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The genre of research articles

This post is devoted to the genre of research articles. (If you need a brief introduction to what I

mean by genre, read Pros have contextualized knowledge. The ultimate proving ground for researchers outside the humanities, where books and essays may still be king, is publication

of articles in peer!reviewed "ournals or conference collections. I#m teaching a course on

scholarly communication to doctoral students this semester. $nd we are spending the bulk of our time on writing research articles. %o I thought I#d share what I#ve learned about this genre.

&ou may find it odd that I would tackle this genre on Pros 'rite. ut I intend no $pril )ools#

*ay "oke. +et me briefly explain why research articles can count as professional- writing. $s

I#ve said many times, I#m not a fan of academic writing because it normally involves askingstudents to write for teachers, with no real //* to communicate a message. %o it#s really the

lack of authentic rhetorical context I ob"ect to 0 not the fact that the writing is done in school.

(I do teach writing myself after all. That means I am interested in authentic writing. early allacademics in higher ed have to demonstrate their ability to write about research to be recognized

as a pro in their specific discipline and in higher ed, more generally. Thus, research articles are

arguably the most important genre researchers must master.

%o what do we know about the genre of research articles (1$s from now on2 1$ content and itsarrangement are often described by the acronym, I31$*, or less fre4uently, I31*.

• Introduction

• 3ethods

• 1esults and

• *iscussion

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1esearch

ers, especially in the hard- sciences, have used these terms to describe the pattern of information in research articles since early in the 56th century, but their use became more

 prevalent in the 7896s.

In some disciplines, and in some "ournals, it#s common to use headings in an article that are

identical to those terms which gave rise to the acronym. ut there is 4uite a lot of variation. +et#ssee how this pattern applies to the sample 1$ shown below.

The table lists the headings in the sample 1$ and how they correspond to those in I31$*.

:lick on the links in the table to see my guidance for each section of an 1$.

IMRAD Sample ResearchArticle

Rhetorical Function

Introduction (Introduction)Establish research topic and justify need for more research

(LiteratureReview)

Understanding(In)justice Demonstrate current

nowledge of research anddevelop research !uestionsRapport "anagement

#ehavior

"ethods "ethodDescribe approach toanswering research !uestions

ResultsInterpretations of Rapport "anagementand (In)justice

Describe data gathered viaapproach

Discussion$rovide answers to research!uestions based on datagathered

(%onclusions %onclusions Evaluate research and mae

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) deductions for the future

There are four apparent discrepancies.

7. The sample 1$ doesn#t include the actual heading Introduction.- ut there is a section

after the abstract that functions like an introduction (establishing the topic and "ustifyingthe research.

5. The sample 1$ includes two headings that aren#t easily matched against the I31$*

descriptors. 1esearchers in the social sciences would call these two sections the+iterature 1eview. It#s so commonplace I#ve added it in parentheses within the I31$*

column of the table. In the hard- sciences, the literature is reviewed within the

Introduction because there is generally less previous research to consider. ut moreextensive literature reviews are the norm in other fields. (I can explain this but won#t

sub"ect you to it right now.

;. The sample 1$ combines the 1esults and *iscussion sections in I31$*. This iscommonplace in social science research that does not generate 4uantitative data for analysis with statistics 0 sometimes called 4ualitative research. ut the functions  of 

 both sections are achieved by describing data and discussing its relevance for answering

4uestions in an integrated way.

<. The sample 1$ includes a :onclusion section, which is not named in I31$*. 'hilemost 1$s include a :onclusion, the length of that section varies widely. It tends to be

very short 0 a single paragraph 0 in much hard- science, which is why I suspect it is

omitted from I31$*.

*espite the wide range of disciplines producing research "ournals, most of their articles followthe I3(+11$* pattern. That#s because they accept, at least in part, the scientific method. The

same rhetorical functions must be achieved by the 1$ even if researchers can be more or less

inventive with the wording of their section headings.

ecause the rhetorical function of each section of the 1$ is different, the textual elements most

commonly used within those sections also differ. uilding from information in =ohn

%wale#s :reate!$!1esearch!%pace (:$1% model, , I provide the table below.

RASections

  Tense Passive Citation  Hedging

Commentary

Introductionpresent ishigh & past ismid

Low 'igh "id 'igh

(LiteratureReview)

present ishigh & past ismid

"id 'igh "id "id

"ethods present is low'igh Low Low Low

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& past is high

Resultspresent is low& past is high

o patternopattern

"id o pattern

Discussion(%onclusions)

present ishigh & past ismid

o pattern 'igh 'igh 'igh

There#s much more to say about the genre of research articles. ut this post is already prettylong. I#ll do a series of posts on each of the sections of the 1$ in the future. )or now, you#ve

learned about the overall structure of 1$ sections and their rhetorical functions. That#s enough

for today>

Related Research

%wales ? )eak (788<.  Academic Writing for Graduate Students. $nn $rbor@ Aniversity of 

3ichigan Press.