Move Analysis of Conclusions as Components of Research Articles in Persian and English

Abstract

The structure of the conclusion sections in Research Articles (RAs) is of significance in academic writing. The conclusion section does not only provide an outline of the study, but also other important elements, such as recommendations, implications and statements of possible lines of future research. This paper reports on an analysis of the conclusion sections of Persian and English Research Articles (RAs) published in international journals. To meet this end 20 RAs were selected from the fields of Civil Engineering and Applied Linguistics. The Conclusion sections of the papers were examined for their moves based on Yang and Allison’s (2003) move model.  The frequency analysis of the moves showed slight differences among the moves employed and the Chi-Square analysis did not show significant differences between the moves used in Conclusion sections of RAs in Civil Engineering and Applied Linguistics as well as between Persian and English RAs. The study contributes to a richer understanding of the conclusion structure of research articles and offers ESP/EFL instructors and researchers, insights which can be used in the instruction of the conventions or expectations of academic writing. Novice writers and non-native students can benefit from it, mainly because it helps them eliminate their writing dilemmas and assists them to take part in international discourse communities.

Key Words: Conclusion section; Contrastive move analysis; Genre analysis; Research articles