Infinitīva izvēle un lietojums mērķa formulējumā zinātniskajos rakstos latviešu valodā (2008–2018)

Abstract

The formulation of the aim/goal of the scientific article should be regarded as the expression of the author’s research intention to the reader. If the aim of the article is not stated, then the author seems to be saying that “you already understand what I am talking about here and why”. Such acting is not a scientifically correct attitude. An aim is one of the essential research categories next to the subject, object, research question or hypothesis. The aim of this scientific paper is to identify and characterize the choice and use of the infinitive for formulating the aim in the Latvian scientific articles. For this purpose, verbs first are excerpted, then divided into scientific fields according to Frascati Manual 2015 (Natural sciences; Engineering and technology; Medical and health sciences; Agricultural and veterinary sciences; Social sciences; Humanities and the arts). The verbs’s semantics analysis is done and conclusions are drawn. A total of 63 infinitive forms used to express the aim of research or scientific article are identified. Such verbs as “to analyze” and “to clarify” are used in scientific articles of all six scientific fields. In five of the six scientific fields, verbs “to explore”, “to estimate”, and “to determine” are used; in four – “to identify”, “to work out”, “to evaluate”, and “to compare”. In specific language material, these ten verbs can be regarded as the most often used infinitive forms in aim formulations. Beside simple formulations of aim with one infinitive form, more complicated aims’s formations with three or four infinitives can be observed. Such examples reflect the complex substance of the aim of research or scientific article. In this case, several verbs used in the aim formulation are coordinated parts of a sentence, ordered according to the syntactic patterns of the Latvian language, using both ways of connection – conjunctive and non-conjunctive connection. For greater accuracy and clarity, the aim of the study should be distinguished from the aim of the scientific article in those scientific fields that are mainly engaged in quantitative, including experimental, research. A research report, often in the form of a scientific publication, is the final stage in the study process. Before writing it, the author has to find the answer to the question: “what do I want to achieve with this research report?” The wording of the answer is also the basis for the aim formulation in a scientific article. The author also reveals the aim of the study in the following text by focusing on the research itself (usually, the aim of the study is formulated in the past tense, because the research has already taken place). Mixing both of these aims or using vague references, for example, “the aim of the work” (what does the word “work” denote – research or article?) means confusing the reader and giving a bad example to other authors.