Interactive (Reciprocal) Behavioural Processes [1]

Matthiessen (1995: 252):

Interactive (reciprocal) behavioural material processes have the special property that coparticipation can be construed either as one participant which is internally complex (e.g., Henry and Anne), in which case a reciprocal pronoun as Accompaniment may be added (e.g., Henry and Anne ... with each other), or as one participant configured with a circumstance of Accompaniment (e.g., Henry ... with Anne), as in 

Henry and Anne danced/fought/chatted :

Henry and Anne danced/fought/chatted with each other:

Henry danced/fought/chatted with Anne.

In other words, a participant may be extended paratactically or circumstantially; verbs serving in this type of clause include:

dance, waltz, chat, gossip, talk, converse, negotiate, discuss, argue, sing, collaborate, meet, play, fight, box

Blogger Comments:

To be clear, fought patterns here like an effective material Process, not a middle behavioural ('material') Process, since it allows a co-participant to be construed as Goal:

Henry fought Anne

whereas a behavioural Process does not:

*Henry danced Anne

*Henry chatted Anne 

The same holds true for meet and box:

Henry met Anne

Henry boxed Anne

Moreover, the interpretation of effective clauses as behavioural is inconsistent with Matthiessen (1995: 211):

If MATERIAL, MENTAL, and RELATIONAL are taken as major types, as they are in IFG, it is interesting to note that the other minor types, BEHAVIOURAL, VERBAL and EXISTENTIAL are all more restricted in AGENCY - they are middle only.