4 Classification of Gestures by Function

The function of gestures refers to the interlocutional and communicative aspects as described by Efron (1972). The semiotic function of a gesture is determined by the interplay and relative contribution of all modalities in a conversational situation. In the framework of multimodal conversations with parallel and codependent acoustic and visual information, the total `meaning' expressed by a speaker is seen as compositional (see Figure 2).