Interruptions | Cleaning Up Arguments | Lent / Easter Prep

 Today, Discuss with your partner interruption styles in your arguments.  Below are different styles. Which ones are you using?

Competitive Interruptions

This is the most "traditional" form of interrupting. The goal is to seize the floor or redirect the conversation toward the interrupter's agenda.

• Power Plays are used to assert dominance or status in a group.

• Correction by stopping the other speaker to fix a fact or disagree with a premise before they can finish their thought.

• The Pivot of a conversation is briefly acknowledging the speaker only to immediately change the topic to something they prefer.

Cooperative Interruptions

Common in "high-engagement" cultures, these are meant to show enthusiasm and rapport. The interrupter isn't trying to stop the speaker; they are trying to participate in the thought.

• Chiming In and finishing the speaker's sentence to show you are perfectly in sync.

• Supportive Validation: Quick interjections like "Exactly!" or "I was just thinking that!" that happen while the other person is still talking.

• Parallel Talking is sharing a brief, relevant anecdote that mirrors the speaker's point to show empathy.

Intrusive Interruptions

These are often perceived as the most disruptive because they break the speaker's train of thought without adding value to the topic at hand.

• Tangential: Interrupting with a completely unrelated thought such as "Oh, look at that bird!" or "Did I leave the oven on?"

• Logistical: Stopping a speaker for immediate clarification because the listener is lost "Wait, who is 'he' in this story?"

Silent or Non-Verbal Interruptions

You don’t always need to speak to interrupt. These patterns signal that the listener has "checked out" or is waiting for their turn.

• The "In-Breath": Audibly inhaling or opening the mouth as if to speak, which often causes the current speaker to stumble or trail off.

• Over-Nodding, coughing and sniffing are forms of interrupting.