The multiple functions of the word ‘one’ in research articles
Abstract
This corpus study arose from questions regarding appropriate usage of the word ‘one’ in academic writing for publication in cases of nominal substitution and when used as a generic pronoun. Are these usages avoided in research articles published today? What roles does ‘one’ play in journal articles? These questions were investigated in 15 recently published articles from the journal English for Specific Purposes. Results show that ‘one’ used as a number is most frequent, occurs in all articles throughout main body, and often appears to have a role in organizing information. ‘One’ as a substitute for a previously appearing noun was used in ten of the articles as a cohesive device, most often in the results and discussion section, while the generic pronoun ‘one’ – used in five articles – was rather used inclusively than impersonally. The questions seem worth investigating further in a larger corpus.
References
Adorján, M. (2015): Lexical Repetition in Academic Discourse: A Computer-aided Study of the Text-organizing Role of Repetition. PhD thesis, Doctoral School of Education, Eötvös Loránd University: Budapest, Hungary
Biber, D. – Johansson, S. – Leech, G. – Conrad, S. – Finegan, E. (1999): Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English. Pearson Education: Harlow, England
Bondi, M. – Nocella, J. J. (2023): Academic writing conventions in English-medium linguistics journals in Italy: Continuity and change over the last 30 years. Token: A Journal of English Linguistics. 16. 55-87 https://doi.org/10.25951/11258
Cabrejas, M. M. (2022): Cohesive devices on the abstracts of select research articles presented in the International Academic Forum (AIFOR): A discourse analysis. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies: Education, Learning, Training & Development. 3/1. 22-41 https://doi.org/10.37745/bjmas.2022.0017
Dontcheva-Navratilova, O. (2023): Academic writing conventions in Czech English-medium linguistics journals: Continuity and change over the last 30 years. Token: A Journal of English Linguistics. 16. 25-54. https://doi.org/10.25951/11258
Halliday, M. A. K. – Hasan, R. (1976): Cohesion in English. Routledge: London.
Hardjanto, T. D. – Roselani, N. G. A. (2022): Objectifying science: Impersonalization in English research articles from different disciplines. Theory and Practice in Language Studies. 12/10. 2072-2083. https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1210.14
Hyland, K. (2000): Disciplinary Discourses: Social Interactions in Academic Writing. Longman: Harlow, England.
Hyland, K. (2001): Bringing in the reader: Addressee features in academic articles. Written Communication. 18/4. 549-574. https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088301018004005
Hyland, K. (2002): Options of identity in academic writing. ELT Journal. 56/4. 351-358. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/56.4.351
Károly, K. (2002): Lexical Repetition in Text. Peter Lang: Frankfurt am Main
Kuo, C.-H. (1999): The use of personal pronouns: Role relationships in scientific journal articles. English for Specific Purposes. 18/ 2. 121–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0889-4906(97)00058-6
Pearson, H. (2023): Impersonal pronouns and first-person perspective. Annual Review of Linguistics. 9. 293-311. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-linguistics-031120-102547
Quirk, R. – Greenbaum, S. – Leech, G. – Svartvik, J. (1985): A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. Pearson Longman: London.
Swales, J. M. (1990): Genre Analysis: English in Academic and Research Settings. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, England
Wallwork, A. (2013): English for Academic Research: Grammar Exercises. Springer Science+Business Media: New York, NY
Wang, S.P. – Tseng, W.T. – Johanson, R. (2021): To we or not to we: Corpus-based research on first-person pronoun use in abstracts and conclusions. SAGE Open. 11/2. 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211008893
Zapletalová, G. (2009): Personal pronouns and writer identity as a type of communication strategy in academic texts. Ostrava Journal of English Philology. 1. 120-129
Internet sources
APA style writing principles. American Psychological Association. https://apastyle.apa.org/instructional-aids/writing-principles.pdf
Griffies, S.M. – Perrie, W.A. – Hull, G. (2013): Elements of style for writing scientific journal articles. Researcher Academy, Elsevier. https://researcheracademy.elsevier.com/uploads/2017-11/Elements%20of%20Style%20for%20Writing.pdf
Guide for authors. English for Specific Purposes, Elsevier. https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/english-for-specific-purposes/publish/guide-for-authors
Insights. English for Specific Purposes, Elsevier. https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/english-for-specific-purposes/about/insights
Scimago Journal Ranking. Journal of English for Specific Purposes. https://www.scimagojr.com/journalsearch.php?q=20598&tip=sid
Tan, E. 2019. The power of synonyms: the good, the bad, and the in-between. Blog, June 19. Writing and Communication Centre, University of Waterloo. https://uwaterloo.ca/writing-and-communication-centre/blog/power-synonyms-good-bad-and-between
Word choice. Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/word-choice/
