How to write in the active voice

Abstract

The active voice helps the subject perform the action (in the above example, the urological specialist performs cystoscopy). In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the verb rather than performing the action of the verb. Passive voice is common in scientific writing because authors in this discipline like to put more emphasis on facts (the research) than on subjects (who does the research). In passive voice, the subject, verb, and object are often placed away from each other, or in reverse order. Passive voice is fully acceptable, and often used in methods sections, but like many things in life, it is poisonous when it is done too much. No one is expected to write manuscripts entirely in active or passive voice, but the regular use of active voice improves readability of your manuscripts. You can often recognize passive voice sentences from: was xxx-ed; will be; have been; had been; and by. Once you suspect a passive voice sentence, check to see if your subject is performing the action. If not, you most likely have a passive voice sentence that could be better worded in the active voice. Allow your subjects to perform actions if it is appropriate, but do not force it when it is inappropriate. It can take time to train your recognition and editing of active and passive voice. A few reading suggestions at the end of this paper provide additional coverage of the topic.