Compliments do not occur freely in conversation but are occasioned interactionally. For instance, they tend to show up in particular sequential positions showing orientation to the presence of some "complimentable" objects in the prior turn(s). Sometimes, they are found in positions where their absence could cause interactional problems. The positions identified in the data include both the first and second pair part positions in three types of adjacency pair: question-answer, informing-information receiving, and initial assessment-second assessment.

Also, a great number of the compliments, especially those in the first pair part position, do not occur singly. Instead they are embedded in other utterances. For instance, in a questioning turn, a compliment is often preceded or followed by a question, or flanked by a question and another utterance. In an informing turn, a compliment is usually embedded in utterances. Compliments in the second pair part position tend to have a simpler turn design. However, single compliments are not too common. For instance, in an information receiving turn, a compliment is preceded by at least an information receipt. In an answer turn, a compliment is either alone or accompanied by other utterances. It is suggested that the embedding mentioned above is a means of achieving "indirectness". Sometimes, the need to make a compliment less direct can be detected across turns. A common way is to use a question to do some ground work in the first turn. As soon as the appropriateness of a compliment is established in the second turn, the compliment will be offered in the third turn.

Responses to compliments have also been studied. They are classified into ten types, including appreciation, agreement, direct disagreement, downgrading, direct rejection, repair initiator, referent shift, laugh/playful response/outbreath, comment, and no acknowledgement. These response types are not significantly different from those identified in the few studies using other Chinese data. However, the position of a compliment has a significant bearing on the response it elicits. This is especially evidenced in the "no acknowledgement" type of response, i.e. when a compliment is followed by a question or some other utterance in the same turn, the response in the next turn is often an answer to the question, or a comment on the last utterance. The design of the compliment turn can therefore make it possible for legitimate evasion to be done in the next turn.