Research Article
BibTex RIS Cite

A FUNCTION-FIRST APPROACH TO VERB TENSE USAGE IN RESEARCH ARTICLE INTRODUCTIONS IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS

Year 2019, Volume: 170 Issue: 2, 31 - 53, 03.07.2019

Abstract

The study aims to investigate verb tense usage in research article introductions in the field of Applied Linguistics by adopting a ‘function-first’ approach. The corpus used in the study consists of 50 research article introductions published in five prominent journals of the field. The communicative function of the sentences was determined on the basis Swales’ (1990; 2004) CARS (Create a Research Space) model. In the coding of data Maxqda 11 was used. The results show that each function is associated with particular verb tense. For instance, in ‘claiming centrality’ the present perfect tense, in ‘making topic generalisations’ the simple present and in ‘reviewing items of previous research’ the simple past tense is predominant. The results suggest that the ‘function-first' approach provides a more accurate description of verb tense usage in writing research article introductions than the ‘formfirst’ approach. The findings have implications for teaching academic writing.

References

  • Arsyad, S., Zaim, M., & Susyla, D. (2019). Review and citation style in research article introductions: A comparative study between national and international English-medium journals in medıcal sciences. Discourse and Interaction, 11(1), 28-51.
  • Chen, M. (2009). Tense of reporting in dissertation literature reviews. Journal of Cambridge Studies, 4(2), 139-150.
  • Cortes, V. (2013). The purpose of this study is to: Connecting lexical bundles and moves in research article introductions. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 12(1), 33-43. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2012.11.002
  • Durrant, P., & Mathews-Aydınlı, J. (2011). A function-first approach to identifying formulaic language in academic writing. English for Specific Purposes, 30(1), 58-72.
  • Gunawardena, C. N. (1989). The present perfect in the rhetorical divisions of biology and biochemistry journal articles. English for Specific Purposes, 8(3), 265-273.
  • Hawes, T., & Thomas, S. (1997). Tense choices in citations. Research in the Teaching of English, 393-414.
  • Hirano, E. (2009). Research article introductions in English for specific purposes: A comparison between Brazilian Portuguese and English. English for Specific Purposes, 28(4), 240-250. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.02.001
  • Hyland, K., & Jiang, F. (2017). Points of reference: Changing patterns of academic citation. Applied Linguistics, 40(1), 64-85. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amx012
  • Öztürk, I. (2007). The textual organisation of research article introductions in applied linguistics: Variability within a single discipline. English for Specific Purposes, 26(1), 25-38. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2005.12.003
  • Salager-Meyer, F. (1992). A text-type and move analysis study of verb tense and modality distribution in medical English abstracts. English for Specific Purposes, 11(2), 93-113.
  • Samaie, M., Khosravian, F., Boghayeri, M. J. P.-S., & Sciences, B. (2014). The frequency and types of hedges in research article Introductions by Persian and English native authors. 98, 1678-1685.
  • Samraj, B. (2002). Introductions in research articles: variations across disciplines. English for Specific Purposes, 21(1), 1-17. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(00)00023-5
  • Swales, J. M. (1990). Genre analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings. Cambridge: CUP.
  • Swales, J. M. (2004). Research Genres: Explorations and Applications. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2004). Academic Writing for Graduate Students. (2nd ed.). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
  • Tseng, F. P. (2011). Analyses of move structure and verb tense of research article abstracts in applied linguistics. International Journal of English Linguistics, 1(2), 27.

A function-first approach to verb tense usage in research article introductions in applied linguistics

Year 2019, Volume: 170 Issue: 2, 31 - 53, 03.07.2019

Abstract

Bu çalışma, ‘işlev-öncelikli’
yaklaşım açısından Uygulamalı Dilbilim alanındaki araştırma makalelerinin giriş
bölümlerinde (fiildeki) zaman kullanımını incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Çalışmada
kullanılan veritabanı (corpus), alanın önde gelen beş dergisinde yayınlanan 50
araştırma makalesinden oluşmaktadır. Cümlelerin iletişimsel işlevi, Swales’ın
(1990; 2004) CARS (Bir Araştırma Alanı Yarat) modeli temelinde belirlenmiştir.
Verilerin kodlanmasında Maxqda 11 kullanılmıştır. Sonuçlar, ‘konunun öneminin
vurgulanmasında’, yakın geçmiş (present perfect) zamanın, ‘konu genellemelerinin’
yapılmasında geniş zamanın (simple present) ve ‘önceki literatürün taranmasında’
basit geçmiş zamanın (simple past) baskın olduğunu göstermektedir. Öte yandan,
‘literatürde boşluk belirtme’, işlevinde yakın geçmiş zaman  ve geniş zamanın aynı derecede tercih edildiği
görülmektedir. ‘Mevcut araştırmanın amacının açıklanması’, ‘araştırma
sorularının/hipotezlerin sunulması’ ve ‘yöntemlerin özetlenmesi’ işlevlerinin
gerçekleştirilmesinde geniş zamanın tercih edildiği ve bunu basit geçmiş zamanın
izlediği görülmüştür. ‘Tanımlayıcı açıklama’, ‘temel bulguların açıklanması’ ve
‘makalenin metinsel organizasyonunun’ belirtilmesinde yaygın olarak geniş zaman
kullanılmaktadır. ‘Mevcut araştırmanın değerinin belirtilmesinde’ geniş zaman
baskındır. Ancak, burada diğer işlevlerden farklı olarak geniş zamandan sonra
modal fiil (modal verbs) kullanıldığı görülmüştür. Sonuçlar, araştırma
makalelerinin giriş bölümlerindeki zaman kullanımının araştırılmasında ‘işlev-öncelikli’
yaklaşımın ‘yapı-öncelikli’ yaklaşıma nazaran çok daha net sonuçlar verdiğini
göstermektedir. Bu çalışmanın bulguları akademik yazma öğretiminde rahatlıkla
kullanılabilir.

References

  • Arsyad, S., Zaim, M., & Susyla, D. (2019). Review and citation style in research article introductions: A comparative study between national and international English-medium journals in medıcal sciences. Discourse and Interaction, 11(1), 28-51.
  • Chen, M. (2009). Tense of reporting in dissertation literature reviews. Journal of Cambridge Studies, 4(2), 139-150.
  • Cortes, V. (2013). The purpose of this study is to: Connecting lexical bundles and moves in research article introductions. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 12(1), 33-43. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2012.11.002
  • Durrant, P., & Mathews-Aydınlı, J. (2011). A function-first approach to identifying formulaic language in academic writing. English for Specific Purposes, 30(1), 58-72.
  • Gunawardena, C. N. (1989). The present perfect in the rhetorical divisions of biology and biochemistry journal articles. English for Specific Purposes, 8(3), 265-273.
  • Hawes, T., & Thomas, S. (1997). Tense choices in citations. Research in the Teaching of English, 393-414.
  • Hirano, E. (2009). Research article introductions in English for specific purposes: A comparison between Brazilian Portuguese and English. English for Specific Purposes, 28(4), 240-250. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2009.02.001
  • Hyland, K., & Jiang, F. (2017). Points of reference: Changing patterns of academic citation. Applied Linguistics, 40(1), 64-85. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amx012
  • Öztürk, I. (2007). The textual organisation of research article introductions in applied linguistics: Variability within a single discipline. English for Specific Purposes, 26(1), 25-38. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2005.12.003
  • Salager-Meyer, F. (1992). A text-type and move analysis study of verb tense and modality distribution in medical English abstracts. English for Specific Purposes, 11(2), 93-113.
  • Samaie, M., Khosravian, F., Boghayeri, M. J. P.-S., & Sciences, B. (2014). The frequency and types of hedges in research article Introductions by Persian and English native authors. 98, 1678-1685.
  • Samraj, B. (2002). Introductions in research articles: variations across disciplines. English for Specific Purposes, 21(1), 1-17. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(00)00023-5
  • Swales, J. M. (1990). Genre analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings. Cambridge: CUP.
  • Swales, J. M. (2004). Research Genres: Explorations and Applications. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (2004). Academic Writing for Graduate Students. (2nd ed.). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
  • Tseng, F. P. (2011). Analyses of move structure and verb tense of research article abstracts in applied linguistics. International Journal of English Linguistics, 1(2), 27.
There are 16 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects Linguistics
Journal Section Review Article
Authors

İsmet Öztürk 0000-0002-1923-8882

Publication Date July 3, 2019
Submission Date April 12, 2019
Published in Issue Year 2019 Volume: 170 Issue: 2

Cite

APA Öztürk, İ. (2019). A FUNCTION-FIRST APPROACH TO VERB TENSE USAGE IN RESEARCH ARTICLE INTRODUCTIONS IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS. Dil Dergisi, 170(2), 31-53.