Common Ground in the English Premier League Post-match Interviews

Abstract

This thesis studies common ground and presupposition in English Premier League post-match interviews, in order to examine how the phenomena function in the data. The research questions that address common ground aim at revealing how it is established during the interviews, and moreover, how it is utilized during them. The final research question concerns the functions of presupposition in the data. The thesis consists of a quantitative study that is conducted by categorizing each interviewer and manager turn in relation to their intended effect on common ground. The data includes 24 interviews and 109 interviewer and manager turns. The categorization model has 3 categories for both participants. In addition to the quantitative study, the current study has a qualitative aspect as well, so that common ground and presupposition can be examined through patterns that occur repeatedly in the data. The results of the analysis suggest that common ground is established most often through interviewer’s assertions that are either accepted or corrected, after which they become common ground. Common ground is visible in smaller units, such as individual propositions, where they serve as shared background information. However, it can have an influence on topicality as well, since managers’ avoidance of certain topics is updated into common ground, which affects the rest of the interview. Presuppositions function most often as shared background knowledge that provides a basis for fast and intensive interviews. In order to gain more precise and systematic information about common ground and presuppositions, it would be crucial to study them in other similar contexts as well. In addition, consulting interviewers could provide insight about customs and participant roles that are present in the interviews.