Within the research framework of pragma-dialectics, this study analysed and assessed strategic manoeuvring by dissociation in corporate crisis communication, exemplified by the 2017 United Airlines’ Passenger Dragging-off Incident. As shown from the analysis of the public statements issued on its official website and Twitter, United Airlines adopted dissociation using the lexical item “volunteer” in the different stages of argumentation: bringing forward a standpoint, maintaining a standpoint and mitigating a standpoint. In so doing, the corporation strategically manoeuvred the topical potential and the presentational devices to meet the demands of its primary audience, i.e. the international general public. Whereas employing dissociation of the notion “volunteer” seemed to be reasonable and served the corporation’s interests best, its argumentative effectiveness was called into question based upon the general rules for critical discussion and the institutional context.

中文翻译：

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企业危机沟通中的解离战略：以2017年联合航空旅客拖航事件为例

本研究在语用辩证法的研究框架内，分析和评估了企业危机沟通中分离的战略机动，以 2017 年联合航空公司的乘客拖延事件为例。从其官网和推特上发表的公开声明分析可以看出，美联航在论证的不同阶段采用了词项“志愿者”的分离：提出立场、坚持立场和缓和立场。在此过程中，该公司战略性地运用了话题潜力和展示手段，以满足其主要受众，即国际公众的需求。鉴于“志愿者”这一概念的分离似乎是合理的，并且最符合公司的利益，