Overall linguistic generalizations

There is a long history of research on the linguistic characterization of speech and writing. Although a variety of approaches has been adopted, the shared goal of most previous studies has been to identify specific linguistic features that distinguish between the two modes. Many studies also offer overall linguistic characterizations of speech and writing. In general, writing is claimed to be:

1. more structurally complex and elaborate than speech, indicated by features such as longer sentences or T-units and a greater use of subordination (O'Donnell et al. 1967; O'Donnell 1974; Kroll 1977; Chafe 1982; Akinnaso 1982; Tannen 1982a, 1985; Gumperz et al. 1984);

2. more explicit than speech, in that it has complete idea units with all assumptions and logical relations encoded in the text (DeVito 1966; 1967; Olson 1977);

3. more decontextualized, or autonomous, than speech, so that it is less dependent on shared situation or background knowledge (Kay 1977; Olson 1977);

4. less personally involved than speech and more detached and abstract than speech (Blankenship 1974; Chafe 1982; Chafe and Danielewicz 1986);

5. characterized by a higher concentration of new information than speech (Stubbs 1980; Kroch and Hindle 1982; Brown and Yule 1983); and

6. more deliberately organized and planned than speech (Ochs 1979; Rubin 1980; Akinnaso 1982; Brown and Yule 1983; Gumperz et al. 1984).