Filled pauses have been described as a product of anxiety, and have also been explained as attempts by the speaker to maintain control of the ' floor'. The latter hypothesis is tested directly, by altering the pressure on the subject to continue speaking. Possible confounding effects of anxiety are controlled for. Filled pauses do not increase, as pressure to continue speaking increases. It is suggested that the ' control' hypothesis may apply only to monologues ; evidence concerning the relative frequency of filled pauses in monologues and dialogues is presented.
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