ABSTRACT
This chapter examines discourse analysis writ large as a catalog of methods by which writing center researchers can examine talk and text. They are discourse analysis (DA), critical discourse analysis (CDA), and conversation analysis (CA). Each of these is discussed as theory and method, with particular attention to how intersubjectivity is constructed. A detailed description of units of analysis, functions of context, and roles and responsibilities of researchers and participants, followed by writing center studies that have used each method, a “how to” with resource suggestions, and sample research questions and methods complete the discussion of each research practice. Whereas CDA and CA have been less widely used in writing center research than has DA, if trends continue, more published studies employing not only DA but also CA and CDA are on the horizon.
