A study was conducted to describe the speech patterns of four adolescent girls. All four subjects were in the same eighth grade class and knew each other. Approximately 19 hours of observational data and 9 hours of interview data were collected. The descriptive framework of D. Hymes (1972), which focuses specifically on settings, participants, ends, acts, and keys of each situation that was observed, was used as a heuristic tool. Data were collected and analyzed over a period of three months, during which time the following patterns emerged: (1) the transmission of information was initiated by statements or questions that required a verbal response from the listener or a nonverbal ignoring of the speaker; (2) repetition of one's own utterance or the utterance of another was observed as a way to gain response or clarification or to engage in "phatic communion" (P. Farb, 1973); (3) speech was used as a way to reduce uncertainty; 4) verbal interaction usually took place between two or three group members at a time; (5) the relevance of one statement or question to another decreased as the size of the group increased; (6) the kinesics and paralanguage of the girls changed when a male from approximately 13 to 25 years of age was in their presence; and (7) out-group members were considered to be less desirable human beings than were in-group members. These seven patterns all functioned as methods by which to control listener attentiveness. (HTH)