ABSTRACT
Language, power and impression management are factors that usually feature in every communication exchange. The interactional exchanges of people do not only reflect who they are, as well as their perceptions about others and the world in general; they are also marked by diverse power relations. This study, therefore, explored the social exchange involved in courtroom discourse by highlighting the notions of language, power and impression management and investigating their interconnectedness and roles in High Court proceedings in Delta State. Within the eclectic theoretic framework of critical discourse analysis (CDA) and rapport management model (RMM), the study discussed how language was used by participants to exercise discursive power in the courtroom, and how courtroom participants deployed impression management (IM) strategies in creating specific impressions with the motive of maintaining face concerns, sociality rights/obligations and interactional goals. It also identified the place of cultural norms in the exercise of discursive power and impression management, and explained how these norms influence judicial proceedings and decisions.
The study employed a descriptive and qualitative research design and data comprised audio recordings of naturally-occurring speech of participants in the courtroom, and personal observations of courtroom interactions. By relying on Gail Jefferson's standard transcription method, the recordings were transcribed, and then analysed based on insights from Norman Fairclough's CDA and Helen Spencer-Oatey's RMM.
The study found that language was used by courtroom participants not only to enact, challenge, negotiate and express social abuse of power, but also to create specific impressions of themselves or others, with the intention of achieving desired goals. It found that participants insisted on achieving their interactional goals by utilising various IM strategies, and they sometimes expressed the emotions of anger and frustration when the goals were not realised through forms, such as heightened speech and emphasised utterances. It also found that judicial rulings were influenced by the interplay of asymmetrical relationships and diverse impressions created in the courtroom interaction through IM strategies, sometimes influenced by specific cultural norms and practices. The study, therefore, established the interrelation of power relations and impression management in court proceedings, with the attendant influences on judicial processes and decisions.
