A STUDY OF EXCHANGE STRUCTURES IN METRO TV'S "AFTER HOURS" PROGRAM

Abstract

This study reports an analysis on the exchange structure in conversation between the hosts and the callers in Metro TV’s “After Hours† English program. The purpose of this study is to find out the types of initiating – responding acts produced by the hosts and the callers. Adopting Strenstrom’s theory (1994) as the theoretical framework, this study uses the qualitative approach  to examine ten (10) conversations in the “After Hours†program. The analysis shows that there are certain exchanges of initiating – responding acts which match Strenstrom’s theory. However there are also exchanges that do not match the theory. The study found that 18 points in the ten conversations do not match Strenstrom’s theory. The possible reasons for this mismatch include the fact that the host and the callers share a common knowledge, and the addressee wants to give information to the speaker to correct the speaker’s assumption. Despite the occasional unmatched responses, the conversation goes well and the speakers can understand each other well.