Power at a Glance: Gaze Assymetry in Speaking Assessments
Power at a Glance: Gaze Assymetry in Speaking Assessments

Author(s): Hristiyana Slavova
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Applied Linguistics, Sociolinguistics
Published by: Университет за национално и световно стопанство (УНСС)
Keywords: gaze; conversation analysis; language assessment; power dynamics; power theory
Summary/Abstract: This study investigates how institutional power asymmetry is enacted through embodied interaction, particularly the relationship between examiner facial mirroring and examinee gaze orientation during high-stakes oral language assessments. Drawing on sociolinguistic approaches to power and Conversation Analysis (CA), the research hypothesizes that a reduction in the examiner's affiliative affect (facial mirroring) correlates with an increase in the examinee’s embodied tension (gaze aversion).

• Details
• Contents