Research article discussion moves and steps in papers on medicine: academic literacy and respect for readers
Discussion section of a research article (RA) is an essential part of a paper where findings are interpreted and built into a broader context. This study looks at a corpus of 64 discussion sections from medical RAs. Using move analysis we examine texts produced by four groups of writers: (1) native English speakers (n=16), (2) non-native English speakers using English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) to communicate their research (n=16), (3) Russian authors employing ELF to communicate research in international journals (n=16), and (4) Russian authors publishing in ELF with Russian journals listed in international databases (n=16). In line with the Al-Shujairi et al.'s (2019) model of the Discussion section of medical RA, we identified nine moves. Three of these moves include steps, implying a more structured and detailed approach. Furthermore, an additional third step (Strengths) is identified in Move 7 in our corpus, indicating a preference among authors to further highlight effectiveness of their arguments. This study describes discrepancies between Russian authors’ approach to writing a Discussion section and the conventional rhetorical structure of medical articles. For scientific writing to integrate into English-medium scholarly community, it is imperative that authors rely on accepted rhetorical moves and steps. This way academic English functions as a lingua franca, ensuring effective global academic communication.
Figures
Tikhonova, E. V., Kosycheva, M. A. and Golechkova, T. Yu. (2023). Research article discussion moves and steps in papers on medicine: academic literacy and respect for readers, Research Result. Theoretical and Applied Linguistics, 9 (2), 97-128. DOI: 10.18413/2313-8912-2023-9-2-0-6
While nobody left any comments to this publication.
You can be first.
Alhuqbani, M. (2013). Genre-based analysis of Arabic research article abstracts across four disciplines, Journal of Educational and Social Research, 3 (3), 371-382. (In English)
Al-Shujairi, Y. B. J., Tan, H., Abdullah, A. N., Nimehchisalem, V. and Imm, L. G. (2019). Moving in the right direction in the Discussion section of research articles, Journal of Language and Communication, 6 (2). (In English)
Basturkmen, H. (2009). Commenting on results in published research articles and masters’ dissertations in language teaching, Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 8, 241-251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2009.07.001(In English)
Basturkmen, H. (2012). A genre-based investigation of discussion sections of research articles in dentistry and disciplinary variation, Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 11 (2), 134-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2011.10.004(In English)
Berkenkotter, C. and Huckin, T. N. (1995). Genre knowledge in disciplinary communication: Cognition/culture/power, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, NJ. (In English)
Brett, P. (1994). A genre analysis of the results section of sociology articles, English for Specific Purposes, 13 (1), 47-59. https://doi.org/10.1016/0889-4906(94)90024-8(In English)
Burrows, A., Fowler, A., Fowler, H. and Locklear, A. (2019). Research writing in the academic disciplines, in Hill, J. and Vigilant, S. (eds.), Composing ourselves and our world, Auburn University at Montgomery, USA. (In English)
Darabad, A. M. (2016). Move analysis of research article abstracts: A cross-disciplinary study, International Journal of Linguistics, 8 (2), 125–140. https://doi.org/10.5296/ijl.v8i2.9379(In English)
Dash, N. S. and Arulmozi, S. (2018) Features of a corpus, in History, features, and typology of language corpora, Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-7458-5_2(In English)
Dujsik, D. (2013). A genre analysis of research article discussions in applied linguistics, Language Research, 49 (2), 453-477. (In English)
Fernández, G. B. (2016). Clinical case study genre: Rhetorical organisation of the macromove case report in Chilean Medical Journals [Género Caso Clínico: Organización Retórica de su Macromovida Relato del Caso en Publicaciones Médicas Chilenas], Revista Signos, 49 (91), 192-216. (In Spanish)
Gao, S. and Pramoolsook, I. (2021). Move-step structure of the results and discussion section of electronic engineering research articles written by Chinese and Thai researchers, The Journal of Teaching English for Specific and Academic Purposes, 9 (4), 725-739. https://doi.org/10.22190/JTESAP2104725G(In English)
Holmes, R. (1997). Genre analysis, and the social sciences: an investigation of the structure of research article discussion sections in three disciplines, English for Specific Purposes, 16 (4), 321-337. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(96)00038-5(In English)
Huang, D. (2014). Genre analysis of moves in medical research articles, Stylus, 5 (1), 7-17. (In English)
Hyland, K. (2009). Writing in the disciplines: Research evidence for specificity, Taiwan International ESP Journal, 1 (1), 5-22. (In English)
Irawati, L. (2022). Potential factors influencing the rhetorical patterns of research article discussion sections, Studies in English Language and Education, 9 (1), 115-131. https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v9i1.21267(In English)
Jiang, F. K. and Hyland, K. (2017). Metadiscursive nouns: Interaction and cohesion in abstract moves, English for Specific Purposes, 46, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2016.11.001(In English)
Kanoksilapatham, B. (2003). A corpus-based investigation of scientific research articles: linking move analysis with multidimensional analysis, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Georgetown University, Washington, DC. (In English)
Leibowitz, B. (2004). Becoming academically literate in South Africa: Lessons from student accounts for policymakers and educators, Language and Education, 18 (1), 35–52. (In English)
Maswana, S., Kanamaru, T. and Tajino, A. (2015). Move analysis of research articles across five engineering fields: What they share and what they do not, Ampersand, 2, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amper.2014.12.002(In English)
Mauranen, A., Hynninen, N. and Ranta, E. (2010). English as an academic lingua franca: The ELFA project, English for Specific Purposes, 29 (3), 183-190. DOI: 10.1016/j.esp.2009.10.001 (In English)
Miles, M. B., Huberman, A. M. and Saldana, J. (2013). Qualitative data analysis: A methods sourcebook, SAGE Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA. (In English)
Moyetta, D. (2016). The discussion section of English and Spanish research articles in psychology: A contrastive study, ESP Today, 4 (1), 87-106. (In English)
Musa, N. F., Khamis, N. and Zanariah, J. (2015). The structure of method section in engineering research articles, Asian Social Science, 11 (17), 74-82. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v11n17p74(In English)
Nwogu, K. N. (1997). The medical research paper: Structure and functions, English for Specific Purposes, 16 (2), 119-138. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(97)85388-4(In English)
Peacock, M. (2002). Communicative moves in the discussion section of research articles, System, 30, 479-497. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(02)00050-7(In English)
Peacock, M. (2011). The structure of the method section in research articles across eight disciplines, The Asian ESP Journal, 7 (2), 97-124. (In English)
Pho, P. D. (2009). An evaluation of three different approaches to the analysis of research article abstracts, Monash University Linguistics Papers, 6 (2), 11-16. (In English)
Ruiying, Y. and Allison, D. (2003). Research articles in applied linguistics: moving from results to conclusions, English for Specific Purposes, 22 (4), 365-385. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(02)00026-1(In English)
Samraj, B. (2005). An exploration of a genre set: research article abstracts and introductions in two disciplines, English for Specific Purposes, 24 (2), 141-156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2002.10.001(In English)
Smith, D. E. (1984). Medical discourse: Aspects of author's comment, English for Specific Purposes, 3, 25-36. https://doi.org/10.1016/0272-2380(84)90004-0(In English)
Soodmand Afshar, H., Doosti, M. and Movassagh, H. (2018). A comparative study of generic structure of applied linguistics and chemistry research articles: The case of discussions, Journal of Research in Applied Linguistics, 9 (1), 28-56. (In English)
Tawalbeh, A. (2021). Genre analysis of accounts of methodology in Arabic educational research articles, Jordan Journal of Modern Languages and Literatures, 13 (2), 281-301. https://doi.org/10.47012/jjmll.13.2.6(In English)
Thanajirawat, Z. and Chuea-nongthon, C. (2022). Move and text analysis of the discussion section in Humanities and Social Sciences research articles, Eurasian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 8 (1), 217-231. http://dx.doi.org/10.32601/ejal.911531(In English)