Processes that shape conversation and their implications for computational linguistics

Experimental studies of interactive language use have shed light on the cognitive and interpersonal processes that shape conversation; corpora are the emergent products of these processes. I will survey studies that focus on under-modelled aspects of interactive language use, including the processing of spontaneous speech and disfluencies; metalinguistic displays such as hedges; interactive processes that affect choices of referring expressions; and how communication media shape conversations. The findings suggest some agendas for computational linguistics.