place during the last two weeks of the term.

Assessment Criteria

• Accuracy of transcript
• Good grasp of relevant interaction-related concepts
• Clarity of argument, where appropriate, illustrated with examples
• A range of relevant literature
• Evidence of independent and critical thought
• Coherence of structure, including use of headings
• Presentation including spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing
• Quality of referencing (citing/quoting in body of text; bibliography)

For information on marking criteria and on how to submit and present your workcorrectly please see the KEATS handbook.