Conversation Theory is a theory of interaction. From interaction (the theory asserts) arises all individuals and all concepts. Interaction, if it is to allow for evolution, must perforce contain conflict, and, if concepts and individuals are to endure, resolution of conflict. Conversation Theory as developed by Pask led to the protologic called Lp which describes the interaction of conceptual entities. Lp contains injunctions as to how entities can and may interact, including how they may conflict and how their conflict may be resolved. Unlike existing software implementations based on Conversation Theory, Lp in its pure form is a logic of process as well as coherence and distinction. The hypothesis is that a low-level simulation of Lp, that of an internal and microscopic level in which topics are influenced by "forces" that are exerted by the topology of the conceptual space, would, in its activation as a dynamic process of appropriate dimension, produce as a result (and hence be a confirmation of) the macroscopically-observed behaviour of the system manifest as conflict and resolution of conflict. Without this confirmation, the relationships between Conversation Theory and Lp remain only proposed; with it, their mutual consistencies and validity as a model of cognition, are affirmed. The background of Conversation Theory and Lp necessary to support the thesis is presented a long with a comparison of other software approaches to related problems. A description of THOUGHTSTICKER, a current embodiment of Lp at the macro level, provides a detailed sense of the Lp operations. Then a computer program (developed to provide a proof by demonstration of the thesis) is described, in which a microscopic simulation of Lp processes confirms the macroscopic behaviour predicted by Conversation Theory. Conversation Theory thereby gains support f or its use as a valid observer's language for every-day experience owing to this confirmation and its protologic as a basis for psychological phenomena in the interaction of conceptual entities of mind.

Comment comprendre les dynamiques qui sous-tendent les changements des organisations? Le changement organisationnel fait partie de la réalité quotidienne des organisations et, comme en témoigne une vaste littérature, le sujet a été abordé à partir de diverses perspectives conceptuelles. Toutefois, plusieurs questions fondamentales demeurent quant à la façon dont le changement organisationnel est accompli (Tsoukas & Chia, 2002; Chia, 1999). Je suggère que la clé pour répondre à ces questions se trouve dans l’étude de la communication. Cependant, le rôle de la communication dans la production du changement reste peu exploré dans les conceptualisations actuelles sur le sujet. Ainsi, l’objectif principal de cette thèse est de décrire la façon dont le changement émerge dans la communication, en d’autres termes, comment il est accompli à partir des interactions. Dans cette recherche, je propose que la compréhension du changement passe par une vision de la communication comme un processus constant dans lequel les réalités sont créées, négociées et transformées de manière interactive. Cette conception est fondée sur a plurified view of interactions (Cooren, Fox, Robichaud & Talih, 2005; Cooren 2010) qui prend en considération la contribution d’êtres appartenant à diverses ontologies (e.g., ordinateurs, règlements, principes, émotions, règles, c.) dans l’action. En mobilisant cette vision de la communication, j’ai étudié les changements qui ont eu lieu à Koumbit — une organisation à but non lucratif basée à Montréal qui œuvre dans le domaine des technologies de l’information. L’observation, les entrevues ainsi que la révision de documents officiels ont été les techniques choisies pour cueillir les données. Ma recherche m’a permis de déterminer que le changement organisationnel est un processus progressif qui se matérialise d’interaction en interaction. C’est en composant et en recomposant des ensembles d’associations que se crée une différence dans l’état des choses. Si bien les interactions sont accomplies dans le ici et le maintenant, leur caractère hybride leur permet de rendre compte de ce que l’organisation a été et de ce qu’elle sera. Cette étude suggère que, d’un point de vue communicationnel, les mécanismes à partir desquels le changement organisationnel est accompli n sont pas aussi différents de ceux qui produisent les processus organisants (organizing). / Although organizational change is part of our daily experience of organizations and the literature that explores it is vast, we have limited knowledge of the ways change is actually accomplished (Tsoukas & Chia, 2002; Chia, 1999). I suggest that the key to answering this question can be found in communication. However, extant conceptualizations of change fail to account for the role that communication plays in the production of organizational change. Hence, the main goal of this dissertation is to describe how organizational change takes place in communication, that is, how organizational change is interactionally brought about. The understanding of organizational change I develop in this research conceives of communication as a process in which realities are interactively created, negotiated and changed. This conceptualization of communication is grounded in a plurified view of interactions (Cooren, Fox, Robichaud & Talih, 2005; Cooren, 2010) that acknowledges the contribution of beings of diverse ontologies (e.g., computers, bylaws, principles, emotions, rules, etc.) to action. Mobilizing this view of communication I studied the changes that were taking place in Koumbit, a Montreal based non-profit organization in the field of information technology. Data were collected by means of observation, interviews and archival research. The findings of this study show that organizational change is an incremental process, that takes place one interaction at the time, where a difference is created in the state of affairs by composing and recomposing sets of associations. While accomplished in the here and now, interactions account for what happened in the past and have a bearing for what will happen in the future. In turn, this study suggests that from a communication viewpoint, the mechanisms through which organizational change is accomplished are not very different from those that produce organizing.

Comment comprendre les dynamiques qui sous-tendent les changements des organisations? Le changement organisationnel fait partie de la réalité quotidienne des organisations et, comme en témoigne une vaste littérature, le sujet a été abordé à partir de diverses perspectives conceptuelles. Toutefois, plusieurs questions fondamentales demeurent quant à la façon dont le changement organisationnel est accompli (Tsoukas & Chia, 2002; Chia, 1999). Je suggère que la clé pour répondre à ces questions se trouve dans l’étude de la communication. Cependant, le rôle de la communication dans la production du changement reste peu exploré dans les conceptualisations actuelles sur le sujet. Ainsi, l’objectif principal de cette thèse est de décrire la façon dont le changement émerge dans la communication, en d’autres termes, comment il est accompli à partir des interactions. Dans cette recherche, je propose que la compréhension du changement passe par une vision de la communication comme un processus constant dans lequel les réalités sont créées, négociées et transformées de manière interactive. Cette conception est fondée sur a plurified view of interactions (Cooren, Fox, Robichaud & Talih, 2005; Cooren 2010) qui prend en considération la contribution d’êtres appartenant à diverses ontologies (e.g., ordinateurs, règlements, principes, émotions, règles, c.) dans l’action. En mobilisant cette vision de la communication, j’ai étudié les changements qui ont eu lieu à Koumbit — une organisation à but non lucratif basée à Montréal qui œuvre dans le domaine des technologies de l’information. L’observation, les entrevues ainsi que la révision de documents officiels ont été les techniques choisies pour cueillir les données. Ma recherche m’a permis de déterminer que le changement organisationnel est un processus progressif qui se matérialise d’interaction en interaction. C’est en composant et en recomposant des ensembles d’associations que se crée une différence dans l’état des choses. Si bien les interactions sont accomplies dans le ici et le maintenant, leur caractère hybride leur permet de rendre compte de ce que l’organisation a été et de ce qu’elle sera. Cette étude suggère que, d’un point de vue communicationnel, les mécanismes à partir desquels le changement organisationnel est accompli n sont pas aussi différents de ceux qui produisent les processus organisants (organizing). / Although organizational change is part of our daily experience of organizations and the literature that explores it is vast, we have limited knowledge of the ways change is actually accomplished (Tsoukas & Chia, 2002; Chia, 1999). I suggest that the key to answering this question can be found in communication. However, extant conceptualizations of change fail to account for the role that communication plays in the production of organizational change. Hence, the main goal of this dissertation is to describe how organizational change takes place in communication, that is, how organizational change is interactionally brought about. The understanding of organizational change I develop in this research conceives of communication as a process in which realities are interactively created, negotiated and changed. This conceptualization of communication is grounded in a plurified view of interactions (Cooren, Fox, Robichaud & Talih, 2005; Cooren, 2010) that acknowledges the contribution of beings of diverse ontologies (e.g., computers, bylaws, principles, emotions, rules, etc.) to action. Mobilizing this view of communication I studied the changes that were taking place in Koumbit, a Montreal based non-profit organization in the field of information technology. Data were collected by means of observation, interviews and archival research. The findings of this study show that organizational change is an incremental process, that takes place one interaction at the time, where a difference is created in the state of affairs by composing and recomposing sets of associations. While accomplished in the here and now, interactions account for what happened in the past and have a bearing for what will happen in the future. In turn, this study suggests that from a communication viewpoint, the mechanisms through which organizational change is accomplished are not very different from those that produce organizing.

[pt] O presente estudo parte da premissa de que novas formas de se comunicar surgem ao longo dos anos, inclusive na relação entre o humano e a máquina, onde, atualmente, a fala é o veículo comunicacional predominante. E nesse diálogo há uma busca para a adequação da máquina à nossa forma de comunicação e uma constante necessidade de adequação dos seres humanos à forma de comunicação da máquina. Essa investigação visa elucidar se sistemas baseados em interfaces de voz compõe o modelo de interação fundado no que se define como conversa, sendo amparados pelas áreas da ergonomia e usabilidade e por fundamentos provenientes da teoria da conversação. Este trabalho encontra-se estruturado em quatro seções: a primeira equivale a fundamentação teórica; a segunda seção abrange o levantamento de dados através de entrevistas com usuários de interfaces conversacionais; a terceira seção constitui-se na análise de conteúdo das entrevistas; e por fim, a quarta seção envolve as considerações em torno das experiências no uso de interfaces conversacionais atuais. / [en] The present study starts from the premise that new ways of communication are emerging throughout the years, including the relationship between human and machine, which nowadays, speech is the predominant communicational vehicle. And in this dialogue, there is a search for the adaptation of the machine to our form of communication and a constant need to human s adaptation to the machine s form of communication. This investigation attempts to clarify if systems based on voice interfaces are in fact composed by a model of interaction that is defined as conversation, and if they are actually being supported by the areas of ergonomics, usability, and also by the basics fundaments of conversation theory. This work finds itself structured in four sections: the first one corresponds to the theoretical foundations; the second section embraces data collection, which gathered several interviews with the users of conversational interfaces; the third section is established on the content analysis of the previous interviews; lastly, the fourth section concerns the final considerations of the current experience of conversational interfaces.