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Cognitive engagement in scientific writing: Empirical evidence on research data processing variation

Elizaveta G. Grishechko (RUDN University, Moscow, Russia)
Barry Tomalin (Glasgow Caledonian University London, London, UK)

The study investigates the impact of active and passive voice on the comprehension of research articles among readers with varying language proficiency levels, addressing the gap in understanding how language style can influence the interpretation of research findings. The methodological approach incorporated a pre-test survey, a reading comprehension task consisting of multiple-choice questions, open-ended questions, and short-answer recall questions, as well as a post-test survey. A total of 50 participants were recruited and assigned to either the active voice (AV) group or the passive voice (PV) group, with 25 participants in each group. The study analyzed their comprehension, perceived understanding, satisfaction with the reading experience, perceived credibility of the article content, and preference for language style using descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that the AV group demonstrated better overall comprehension, particularly in the short-answer recall questions, where they scored significantly higher than the PV group. Additionally, the AV group reported higher perceived understanding and a more satisfying reading experience, while the PV group perceived the article content as more credible. Based on the findings, the authors propose recommendations to focus on three key points: using active voice for enhanced comprehension in complex narratives; utilizing active voice for improved recall of specific data-driven information; and implementing passive voice to enhance perceived credibility. The study is limited by its small sample size and the use of a single article per respondent group, which may influence the extent to which the findings apply to other texts. Study findings have implications for researchers, editors, and the broader scientific community, attesting to the importance of striking a balance between the use of voices in research articles to optimize comprehension and accessibility.

Keywords: Active voice, Passive voice, Research article, Scientific text, Scientific writing, Cognitive engagement.

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