Abstracts: format and linguistic features

Academic writing requires critical thinking and some rhetorical devices to convince the member s of the academic community. According to Hubbuch (1996), research papers in the hard and soft sciences (. . .) have a fairly distinctive format (p. 9). One of the key elements in a Research Paper (RP) is the abstract which is either a summary of the data or a brief account of what the researcher has done (Swales & Feak, 1994). Generally speaking, structured abstracts following the Introduction Methods Results and Discussion (IMRAD) format are used in the medicine field and “now [are] appearing in many social science articles [and] can be adapted for most normal purposes (as cited in Hartley, 2008 p. 31). It is the purpose of this paper to compare and analyze the format and linguistic devices of four abstracts, two from articles which belong to medicine and two from education. There are some coincidences and differences, as well, between the two abstracts from the medicine articles. Becket, Peters, Fletcher, Staessen, Dumitrascu, Liu, (. . .) Bulpitt (2008) conducted a research about hypertension; the other study by Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) dealt with breast cancer. Both abstracts seem to be structured, result driven, and indicative as they provide a summary of the data. However, the former is easier to read, the reader may have an overview of the whole article at a first glimpse. The information is organized under subheadings following the IMRAD format. Despite dealing with the same kind of data, the latter seems to demand the reader more concentration in order to scan it as it presents the same information through seven headings: Objectives, Setting; Design, Participants, Main outcome measures, Results and Conclusion. If we assume that readers know what each section of the abstracts consists of, the abstract by Becket et al. (2008) could be rearranged: Objectives and Setting would provide the Background; Design, Participants and Main outcome measures would suit the Methods and Results. As regards the linguistic features, Becket et al. (2008) meet the requirements of scientific prose as they utilize impersonal passive to show detachment, also in the use of full sentences. In the background section, the abstract acquires contemporary relevance through the present perfect and present simple (Swales and Feak, 1994, p. 212). Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche (2009) make use of the imperative to introduce each section; another feature to be noticed is the third person we, possibly in order to make this abstract shorter and, thus, give it more pace (p. 212). In spite of these devices, the imperatives and the third person, Jorgensen, Zahl and Gotzseche’s abstract (2009) would require more attention to be analyzed in detail. Therefore, format seems to help writers to make their abstracts “map[s] in prose” (Hubbuch, 1996). In the case of the abstracts in the articles about education King (2002) and Kokonis (1993) offer their points of view about technology in the classroom: the DVD and the video. Both abstracts are unstructured and informative as their introductions state the present situation of the matters in question (cited in Swales & Feak, 1994). In King (2002), the abstract layout consists of a long unbroken paragraph of ten lines. It explains what has been done by the use of present perfect simple, in order to give this statement “contemporary relevance” (Swales & Feak, 1994, p.212). Kokoni´s (1993) abstract is laid out by the use of a long unbroken paragraph of about twenty-three lines. It starts by stating the suggestions of the paper, and its purpose. This is done through the use of present tenses, with a similar intention as that of King’s (2002), that is, to give this section contemporary relevance (Swales & Feak, p.212). Kokonis (1993) continues with a description of the main characteristics and possible uses of the video in the classroom. This is achieved through the use of present simple tense and full sentences. There are no abbreviations and specific vocabulary is used. There is also an extended description of narrative analysis, explained through the use of present simple and present passive voice. King (2002) states the purpose of the article with the use of present impersonal passive voice. The other sentences summarize the advantages of using this pedagogical tool, the approaches, and the importance of selection criteria. By comparing these two abstracts and in contrast with the structured ones, it could be argued that in some traditional abstracts the reader has the feeling that something is missing (cited in Hartley, 2008, p.32). This is what may be perceived by reading Kokonis (1993), where no results or conclusion may be identified. After having analyzed the four abstracts, it could be affirmed that there are differences between the two abstracts from medicine and also between those about education; the four pieces of writing share a formal detached style. The kind of research conducted may influence the choice of the format. Regardless the field they belong to, it is necessary that abstracts from research papers provide “a brief comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; [in order to] allow the reader to survey the contents of an article quickly” (as cited in APA, 2008, p. 12). In the hard sciences it is important to state the introductions, methods, results and conclusions, regardless of the order, as these sciences do empirical studies where the sections mentioned may not be left out. What is more, it is also important for abstracts from the social sciences to introduce the topic, making the objectives explicit, and arriving at a conclusion so that the reader may acquire the whole panorama in a quick view. Although King (2002) and Becket et al. (2008) are from different fields of studies, they offer clear examples of well-developed ideas in a brief and organized fashion. References Becket, N.; Peters, R.; Fletcher, A.; Staessen, J.; Liu, L.; Dumitrascu, D. ; Stoyanovsky, V.; Antikainen, R.; Nikitin, Y.; Anderson C.; Belhani, A.; Forette, F.; Rajkumar, C. ; Thijs, L.; Banya, W. & Bulpitt, C. (2008). Treatment of hypertension in patients 80 years of age or older. The New England Journal of Medicine, 358, 18. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8534 Jorgensen, K.; Zahl, P. & Gotzseche, P. (2009). Breast cancer mortality in organized mammography screening in Denmark: comparative study. BMJ. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=8532 King, J. (2002). Using DVD feature films in the EFL classroom [Abstract]. The weekly column. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10417 Kokonis, M. (1993). The video in the classroom: Agatha Christie’s “Evil under the sun” and the teaching of narratology through film [Abstract]. Retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=10415 Hartley, J. (2008). Academic Writing and publishing. Routledge. Hubbuch, S. M. (1996). Writing research papers across the curriculum (4th ed.). Harcourt Brace: Fort Worth, TX. Swales, J. M., & Feak, C. B. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students. Essential tasks and skills. Ann Harbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.