TEXTUAL ORGANISATION AND LINGUISTIC FEATURES IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS RESEARCH ARTICLES: MOVING FROM INTRODUCTION TO METHODS

Volume: 1 Number: 2 August 31, 2015
  • Attapol Khamkhien
EN

TEXTUAL ORGANISATION AND LINGUISTIC FEATURES IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS RESEARCH ARTICLES: MOVING FROM INTRODUCTION TO METHODS

Abstract

Abstract

Writing and publishing research articles (RAs) in English is crucial because an RA is considered as one of the channels to communicate among researchers and scholars worldwide. Research publication has become one of the requirements for Thai graduate students before graduation; however writing for publication is a daunting task to them as it requires substantial writing skills to ensure that researchers can efficiently present research findings and express themselves in response to textual convention and academic community. This paper centres on the rhetorical structures and linguistic features commonly used in the Introduction and Methods sections of the RA genre as written in a particular set of journals. Inspired by Swales’ analytical framework (1990; 2004) and work by Biber, Conner and Upton’s (2007) steps of conducting a move analysis, this study examined 25 RA Introduction and Methods sections in the field of applied linguistics. These RAs were analysed by genre analysis into ‘moves’ and ‘steps’. The results revealed that each section displayed a generic pattern, comprising a series of moves and steps. Lexico-grammatical features associated with a communicative function were also identified. Pedagogically, the findings generated by this study could be useful for teaching students how to write scholarly publications in EAP classrooms. The structural patterns and linguistic features found to functionally interact with one other may facilitate the understanding of novice writers and Thai graduates of published research articles in these sections. Moreover, the rhetorical patterns generated by this study might be meaningful for teachers in implementing relevant reading and writing materials for advanced learners to improve their writing skills to effectively disseminate discoveries in their fields.

Keywords: Research articles, Introduction, Methods, genre analysis, rhetorical structures. 

Keywords

References

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  2. Biber, D., Conner, U., & Upton, T. (2007). Discourse on the Move. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
  3. Bhatia, V. K. (1993). Analysing Genre: Language Use in Professional Settings. London: Longman.
  4. Brett, P. (1994). “A Genre Analysis of the Results Section of Sociology Articles”. English for Specific Purposes. 13 (1).
  5. Bruce, I. (2008). “Cognitive Genre Structures in Methods Sections of Research Articles: A Corpus Study”. English for Academic Purposes, 7 (1).
  6. Canagarajah, A. S. (1996). “Nondiscursive Requirements in Academic Publishing, Material Resources of Periphery Scholars, and the Politics of Knowledge Production”. Written Communication. 13 (4).
  7. Cook, G. (1990). Discourse. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  8. Duenas, P. (2007). “Structure of Business Management Research Articles: The Methods Section”. Odisea 8.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

-

Journal Section

-

Authors

Attapol Khamkhien

Publication Date

August 31, 2015

Submission Date

August 30, 2015

Acceptance Date

-

Published in Issue

Year 1970 Volume: 1 Number: 2

EndNote
Khamkhien A (August 1, 2015) TEXTUAL ORGANISATION AND LINGUISTIC FEATURES IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS RESEARCH ARTICLES: MOVING FROM INTRODUCTION TO METHODS. IJASOS- International E-journal of Advances in Social Sciences 1 2 111–122.

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