Transcript Notation

Jeffersonian Transcription Notation includes the following symbols:

Symbol	Name	Use
[ text ]	Brackets	Indicates the start and end points of overlapping speech
=	Equal Sign	Indicates the break and subsequent continuation of a single utterance
(# of seconds)	Timed Pause	A number in parentheses indicates the time, in seconds, of a pause in speech
(.)	Micropause	A brief pause, usually less that 0.2 seconds
. or	Period or Down Arrow	Indicates falling pitch or intonation
? or	Question Mark or Up Arrow	Indicates rising pitch or intonation
,	Comma	Indicates a temporary rise or fall in intonation
-	Hyphen	Indicates an abrupt halt or interruption in utterance
>text<	Greater than / Less than symbols	Indicates that the enclosed speech was delivered more rapidly than usual for the speaker
<text>	Less than / Greater than symbols	Indicates that the enclosed speech was delivered more slowly than usual for the speaker
	Degree symbol	Indicates whisper, reduced volume, or quiet speech
ALL CAPS	Capitalized text	Indicates shouted or increased volume speech
underline	Underlined text	Indicates the speaker is emphasizing or stressing the speech
:::	Colon(s)	Indicates prolongation of a sound
(hhh)		Audible exhalation
or (.hhh)	High Dot	Audible inhalation
( text )	Parentheses	Speech which is unclear or in doubt in the transcript
(( italic text ))	Double Parentheses	Annotation of non-verbal activity

Jeffersonian Transcription Notation is described in G. Jefferson, Transcription Notation, in J. Atkinson and J. Heritage (eds), Structures of Social Interaction, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1984.