A Rhetorical Analysis of the Results and Discussion Sections in Arabic-Language Research Articles in Education and Linguistics

Rinaldi Supriadi, Eri Kurniawan, Muhd Zulkifli bin Ismail, Mohamad Azwan bin Kamarudin

Abstract


Research articles function as rhetorical spaces that reflect disciplinary academic conventions. This study analyzes the rhetorical moves and steps in the Results and Discussion sections of Arabic-language research articles in Education and Linguistics. A qualitative descriptive content analysis was conducted on 80 articles published over the last decade using Swales' genre framework and Lubis and Kurniawan's move-step model. Coding reliability was confirmed through Cohen's Kappa (0.92–0.98). The findings show that both disciplines consistently employ Move 1 and Move 2 as obligatory components but differ in rhetorical emphasis. Education articles devote greater attention to Move 4 through more extensive interpretation and concluding remarks, whereas Linguistics articles emphasize Move 2 and Move 3 through detailed presentation and analysis of findings. These results demonstrate that disciplinary conventions shape rhetorical organization and provide insights for genre-based Arabic academic writing instruction.

Keywords


Arabic Research Articles; Education; Findings and Discussion; Linguistics; Rhetorical Moves

Full Text:

PDF

References


Afshar, H. S., Doosti, M., & 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. https://doi.org/10.22055/rals.2018.13404

Alharbi, S. H. (2016). Schematic Structure of Discussion of Results Sections in the Field of Dentistry: A Comparison of International and Local English-Medium Journals. Arab World English Journal, 7, 61–76. https://doi.org/10.2139/SSRN.2814814

Alotaibi, H. S., & Arabi, H. (2020). Taking authorial stance in Arabic research articles introductions. International Journal of Arabic-English Studies, 20(2), 41–62. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hmoud-Alotaibi/publication/344458547_Taking_Authorial_Stance_in_Arabic_Research_Articles_Introductions/links/5f78486692851c14bca9f045/Taking-Authorial-Stance-in-Arabic-Research-Articles-Introductions.pdf

Al-Shujairi, Y. B. J., Tan, H., Abdullah, A. N., Nimehchisalem, V., & Imm, L. G. (2019). Moving In The Right Direction In The Discussion Section Of Research Articles (Vol. 6). https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/d5284f8fd336431909260eecb9a9e5e27abf17cb

Basturkmen, H. (2009). Commenting on results in published research articles and master's dissertations in language teaching. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 8(4), 241–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2009.07.001

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

Bhatia, V. K. (2002). Applied genre analysis: Analytical advances and pedagogical procedures. Dalam Genre in the classroom: Multiple perspectives. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

Brown, C. (2018). Philosophy of Science and Its Role in Research. Philosophical Studies, 25(4), 112–125.

Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research. pearson

Derakhshan, A., & Nadi, A. (2019). A Genre Analysis of Research Abstracts of Master of Arts Theses Written by TEFL Students from the University of Tehran and Islamic Azad University of Gorgan. Applied Linguistics, 12, 41–67. https://doi.org/10.30495/JAL.2019.671913

Dudley-Evans, T. (1995). Common-core and specific approaches to the teaching of academic writing. Academic writing in a second language: Essays on research and pedagogy, 293–312.

Flowerdew, J. (2015). John Swales's approach to pedagogy in Genre Analysis: A perspective from 25 years on. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 19, 102–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2015.02.003

Gao, S., & Pramoolsook, I. (2021). Move-Step Structure Of The Results And Discussion Section Of Electronic Engineering Research Articles Written By Chinese And Thai Researchers. Journal of Teaching English for Specific and Academic Purposes, 9(4), 725 – 739. https://doi.org/10.22190/JTESAP2104725G

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

Hussin, N. I. S. M., & Nimehchisalem, V. (2018a). Organization and move structure in the results and discussion chapter in Malaysian undergraduates' final-year projects. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/950e271407b2831241b8b7ecfa85b3b21de88dda

Hyland, K. (2004). Disciplinary discourses, Michigan classics ed.: Social interactions in academic writing. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

Hyland, K. (2019). Academic discourse: English in a global context. London: Bloomsbury Publishing.

Hyland, K. (2019). Second language writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Jones, M. L., & Smith, P. (2010). Analyzing scientific discourse: The role of rhetorical structure in academic texts. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 9(1), 45–58.

Kanoksilapatham, B. (2005). Rhetorical structure of biochemistry research articles. English for Specific Purposes, 24(3), 269- 292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2004.08.003

Kanoksilapatham, B. (2007). 2. Introduction to move analysis (hlm. 23–41). https://doi.org/10.1075/scl.28.04kan

Kanoksilapatham, B. (2023). Stand-Alone Conclusion Section in Open-Access Research Articles: Organizational Structure. Journal of Language and Education, 9(3 (35)), 79-89. https://doi.org/10.17323/jle.2023.16907

Kennedy, G. (2014). An introduction to corpus linguistics. Routledge.

Kurniawan, E., & Haerunisa, Z. F. (2023). A comparative study of lexical bundles in accepted and rejected applied linguistic research article introductions. Studies in English Language and Education, 10(2), 628–648. https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v10i2.28119

Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2020). A comparative move analysis on the qualitative and quantitative findings and discussion sections written by EFL undergraduate students. Asian ESP Journal, 16 (6.1), 137–162. https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85099913661&partnerID=40&md5=9dc96f30a2954cbcf1d39dce3d5aa2d0

Kurniawan, E., Nabilla, S. N., & Mauludini, Y. R. (2024). Introduction in social science research articles by Indonesian authors: A comparative move analysis. LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, 27(1), 336–355. https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v27i1.8191

Leila, A. (2022). Rhetorical structure of applied linguistics research article discussions: A comparative cross-cultural analysis. Journal of Language and Education. https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/rhetorical-structure-of-applied-linguistics-research-article-discussions-a-comparative-cross-cultural-analysis

Loan, N. T. T., & Pramoolsook, I. (2015). Move analysis of results-discussion chapters in TESOL Master’s theses written by Vietnamese students. 3L: Language, Linguistics, Literature, 21(2), 1 – 15. https://doi.org/10.17576/3l-2015-2102-01

Loi, C. K., Evans, M. S., Lim, J. M.-H., & Akkakoson, S. (2016). A Comparison Between Malay and English Research Article Discussions: A Move Analysis. SAGE Open, 6(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244016652925

Lubis, A. H. (2020). The argumentation structure of research article findings and discussion'sections written by English speaker novice writers: A case of Indonesian undergraduate students. Asian Englishes, 22(2), 143-162. https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2019.1669300

Martin, J. R., & Rose, D. (2008). Procedures and procedural recounts. Genre relations: Mapping culture. London: Equinox.

McHugh, M. L. (2012). Interrater reliability: the kappa statistic. Biochemia medica, 22(3), 276–282.

Pandey, G. P. (2022). Genre Analysis of Introductions of ELT Theses: Rhetorical Structures and Steps. Nepal Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 5(5), 31–44. https://doi.org/10.3126/njmr.v5i5.51802

Peacock, M. (2002). Communicative moves in the discussion section of research articles. System, 30(4), 479–497. www.elsevier.com/locate/system

Pho, P. D. (2008). Research article abstracts in applied linguistics and educational technology: A study of linguistic realizations of rhetorical structure and authorial stance. Discourse Studies, 10(2), 231-250. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461445607087010

Phongjit, W., & Gampper, C. (2023). That- Stance Found in Discussion Sections in Applied Linguistics Research Articles. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4497561

Razali, N. Z., & Kim, L. C. (2023). COMMUNICATIVE STRATEGIES USED IN TOURISM AND PHARMACOLOGY RESEARCH ARTICLE DISCUSSIONS. Journal of Language and Communication. https://doi.org/10.47836/jlc.10.01.01

RG, O. (1994). Evaluating coding decisions. The handbook of research synthesis.

Ruiying, Y., & 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

Saz-Rubio, M. Del. (2019). A Contrastive Genre-Based Approach to the Rhetorical Structure and Use of Interactional Metadiscourse in the Results and Discussion Section of Food Science & Technology Research Articles. Miscelánea: A Journal of English and American Studies. https://doi.org/10.26754/ojs_misc/mj.20196337

Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2020). A genre analysis of research article findings and discussion sections written by Indonesian undergraduate EFL students. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(1), 59-72. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v10i1.24989

Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2021). Does cognition reflect performance: Rhetorical organization of journal article abstracts written by Indonesian authors. In F.A. Hamied (Ed.), Literacies, culture, and society towards industrial revolution (pp. 209-228). Nova Science Publishers.

Swales, J. M. (2004). Research Genres. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9781139524827

Swales, J. M. (2014). Genre analysis: English in academic and research settings. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, selected 45–47, 52–60. In The Discourse Studies Reader: Main currents in theory and analysis (pp. 306–316). John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2004). Academic writing for graduate students: Essential tasks and skills (Vol. 1). Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Swales, J., & Najjar, H. (1987). The writing of research article introductions. Written Communication, 4(2), 175–191. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088387004002004

Tankó, G. (2017). Literary research article abstracts: An analysis of rhetorical moves and their linguistic realizations. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 27, 42-55.

Thompson, G., & Williams, S. (2015). Evaluative language in academic discourse: Managing stance and engagement. Applied Linguistics, 36(2), 147–170.

Thompson, P. (2012). Thesis and dissertation writing. The handbook of English for specific purposes, 283-299

Thompson, R., Fisher, H. L., Dewa, L. H., Hussain, T., Kabba, Z., & Toledano, M. B. (2022). Adolescents' thoughts and feelings about the local and global environment: a qualitative interview study. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 27(1), 4–13. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12520

Trowler, P., Saunders, M., & Bamber, V. (Eds.). (2012). Tribes and territories in the 21st-century (pp. 5–29). London: Routledge.

Ulya, S. (2022). Rhetorical moves variations of research article discussion sections published in reputable journals. Premise: Journal of English Education and Applied …. https://scholar.archive.org/work/46enldyqsbcind7jk3tzs6ieri/access/wayback/https://ojs.fkip.ummetro.ac.id/index.php/english/article/download/5615/pdf

Warsito, W., Arsyad, S., & Harahap, A. (2017a). Stating And Defending New Knowledge Claim: A Rhetorical Analysis On The Discussion Section Of English Master Thesis By Indonesian EFL Learners. IJEE (Indonesian Journal of English Education), 4(2), 188–207. https://doi.org/10.15408/ijee.v4i2.6746

Weber, M. (1978). Economy and society: An outline of interpretive sociology (Vol. 1). Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.17509/alsuniyat.v9i1.104547

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.