Abstract
This study investigates citation practices among native and nonnative English writers. Five Master EFL theses written by Arab EFL learners were compared to 5 Master EFL theses written by native speakers of English. Adopting Swales’ (1990) categorization, the employed citation patterns were analyzed and categorized into two types: integral and non-integral. The study revealed that the nonnative English writers used more integral-verb and non-integral citations than the native English writers. However, it was found that the native English writers used the noun-phrase citation type more frequently than did the nonnative writers. The findings conclude that Arab EFL learners lack the writing and research skills needed to use all citations types effectively.
Highlights
The term citation generally refers to “a reference to a resource” (Szypszak, 2011, p. 315)
Five Master EFL theses written by Arab EFL learners were compared to 5 Master EFL theses written by native speakers of English
Another unsurprising finding is that the literature review recorded most of the citations in both the native and nonnative writers, which is due to the fact that the bulk of previous research cited in any MA or PhD theses should be
Summary
The term citation generally refers to “a reference to a resource” (Szypszak, 2011, p. 315). Signposting citations has several functions, such as referring readers to other sources, helping less informed readers, keeping the argument on track, and saving space (Harwood, 2009). In this definition, the suggestive function of citations is stressed. The credit function is a term used to refer to the situation when the citation is used to credit other authors for ideas or methods, and this method is very important to avoid plagiarism. Citation is a practice of referring to a source to credit an author and/or support an argument, signpost information to retrieve a document or develop further research
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
