Danielle Pillet-Shore

Danielle Pillet-Shore is a Professor of Communication in the College of Liberal Arts at the University of New Hampshire. Her research focuses on language and social interaction, examining video-recorded, naturally-occurring face-to-face casual and professional interactions across various settings. She has made significant contributions to conversation analysis, particularly in understanding how people create and maintain social and professional relationships while minimizing conflict and maximizing social harmony in everyday life.

Dr. Pillet-Shore earned her academic credentials from UCLA:

• Ph.D. in Sociology (2008)
• M.A. in Sociology (2001)
• B.A. in Communication Studies (1998)

Her research interests span multiple disciplines including Conversation Analysis, Language and Social Interaction, Parent-Teacher Interaction, Social Psychology, Sociolinguistics, Ethnography, and Institutional Interaction. She examines how people organize their social conduct to be coherent and meaningful, with particular focus on conversation openings, greetings, and the management of social relationships in various contexts. Her work reveals the intricate ways humans navigate social interactions to build rapport, manage conflict, and establish social order through everyday communication practices.

Dr. Pillet-Shore's publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to understanding face-to-face interaction, with a particular emphasis on conversation openings, institutional talk (especially parent-teacher conferences), and the social organization of everyday encounters. Her research bridges linguistic, sociological, and psychological perspectives, revealing how people collaboratively construct social reality through interaction. She has published in top journals across multiple disciplines, including the Journal of Communication, Communication Monographs, Social Psychology Quarterly, and Research on Language and Social Interaction.

Her scholarly achievements include:

• National Academy of Education/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship
• Multiple top paper awards from the National Communication Association's Language and Social Interaction Division
• Outstanding Dissertation of the Year Award
• Service as elected Chair of the Language and Social Interaction Division of the National Communication Association
• Guest editorship for the journal Research on Language and Social Interaction

Dr. Pillet-Shore is an active educator who teaches courses on language and social interaction, conversation analysis, and institutional interaction across various contexts including emergency services, legal settings, medical encounters, family-school interactions, and political discourse. Her teaching portfolio includes courses such as "Analyzing Institutional Interaction," "Introduction to Language and Social Interaction," "Opening Everyday Interaction," and "Conversation Analysis." She has received recognition for her scholarly contributions and serves as an important voice in advancing the field of conversation analysis through both her research and mentorship.