Nexus Analysis: Discourse and the Emerging Internet

Nexus Analysis presents an exciting theory by two of the leading names in discourse analysis and provides a practical guide to its application.

The authors argue that discourse analysis can itself be a form of social action. If the discourse analyst is part of the nexus of practice under study, then the analysis can itself transform that nexus of practice.

Focussing on their own involvement with and analysis of pioneering communication technologies in Alaska they identify moments of social importance in order to examine the links between social practice, culture and technology. Media are identified not only as means of expressing change but also as catalysts for change itself, with the power to transform the socio-cultural landscape.

In this intellectually exciting yet accessible book, Ron Scollon and Suzie Wong Scollon present a working example of their theory in action and provide a personal snapshot of a key moment in the history of communication technology, as the Internet transformed Alaskan life.

Introduces a new theory and a guide to its application. Nexus analysis allows participants in social action to explore its key elements and trace their historical trajectories towards actions, to anticipate the actions' outcomes.

Ron Scollon is Professor of Linguistics at Georgetown University, USA. Suzie Wong Scollon is Network Coordinator, Associated Sociocultural Research Projects, Georgetown University, USA.