Facilitative styles of asking questions$ {1 E- Z: ?3 y% g
If the intention of the questioner is really to prompt the interlocutor in disclosing information freely, then question techniques may not be appropriate at all. Instead it might be better to echo and to reformulate in order to give the interlocutor the opportunity to expand. M8 s' D$ f" q
Illustrative dialogue
; j9 A& s9 H0 e8 @( PWell, I live in a flat in a rather poor part of town. Poor part of town…?Yes, it's quite dirty and the streets are badly lit. That's why I don't like going out alone at night. So you're frightened to go out alone?Well, yes because we hear of attacks and muggings. That's why I want to leave.In this dialogue, speaker B doesn't try to take the initiative, but merely echoes and reformulates to prompt speaker A to say what worries her. |