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Marja-Leena Sorjonen

Born August 8, 1956, Valtimo

Master of Arts 1985 (Finnish Language), University of Helsinki
PhD 1997 (Applied Linguistics), University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
Docent in Finnish language 1998, University of Helsinki

Director of the Finnish Centre of Excellence in Research on Intersubjectivity in Interaction 2012–, University of Helsinki and the Academy of Finland
Professor of Finnish 2010–, University of Helsinki
Professor of spoken Finnish 2007–09, Research Institute for the Languages of Finland
Senior researcher 1999–2006, Research Institute for the Languages of Finland
Senior assistant 1995–97, University of Helsinki
Research associate 1995–97, University of Helsinki
Principal Researcher 1993–96, Finnish Foundation for Alcohol Studies

Publications, research projects and other academic activity

Research themes:
Linguistic interaction, interaction and grammar, language variation, interaction in institutional settings, multimodal interaction.

Awards and special achievements:
Knight first class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland 2015
Joint award of the August Ahlqvist, Yrjö Wichmann, Kai Donner and Artturi Kannisto foundations for an outstanding doctoral dissertation 1997

Photo: Sasa Tkalcan
Written by Marja-Leena Sorjonen (Kaija Hartikainen, ed.)
Translated by Matthew Billington

From institutional interaction to the multimodality

Institutional interaction is informed by the purpose of visiting the institution, and interaction practices may be highly formalised. Many institutions aim to improve their customer service by working on their customer interaction, and interaction studies can aid institutions in their development.

I have conducted several studies on interaction practices in institutional conversations (doctor’s appointments, visiting the Social Insurance Institution, shopping at a kiosk) and worked with various groups of language users, officials and private sector actors. An analysis of authentic interaction allows us to see what kind of issues cause misunderstandings and how they could be prevented, or what kind of practices customer service personnel have for dealing with an angry customer and what new procedures could be developed.

In the beginning, it was surprising to note how much such things as the physical setup of the interaction space determine which interaction practices will even function. For example, the question of who will feel comfortable initiating the conversation depends on whether the customer, when their number is called, walks to a clerk sitting behind a desk, or whether the clerk approaches the customer to bring them to their office. Likewise, at a kiosk the linguistic structure of the customer’s request is affected by whether the customer is already waiting by the till or still walking towards it.

Findings such as these have demonstrated the fact that to analyse interaction and its language requires a multimodal perspective: a study of the use not only of language but also of bodily actions, various written documents, and other objects (e.g. goods on sale). Attached to our Centre of Excellence is a Finland Distinguished Professor project, funded by the Academy of Finland, entitled Multimodality: through embodiment into language and action. The project is led by Professor Lorenza Mondada, and it is investigating variation in shopping practices across Europe.

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