How Do You Ask Questions? A Thematic and Discursive Analysis of Question-Asking in Stranger Conversations

This study used a mixed-methods approach to explore how questions are used in casual conversations between strangers. While conversation has long been studied by linguists, sociologists, anthropologists, and psychologists, a methodological divide persists: conversation analysis versus experimental approaches. Despite extensive research, the rules guiding question-asking in conversation remain unclear. This study integrates both conversation analysis and experimental literature to investigate the role of questions in interactions with strangers. The research began with a quantitative content analysis of questions drawn from a set of recorded conversations known wholly as the Candor Dataset, informed by Brown and Levinson’s politeness theory, which suggests that questions can function as face-threatening acts. However, theoretical limitations of this framework led to the consideration of Uncertainty Reduction Theory and Terror Management Theory. These challenges prompted the addition of thematic analysis and eventually a methodological shift to discourse analysis. Discursive psychology was adopted for its ability to reframe traditional psychological constructs by focusing on language-in-use and social interaction. Quantitative findings addressed two of five research questions. First, participants used more polar questions than Wh- or alternative questions. Second, questions primarily served to seek public or social information. Due to reliability concerns in the data, some results were inconclusive. A Thematic analysis of 100 questions identified five key themes: Personhood, financial life, conversational grammar, politeness/impoliteness, and expertise deference. The first two reflect personal identity and economic context, while the latter three concern the structural and social roles of questions in conversation. Three additional themes emerged through the use of an approach, discursive psychology: Mutuality, information tracking, and interest tokens. The themes relate to the cooperative nature of questioning, how speakers monitor and build on shared information, and how interest is expressed to maintain conversational flow. Together, these findings deepen our understanding of how questions function in everyday talk. The thematic results illustrate the nuanced purposes of questions, while the discursive approach critiques and expands existing theories by showing how questions operate dynamically within social interaction.