Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power

While research on children’s humour is growing, few investigations have focused on how children use humour in conflict interactions, and specifically in group early childhood settings. Using data extracts from a project that investigated children’s naturally occurring conflict interactions in a mult...

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Main Authors: Dalli, C, Strycharz-Banaś, A, Meyerhoff, M
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publications 2023
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author Dalli, C
Strycharz-Banaś, A
Meyerhoff, M
author_facet Dalli, C
Strycharz-Banaś, A
Meyerhoff, M
author_sort Dalli, C
collection OXFORD
description While research on children’s humour is growing, few investigations have focused on how children use humour in conflict interactions, and specifically in group early childhood settings. Using data extracts from a project that investigated children’s naturally occurring conflict interactions in a multi-ethnic early childhood setting, we use interactional sociolinguistics to analyse how children used humour at unexpected moments during conflict situations. The analysis probes different meanings carried in the children’s use of humour, illustrating how humour intersected with personal and relational power to resolve or defuse conflict, or to coerce compliance with existing peer relational positions. The analysis broadens understandings of the significance of humour in children’s lives in early childhood settings, and particularly in the context of conflict interactions that have a ‘stretchy temporality’ connecting interactive moves to others in the past, and to existing power positions in peer relationships.
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spelling oxford-uuid:49b51737-c320-4f4c-86e1-7dddb33463022024-01-29T15:26:23ZHumour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational powerJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:49b51737-c320-4f4c-86e1-7dddb3346302EnglishSymplectic ElementsSAGE Publications2023Dalli, CStrycharz-Banaś, AMeyerhoff, MWhile research on children’s humour is growing, few investigations have focused on how children use humour in conflict interactions, and specifically in group early childhood settings. Using data extracts from a project that investigated children’s naturally occurring conflict interactions in a multi-ethnic early childhood setting, we use interactional sociolinguistics to analyse how children used humour at unexpected moments during conflict situations. The analysis probes different meanings carried in the children’s use of humour, illustrating how humour intersected with personal and relational power to resolve or defuse conflict, or to coerce compliance with existing peer relational positions. The analysis broadens understandings of the significance of humour in children’s lives in early childhood settings, and particularly in the context of conflict interactions that have a ‘stretchy temporality’ connecting interactive moves to others in the past, and to existing power positions in peer relationships.
spellingShingle Dalli, C
Strycharz-Banaś, A
Meyerhoff, M
Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title_full Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title_fullStr Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title_full_unstemmed Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title_short Humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting: an analysis of relational power
title_sort humour and the stretchy temporality of peer conflict in a group early childhood setting an analysis of relational power
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