Genre Analysis of Accounts of Methodology in Arabic Educational Research Articles

Abstract

Genre analysts have conducted studies on research articles (henceforth RAs) written in different languages, giving primary attention to the introduction section. The methodology has not been given similar attention although it is an essential part of empirical RAs. There are no studies, to the best of my knowledge, which have tackled accounts of methodology of Arabic RAs. This research, therefore, aims to identify the rhetorical features of accounts of methodology of Arabic educational RAs with their realisations. In pursuing this aim, 40 method sections were selected from RAs published in refereed Arabic journals in the field of Education. These were analysed based on Swales’ (1990) ‘move and steps’ analysis approach and bottom-up processing. The linguistic features, realising the moves and steps, were analysed using the transitivity framework (Halliday 1985). The findings show that there are five moves representing the methodology: 1- sample and population of study; 2- procedures of study; 3- measure; 4- variables of study; and 5- data analysis procedures. These moves are realised by a number of steps and sub-steps which are represented most often using material and relational process types. The results of this research provide insights into Arabic academic discourse. The results may also help empower beginner academic writers and enhance writing textbooks. Keywords: Methodology, Research articles, Rhetorical structures and transitivity framework.