Abstract This study examines the interplay of self-reference, epistemic stance, and gaze in children’s argumentative decision-making. Drawing on video recordings of peer discussions among first- and sixth-graders, we employ multimodal interaction analysis to investigate (i) how I as a form of self-reference is combined with multimodal epistemic markers and gaze practices to perspectivize positions in different ways; (ii) what consequences these perspectivizations have for the management of responsibilities in (joint) decision-making; and (iii) how perspectivizations of positions with I differ across age groups. Our findings show that the person reference I is used in two variants: I-for-myself and I-as-part-of-us . With I-for-myself , positions are presented with epistemic certainty, thereby limiting opportunities for interlocutors to negotiate the position. In contrast, I-as-part-of-us marks positions as uncertain, engages recipients through gaze, and provides self-initiated justifications, thus inviting further negotiation. The age-related comparison reveals substantial differences in the use of these variants. These findings suggest that referential, epistemic, and gaze practices are closely interrelated and constitute an integral part of argumentative competence.
Schönfelder et al. (Tue,) studied this question.