Small talk
Small talk is often thought of as unimportant, or perhaps worse, a substitute for real speech and thought in common opinion. Nevertheless, research suggests they will benefit.
One reason for small talk's bad reputation is that it tends, for obvious reasons, to aim for the lowest common denominator (分母). In ritualised dialogue, little information is exchanged. "Hello" signals nothing at all. "How are you?" rarely gets a fully honest answer.
However, linguists call that crucial 4€ hello, talk phatic (交流情感的)Bronislaw Malinowski, who coined the term in the 1920s; explained that in phatic talk "ties of union are created by a mere exchange of words. " If you know literally nothing about someone you can still safely presume they prefer sun to rain, and begin to establish a connection on that basis. If your bus or train is suddenly stuck, an even better opportunity arises. You can be sure your fellow passengers are not happy about it, and a shared grousing session makes them—and you—feel less alone with your inconvenience.
At work, small talk may seem a distraction from what employees are paid to do. But there is a spectrum between empty talk ("Hello"), social talk ("How was your holiday?"), social talk relevant to work ("Is Sarah still on holiday?") and pure business talk ("Has Sarah finished that report?"). A study of government departments in New Zealand by Janet Holmes shows how frequently people switch between those modes, even in brief conversations. That suggests a function beyond filling awkward gaps. Among other things, such chatter can bond equals together in a shared task. She also finds that bosses are more likely to initiate small talks with subordinates than the other round (as well as to cut it off). This is because, even without being told, a good manager realises that it can soften a following instruction.
