The rhetorical organization of research article discussion sections: An investigation into genre evolution in applied linguistics
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Nov 17, 2015
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2015-11-17
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2015-11-17 (1)
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Abstract
The present study aimed to investigate the evolution of the rhetorical structure of research article
discussions in three prestigious journals covering the two chronological periods of 1980‐1989 (group A)
and 2005‐2010 (group B). It also studied changes in the application of the two most frequently used verb
tenses − the simple present tense and the simple past tense − over the two time periods. Overall, 115
published articles were selected from the aforementioned journals. Move analysis was accomplished
through application of Dudley‐Evans' (1994) model on the datasets. Findings indicated that despite the
overall consistency in utilizing the nine‐move organization, there emerged rather considerable differences
in the frequency of (Un) expected outcome and Explanation moves. A reduction in the frequency of (Un)
expected outcome in group B indicated that present‐day writers announce results with more caution to
win the acquiescence of reviewers and readers. On the other hand, a rise in explanations revealed a
growing concern for including more arguments in order to follow the analytical nature of the discussion
section. The results also demonstrated a shift from the simple present tense toward the simple past
tense, which marks a shift from generalization to specificity.
Keywords: research article, move, discussion section, genre evolution
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Jalilifar, A., Baninajar, M., & Saidian, S. (2015). The rhetorical organization of research article discussion sections: An investigation into genre evolution in applied linguistics. Global Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 5(1), 85–100. https://doi.org/10.18844/gjflt.v5i0.50
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Salager-Meyer, F. (1999b). Referential behavior in scientific writing: A diachronic study (1810±1995). English for Specific Purposes, 18(3), 279-305.
Salager-Meyer, F. (2000). Rhetorical evolution of oppositional discourse in French academic writing: Oppositional discourse in academic writing. Herms, Journal of Linguistics, 25, 23-48.
Simpson, P. (2001). ‘Reason’ and ‘tickle’ as pragmatic constructs in the discourse of advertising. Journal of Pragmatics, 33, 589–607.
Swales, J., M. (1990). Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Atkinson, D. (1992). The evolution of medical research writing from 1735 to 1985: The case of the Edinburgh medical journal. Applied Linguistics, 13(4), 337-374.
Ayers, G. (2008). The evolutionary nature of genre: An investigation of the short texts accompanying research articles in the scientific journal Nature. English for Specific Purposes, 27, 22–41
Bazerman, C. (1988). Shaping written knowledge. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press.
Berkenkotter, C. (2008). Genre evolution? The case for a diachronic perspective. In V. K.
Bhatia, Berkenkotter, C. (2009). A case for historical "wide-angle" genre analysis: A personal retrospective. IBERICA, 18, 9-22.
Crookes, G. (1986). Towards the validated analysis of scientific text structure. Applied Linguistics, 7(1), 57-70.
Crossley, S. (2007). A chronotopic approach to genre analysis: An exploratory study. English for Specific Purposes, (26), 4-24.
Dudley-Evans, T. (1994). Genre analysis: An approach to text analysis for ESP. In M. Coulthard (Ed.), Advances in written text analysis (pp. 219-228). London: Routledge.
Gross, A. J., Harmon, J. E., & Reidy, M. (2002). Communicative science: The scientific article from the 17th century to the present. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gunawardena, C. N. (1989). The present perfect in the rhetorical divisions of biology and biochemistry journal articles. English for Specific Purposes, 6, 265-273.
Hammersley, M. (2011). Methodology: Who needs it? London: Sage Publications.
Holmes, R. (1997). Genre analysis and the social sciences: An investigation of the structure of research article discussion section in three disciplines. English for Specific Purposes, 16(4), 321-337.
Hopkins, A., & Dudley-Evans, T. (1988). A genre-based investigation of the discussion sections in articles and dissertations. English for Specific Purposes, 7, 113-121.
Jalilifar, A. R., Hayati, A. M., & Namdari, N. (2012). A comparative study of research article discussion sections of local and international applied linguistic journals. The Journal of Asia TEFL, 9(1), 1-29.
Kanoksilapatham, B. (2005). Rhetorical structure of biochemistry research articles. English for Specific Purposes, 24, 269-292.
Li, L. J. & Ge, G. C. (2009). Genre analysis: Structural and linguistic evolution of the English-medium medical research article (1985–2004). English for Specific Purposes, 28, 93-104.liLlilil1
Magnet, A. (2001). Diachronic analysis of the visuals in the research paper: A group-based study of the strategies and semiotics of visual representation in nutrition biochemistry. LSP and Professional Communication, 1(1), 55-77.
Malcolm, L. (1987). What rules govern tense usage in scientific articles? English for Specific Purposes, 6 (1), 31-43.
Miller, C. R. (1984). Genre as a social action. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 70, 151-167.
Min, H. T. (2008). Reviewer stances and writer perceptions in EFL peer review training. English for Specific Purposes, 27, 285-305.
Nwogu, K. N. (1997). The medical research paper: Structure and functions. English for Specific Purposes, 16(2), 119–138.
Ozturk, I. (2007). The textual organization of research article introductions in applied linguistics: Variability within a single discipline. English for Specific Purposes, 26, 25-38.
Parkinson, J. (2011). The Discussion section as argument: The language used to prove knowledge claims. English for Specific Purposes, 30, 164-175.
Peacock, M. (2002). Communicative moves in the discussion section of research articles. System, 30, 479-497.
Posteguillo, s. (1999). The schematic structure of computer science research articles. English for Specific Purposes, 18(2), 139-160.
Ruiying, Y., & Allison, D. (2003). Research article in applied linguistics: Moving from results to conclusions. English for Specific Purposes, 22, 264-279.
Salager-Meyer, F. (1999a). From “Mr. Guthrie is profoundly mistaken ...†to “Our data do not seem to confirm the results of a previous study on ...â€: A diachronic study of polemicity in academic writing (1810-1995). IBERICA, 1, 5-28.
Salager-Meyer, F. (1999b). Referential behavior in scientific writing: A diachronic study (1810±1995). English for Specific Purposes, 18(3), 279-305.
Salager-Meyer, F. (2000). Rhetorical evolution of oppositional discourse in French academic writing: Oppositional discourse in academic writing. Herms, Journal of Linguistics, 25, 23-48.
Simpson, P. (2001). ‘Reason’ and ‘tickle’ as pragmatic constructs in the discourse of advertising. Journal of Pragmatics, 33, 589–607.
Swales, J., M. (1990). Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.