Comparative Analysis of Engagement Markers in Research Article Introductions and Conclusions

In the last few decades, the interpersonal aspect of academic writing has been stressed in English for academic purposes (EAP). This corpus-based study has focused on cross-cultural and cross-contextual analysis of engagement markers in English Physics research articles (RA) written by American English writers publishing in English-medium international journals; Persian writers publishing in international English-medium journals; and Persian writers publishing in English-medium national journals. Hyland’s (2005) interpersonal model was used as the analytical framework. The analysis is based on a corpus of 240 RAs in two subsections: introductions and conclusions. The computer programme AntConc was used to analyse the data, and the engagement markers were textually examined for the various functions and uses they served in the introductions and conclusions. Results of data analyses showed differences in the overall frequency of engagement markers among the three sub-corpora. However, although American academics and internationally published Persian academics’ metadiscoursal preferences are relatively similar, Persian writers seem to be affected by cultural preferences when making their engagement choices. This implies that the linguistic background of writers in addition to the cultural contexts of publication seems to direct scholars’ rhetorical patterns when writing their RAs. Results of the current study help novice and international Physics scholars, particularly Iranian academics, to at least partially meet the disciplinary conventions of the journal they submit their manuscripts. Moreover, EAP teachers can benefit from the results to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the needs of EAP learners.