Represented Speech in Qualitative Health Research

Abstract

Represented speech refers to speech where we reference somebody. Represented speech is an important phenomenon in everyday conversation, health care communication, and qualitative research. This case will draw first from a case study on physicians’ workplace learning and second from a case study on nurses’ apprenticeship learning. The aim of the case is to guide the qualitative researcher to use own and others’ voices in the interview and to be sensitive to represented speech in everyday conversation. Moreover, reported speech matters to health professionals who aim to represent the voice of their patients. Qualitative researchers and students might learn to encourage interviewees to elaborate different voices or perspectives. Qualitative researchers working with natural speech might pay attention to how people talk and use represented speech. Finally, represented speech might be relevant to understand how people perform everyday acts of quoting significant others. In conclusion, qualitative research is a genre of represented speech where we quote and unquote one another. The case gives the aspiring qualitative researcher advice and things to consider in terms of working with represented speech.

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