Resources for Students and Scholars of Nordic EMCA

                 Resources for Students and Scholars of Nordic EMCA

Wayne Martin Mellinger, Ph.D.

This guide focuses specifically on resources for those entering or working within the Nordic EMCA tradition. While general EMCA resources such as EMCA Wiki (emcawiki.net) and the International Society for Conversation Analysis (ISCA) website remain valuable starting points, the following emphasizes the distinctive infrastructure, training opportunities, conferences, and publications that characterize work in Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland.

Nordic Training Centers

Finland

University of Helsinki

The preeminent center for CA training worldwide. Home to the Finnish Centre of Excellence in Intersubjectivity in Interaction (2012-2017), directed by Marja-Leena Sorjonen with Anssi Peräkylä as Vice Director. The Department of Finnish Language and the Department of Social Research maintain active CA/IL research groups with regular data sessions, PhD supervision, and visiting scholar programs. Key faculty include Sorjonen, Peräkylä, Salla Kurhila, Liisa Voutilainen, and numerous others. The research portal at researchportal.helsinki.fi provides access to publications and project information.

University of Turku

The Department of Finnish and Finno-Ugric Languages has produced major morphosyntactically annotated corpora of Finnish conversation under the direction of Marja-Liisa Helasvuo. The Arkisyn project (funded by Kone Foundation 2013-2019) created annotated everyday conversation data enabling comparative grammatical research.

University of Oulu

The Research Unit for Languages and Literature hosts a strong multimodal interaction group led by Pentti Haddington (Professor of English and Interaction). Current projects include PeaceTalk (crisis management training interaction), AIDA (Action and Intersubjectivity in the Digital Age), and the COACT research community on complexity in interaction. Strong focus on mobility, technology, and multiactivity research. Faculty include Tiina Keisanen, Mirka Rauniomaa, and Anna Vatanen.

Sweden

Linköping University

A major Nordic hub for EMCA. The Conversation and Interaction Seminar (SIS) is jointly organized across Child Studies, Culture and Society, and Behavioural Sciences. Meets Thursdays for data sessions and presentations. Key faculty include Leelo Keevallik (Associate Editor of ROLSI, specialist in Estonian and embodied grammar), Asta Cekaite (child interaction), Mathias Broth (driving and traffic), Jakob Cromdal, and Nigel Musk. The Hub of Interaction Research coordinates multimodal interaction work. The annual Atypical Interaction Conference (next: June 10-12, 2025) focuses on communication involving atypical populations.

Stockholm University

The Department of Education hosts Ali Reza Majlesi and others working on second language learning from CA perspectives. Cecilia Wadensjö at the Institute for Interpreting and Translation Studies pioneered CA approaches to interpreter-mediated interaction.

Denmark

University of Southern Denmark (Sønderborg/Kolding)

Johannes Wagner and colleagues established this as a global center for CA-SLA (Conversation Analysis for Second Language Acquisition). The landmark Firth & Wagner (1997) article calling for reconceptualization of SLA research emerged from this milieu. Søren Eskildsen continues this tradition with work on usage-based approaches to L2 learning. Site of recent ICOP-L2 conference (June 2024).

Aarhus University

The Department of Linguistics, Cognitive Science and Semiotics includes Jakob Steensig among its faculty, with primary research foci in conversation analysis and interactional linguistics alongside neurolinguistics and language typology. The DanTIN research group runs samtalegrammatik.dk, conducting research on grammar in conversational Danish. PhD programs in Language, Linguistics, Communication and Cognition offer CA specialization.

University of Copenhagen

The Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics and the Centre for Interaction Research and Communication Design (CIRCD) host active research groups. Brian L. Due co-edits the journal Social Interaction.

Norway

University of Oslo

The Conversation Analysis and Interactional Linguistics research group in the Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies is led by Jan Svennevig. Offers specialized courses including RETKOM2102 Samtaleanalyse. Maintains a Database on Norwegian Everyday Interaction in collaboration with the Text Laboratory. The group collaborates closely with NIA and participates in projects on L2 workplace communication, police interviews, and multilingualism in dementia. MultiLing (Centre for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan) integrates CA perspectives.

University of Southeast Norway (USN)

Home to NIA (Nettverk for Interaksjonsanalyse / Network for Interaction Analysis), an interdisciplinary group studying interaction and learning in institutional settings including kindergarten, school, and higher education. Monthly data sessions, doctoral courses in interaction analysis, and the annual CAPP conference (Conversation as a Tool for Professional Practice). Key figures include Elizabeth Stokoe (Professor II) and researchers applying CA to social work and educational settings.

NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim)

Host of NORDISCO 2025 (December 3-5, 2025). Growing presence in discourse and interaction research.

Nordic and Nordic-Relevant Conferences

NORDISCO (Nordic Interdisciplinary Conference on Discourse and Interaction)

The primary regional conference, held biennially at rotating Nordic universities. Welcomes CA, discursive psychology, multimodal interaction analysis, applied linguistics, and related approaches. NORDISCO 2025 takes place December 3-5, 2025 at NTNU Trondheim. Previous iterations: Tampere 2023, Aalborg 2021 (online), and earlier at various Nordic sites. Plenary speakers for 2025 include Pentti Haddington (Oulu), Irmelin Kjelaas (NTNU), and Jakob Steensig (Aarhus).

CAPP (Conversation as a Tool for Professional Practice)

Annual conference organized by NIA at University of Southeast Norway. Focuses on CA applications in professional settings including education, social work, and healthcare. Typically includes pre-conference PhD workshops offering course credits. Site: usn.no

ICOP-L2 (Interactional Competences and Practices in a Second Language)

International conference series with strong Nordic involvement. The 2024 conference was hosted by Søren Eskildsen at University of Southern Denmark, Kolding. Focuses on CA approaches to L2 interactional competence and learning. Next: Newcastle, UK, August 24-26, 2026.

Atypical Interaction Conference

Organized by Linköping University. Focuses on interaction involving people with communication disorders, including aphasia, dementia, autism, and AAC users. Next: June 10-12, 2025, Linköping.

ICCA (International Conference on Conversation Analysis)

The major international conference, with significant Nordic presence. Historical Nordic hosts include Copenhagen (2002, where Deirdre Boden's CBS tenure contributed to infrastructure) and Helsinki (2006). Nordic scholars regularly contribute keynotes, panels, and workshops. Next: ICCA-26, Edmonton, 2026.

Journals with Nordic Editorial Leadership or Focus

Social Interaction: Video-Based Studies of Human Sociality

Open-access journal published by the Royal Danish Library, co-edited by Brian L. Due (University of Copenhagen) and Kristian Mortensen (University of Southern Denmark). Distinctive for allowing embedded video clips in published articles. Funded by Nordic research councils. Focus on video-based multimodal analysis. URL: tidsskrift.dk/socialinteraction

Research on Language and Social Interaction (ROLSI)

Premier international CA/IL journal with Nordic editorial presence. Leelo Keevallik (Linköping) serves as Associate Editor alongside Elwys De Stefani. Don Zimmerman served as editor 2001-2005. Essential venue for Nordic scholars.

Oslo Studies in Language (OSLa)

Open-access journal from University of Oslo publishing linguistics research including interaction-focused special issues. URL: journals.uio.no/osla

Additional Relevant Journals

Discourse Studies, Journal of Pragmatics, Text & Talk, Language in Society, Modern Language Journal (particularly for CA-SLA work following Firth & Wagner), and Discourse Processes regularly publish Nordic EMCA scholarship.

Corpora and Data Resources

Kielipankki – The Language Bank of Finland

Major national infrastructure coordinated by University of Helsinki through FIN-CLARIN. Houses spoken language corpora, dialect materials, the Lahjoita puhetta (Donate Speech) corpus of colloquial Finnish (3600+ hours), sign language materials, and morphosyntactically annotated conversation data. Access varies by corpus; some publicly available, others require research agreements. URL: kielipankki.fi

Database on Norwegian Everyday Interaction

Cumulative project at University of Oslo in collaboration with the Text Laboratory. Searchable video/audio recordings of Norwegian face-to-face and telephone interaction with transcriptions.

Danish Resources

DanTIN at Aarhus (samtalegrammatik.dk) maintains resources on conversational Danish grammar. Various university-based collections exist for research purposes.

Networks and Research Communities

• NIA (Nettverk for Interaksjonsanalyse) – Norwegian network at USN with monthly data sessions and doctoral training
• COACT Research Community – Oulu-based group on complexity in interaction and multimodal participation
• SIS (Samtals- och Interaktionsseminariet) – Linköping's weekly data session and research forum
• Helsinki CA/IL groups – Regular data sessions across Finnish Language and Social Research departments
• Oslo CA/IL group – Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies research group

Essential Nordic EMCA Publications

For those entering Nordic EMCA, the following represent essential starting points:

Foundational Theoretical Works

• Firth, A. & Wagner, J. (1997). On discourse, communication, and (some) fundamental concepts in SLA research. Modern Language Journal, 81, 285-300. [The paradigm-shifting article calling for reconceptualization of SLA]
• Linell, P. (1998). Approaching Dialogue. Amsterdam: Benjamins. [Dialogism as theoretical alternative to monological linguistics]
• Linell, P. (2009). Rethinking Language, Mind, and World Dialogically. Charlotte: IAP. [Comprehensive dialogical framework]

Interactional Linguistics and Grammar

• Hakulinen, A. & Selting, M. (Eds.). (2005). Syntax and Lexis in Conversation. Amsterdam: Benjamins.
• Sorjonen, M.-L. (2001). Responding in Conversation. Amsterdam: Benjamins.
• Couper-Kuhlen, E. & Selting, M. (2018). Interactional Linguistics. Cambridge: CUP. [Comprehensive textbook with extensive Nordic examples]

Institutional Interaction

• Peräkylä, A. (1995). AIDS Counselling. Cambridge: CUP.
• Peräkylä, A. & Sorjonen, M.-L. (Eds.). (2012). Emotion in Interaction. Oxford: OUP.
• Asmuß, B. & Svennevig, J. (2009). Meeting talk: An introduction. Journal of Business Communication, 46, 3-22.

Multimodality and Embodiment

• Haddington, P., Keisanen, T., Mondada, L., & Nevile, M. (Eds.). (2014). Multiactivity in Social Interaction. Amsterdam: Benjamins.
• Haddington, P., Mondada, L., & Nevile, M. (Eds.). (2013). Interaction and Mobility. Berlin: de Gruyter.
• Lindström, J., Laury, R., Peräkylä, A., & Sorjonen, M.-L. (Eds.). (2021). Intersubjectivity in Action. Amsterdam: Benjamins.

Epistemic and Morality Perspectives

• Stivers, T., Mondada, L., & Steensig, J. (Eds.). (2011). The Morality of Knowledge in Conversation. Cambridge: CUP.

Practical Advice for Students

Data Sessions

The most important training activity. Attend regularly wherever you are based. Nordic data sessions are typically friendly to visitors and newcomers. Contact research groups directly to ask about participation.

PhD Courses

Nordic doctoral programs often offer CA/interaction analysis courses open to students from other universities. NIA at USN offers regular PhD courses in conjunction with CAPP. Linköping, Helsinki, and Aarhus also offer doctoral-level training. Check university websites for announcements.

Language Considerations

Working in Nordic EMCA often means engaging with data in Finnish, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, or Icelandic. While analysis papers are typically published in English, reading foundational work in original languages (such as the Finnish reference grammar Iso suomen kielioppi) provides deeper understanding. Many Nordic institutions welcome researchers working on non-Nordic languages using Nordic frameworks.

Funding

Major Nordic funders for EMCA research include the Research Council of Finland (formerly Academy of Finland), the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet), Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (Sweden), the Kone Foundation (Finland), and national research councils in each country. The joint Nordic committee for humanities and social sciences occasionally funds cross-Nordic initiatives.

Visiting Researcher Opportunities

Nordic institutions generally welcome visiting researchers. Helsinki's Collegium for Advanced Studies has hosted CA scholars. Contact research groups directly about visiting possibilities; Nordic universities often have formal visiting researcher programs.

The strength of Nordic EMCA lies in its collaborative networks, shared traditions, and deep institutional embedding. Participation in these communities—through conferences, data sessions, and collaborative projects—remains the most effective path into this intellectual formation.