Rhetorical Structure of the Results and Conclusion Sections in Selected Journals of Applied Linguistics
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Date
2016-06
Authors
Mutinda, Veronica Munanie
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
This study dealt with genre analysis of research article (RA) Results and Discussion
sections in journals published in Applied Linguistics. The research articles were related
to English language education. The study investigated the Rhetorical Structure and
described the rhetorical functions of the aforementioned research article sections. It also
investigated if there are any differences and/or similarities between the rhetorical
structures of the results and discussion sections of research articles in journals published
in Applied Linguistics. To do this the study was guided by Swales' (1990,2004), Yang
& Allison (2003) and Kanoksilapatham (2007) move structure models to study the results
section. To study the discussion section this study was guided by Swales' (1990), Yang
& Allison (2003) and Rasmeenin (2006) move models. The situated qualitative research
design was used to purposively select ten (10) research articles each from ten journals
selected through non-probability sampling methods. These were journals published in
Applied Linguistics in the year 2012. The Genre Theory was used to guide the exercise
of analyzing the data. This study aimed to provide insight in the field of Applied
Linguistics and particularly in genre analysis of academic texts. It was found that the
rhetorical structure of both Results and Discussions sections were similar in terms of the
number of moves found but a difference was noted in terms of the focus of each section.
Both sections had six moves and the focus of the results section was to report results
whereas the discussion section in a RA served to explain the results of the study. This
knowledge will not only assist upcoming academicians to fit in their specific discourse
communities but also help in teaching of research article writing. This is to say that it
will help learners understand the process of effective communication and organization of
ideas in writing the genre under study.
Description
A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Award of the Degree of Master of Arts of Kenyatta University, June 2016