Dr. Haider Kazem Khudair, a faculty member in the Department of English at the College of Education for the Humanities, University of Kerbala, was selected as a member of the committee for the PhD thesis defense titled “A Cognitive Analysis of Implicature in Talk Shows”, presented by the student Hussein Hamid Karim at the College of Education for the Humanities, University of Babylon.
The importance of the thesis lies in exploring how American talk shows handle the concept of implicature through the use of cognitive tools. The study was conducted using a selective analysis model, incorporating Lakoff and Johnson’s (1980) conceptual metaphor theory and Sharifian’s (2011) cultural cognition framework. The analysis was based on data from two American talk shows: Good Morning America and The View.
The study reached several key findings, the most important of which was the effectiveness of the model in identifying cognitive tools and strategies of implicature used by participants in these programs, particularly those employed by hosts as well as their guests. It also found that the number and diversity of these strategies increased as the importance of the episode’s topic grew, especially in terms of influencing public opinion in the United States.
After a thorough discussion, the scientific committee unanimously agreed to accept the thesis.
