Transitivity as Ideational Scaffolding and Evidentiality as Interpersonal Positioning in Political Interviews

This qualitative study employs Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) as its theoretical framework to investigate how political interviewees utilize transitivity processes and evidential markers in shaping political discourse. The research design integrates content analysis to quantify the prevalence of these linguistic elements and textual analysis to interpret their role in constructing meaning. The data consists of interviews with five presidential candidates from the 2022 Philippine presidential elections, sourced from a free video-sharing platform. The findings indicate that the material process emerged as the major transitivity process in political interviews, while the marker of induction dominated as an evidentiality marker. The pervasiveness of transitive verbs underscored the ideational metafunction of language in political interviews, indicating the politicians' commitment to action and making their ideas happen. The common use of transitive verbs in political interviews supports Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), which suggests that these verbs help convey experiences. They show how politicians express their beliefs and influence public perception. This indicates that transitive verbs are not just grammatical features but also ways to shape reality and frame goals in politics. Furthermore, "so" was the most frequently used marker, suggesting a solid presence of inductive reasoning, where conclusions are drawn based on occurrences or patterns and reflecting the reciprocity between ideational and interpersonal metafunctions in political discourse. The use of "so" in political interviews shows how politicians communicate ideas and connect with their audience. It highlights how they use evidence to build their arguments and influence opinions while maintaining a friendly and relatable tone. The study can contribute to understanding transitivity and evidentiality in political interviews. In education, the findings offer educators and curriculum developers direction on improving and making relevant language curricula to enhance the teaching and learning of languages.