Ethnography of Communication: Analyzing Teenagers' Interaction through Dell Hymes SPEAKING Model

This paper applies the ethnography of communication to analyze how teenagers interact
in school and online setting. Using Dell Hymes’ SPEAKING Model (Setting/Scene,
Participates, Ends, Act sequence, Key, Instrumentalities, Norms, Genre) the paper demon-
strates how communicative competence among adolescents is shaped by local norms,
peer-group identities, and platform affordances. Drawing on a small, illustrative corpus
of naturalistic interactions (Classroom banker, WhatsApp group chat, and a post-game
conversation) the study shows that teens strategically shift keys (serious/playful), genres
(roast, advice, announcement) and instrumentalities (voice, text, emoji) to negotiate status,
form solidarity, and manage face. The findings argue that Hymes’ heuristic remains a
powerful, practical framework for educational practitioners and researchers, provided it is
used alongside thick ethnographic description and attention to youth culture.