@article{HelmerReinekeDeppermann2016, author = {Henrike Helmer and Silke Reineke and Arnulf Deppermann}, title = {A range of uses of negative epistemic constructions in German: ICH WEI{\"s} NICHT as a resource for dispreferred actions}, series = {Journal of Pragmatics}, volume = {106}, edition = {Article in Press}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {New York, NY [u.a.]}, issn = {1879-1387}, doi = {10.1016/j.pragma.2016.06.002}, url = {https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:bsz:mh39-52082}, pages = {97 -- 114}, year = {2016}, abstract = {The paper deals with the use of ICH WEI{\"s} NICHT (‘I don’t know’) in German talk-in-interaction. Pursuing an Interactional Linguistics approach, we identify different interactional uses of ICH WEI{\"s} NICHT and discuss their relationship to variation in argument structure (SV (O), (O)VS, V-only). After ICH WEI{\"s} NICHT with full complementation, speakers emphasize their lack of knowledge or display reluctance to answer. In contrast, after variants without an object complement, in contrast, speakers display uncertainty about the truth of the following proposition or about its sufficiency as an answer. Thus, while uses with both subject and object tend to close a sequence or display lack of knowledge, responses without an object, in contrast, function as a prepositioned epistemic hedge or a pragmatic marker framing the following TCU. When ICH WEI{\"s} NICHT is used in response to a statement, it indexes disagreement (independently from all complementation patterns).}, language = {en} }