Abstract
In this book, Baxter takes up the Bakhtinian notion of double-voiced discourse to bring together power, gender and linguistic expertise in educational and professional contexts. Understanding double-voicing in terms of speakers’ ‘heightened awareness of, and responsiveness to, the concerns and agendas of others, which is then reflected in the different ways in which they adjust their language in response to interlocutors’ (p. 3), Baxter explores three interrelated issues (p. 13): first, the relationship between power and double-voicing; second, the extent to which double-voicing is indexed by gender; and third, the extent to which double-voicing indexes linguistic insecurity (lack of confidence and sense of disempowerment) or alternatively, linguistic expertise (an ability to use language to engage speakers and form solidarity).
The book is organised in five chapters. Chapter 1 introduces the titular notion and traces its origin in the Bakhtinian conception of single- versus double-voiced discourse. Baxter distinguishes five functions that double-voicing can perform: anticipatory, the most common type, realised by linguistic mechanisms such as apologies, qualification, hedging and self-deprecating humour; corrective, in which the speaker aims to correct or repair an error, often their own; mitigating, through which speakers attempt to reduce the social distance between themselves and their addressees; authoritative, used to heighten impact and display personal power, especially if a speaker feels threatened; and dialogic, used extensively by academics as if they are both the speaker and the addressee.
Chapter 2 provides an in-depth discussion of the conceptual background, reviewing the definition and classification of single-voiced discourse (which is referentially oriented) and double-voiced discourse (which is directed both towards the referential object of speech and towards another’s discourse, by engaging with the interests and concerns of others). Baxter discusses three types of double-voiced discourse in the Bakhtinian taxonomy, of which the active one, characterised by an antagonistic or hostile intention towards other people’s words, can index both a speaker’s linguistic insecurity (acting as a shield against anticipated criticism) or their expertise (acting as a weapon in the battle of words).
The following two chapters contain case studies that employ these concepts. Chapter 3 concerns double-voicing in the university classroom. Baxter uses Interactional Sociolinguistic Analysis to identify strategies of single-voicing and double-voicing in the interactions of two gender-segregated groups of Master of Business Administration (MBA) students during a business simulation activity. She compares a number of extracts from each group to show that females tend to use double-voicing to avoid conflict and attack, but this does not help them to win verbal engagements. In contrast, males employ more single-voicing devices and are more successful in their performance. Baxter explains this in terms of three functions of single-voicing and double-voicing: the speaker’s inclination towards his/her own agenda and those of other speakers, different functions in managing conflict and competition, and different degrees to harness some of the linguistic strategies associated with ‘taking charge’ of a group.
Chapter 4 deals with the relationship between double-voicing and leadership in business meetings. Baxter analyses extracts from seven management meeting transcripts involving three senior business leaders (two women and one man) and analyses how individual male and female leaders use double-voicing to accomplish their leadership goals. Here, women leaders make greater use of the anticipatory, mitigating and corrective functions, especially to decrease social distance from other colleagues and avoid negative judgement, but less frequently employ the authoritative and dialogic ones. Baxter argues that double-voicing can be useful for women leaders to survive in a man’s world, but this requires command of its entire repertory; ‘where a leader repeatedly uses a limited range of double-voicing strategies, this could index linguistic insecurity’ (p. 89).
Chapter 5 concludes that double-voicing is a discursive strategy that women may use in order to negotiate gendered power relations in academic or professional settings. As a whole, this book contributes a useful clarification and classification of double-voicing, as well as a solid and clear practical exploration of how women leaders use double-voicing more than men as a means of gaining acceptance and approval in the workplace. Drawing from the author’s analyses, double-voicing can be seen as a useful tool and a sophisticated strategy to consolidate team relationships. Double-voicing need not be a symbol of weakness, but could actually be a source of strength. This contribution makes the book indispensable to scholars concerned with the interactive management of power and expertise and its interaction with gender.