A deep analysis of two research papers

     In this work, the articles written by Gorski (2008) and Kelders, Van Gemert-Pijnen,  Werkman, Nijland and Seydel1 (2011) are analyzed and compared in terms of organizational patterns  of their introductions, literature reviews and methods sections.

     Taking into account the Create a Research Space Model (C.A.R.S.) designed by Swales and Feak (1994),  in the Gorkis’s (2008) paper, the usual organizational patterns of research papers are manifest in both its Introduction and its Methods section. These patterns can be found in moves or cycles (Swales and Feak, 1994) which go from the general topic of discussion to the particular situation under analysis. An example of move one may be manifest when Gorski (2008) tries to establish a research territory showing  the importance of said study and refering to some some previous research: “A broad range of scholars have conducted an equally broad range of scholarship on multicultural teacher education (MTE) (....)” (Gorski, 2008, p. 309). Then a negative opening like the word unfortunately is used to establish the niche, that is, the problem or gap which led to this research : the discrepancies in the multicultural classrooms and educational practices in the United States, “Unfortunately, there exists very little empirical research examining how these discrepancies play out in practice” (Gorski, 2008, p. 309). In move three, Gorski (2008) tries to outline the main purpose of his study by means of both negative and positive ideas such as: “This is not a study of individual instructor practice or philosophy (....). It is a study of the philosophies that underlie the official curriculum of MTE” (Gorski, 2008, p. 309).  

     Taking into consideration the use of verb patterns in the Introduction section, Gorski (2008) predominately employs the first person singular in the active voice. In fact, he uses it especially to refer to the purpose of his study as well as the details of the context: “I share here the results of this analyses. I present as well an unexpected outcome of this study (....)” (Gorski, 2008, p. 309). The present perfect active is used to show that the study is of outmost importance, “A broad range of scholars have conducted an equally broad range of scholarship on multicultural teacher education” (Gorski, 2008, p.309). There is scarce use of the passive form and Gorski (2008) utilizes it in the present simple as when he states: “ Most of the published scholarship on MTE can be grouped into one of four categories (....)” (Gorski, 2008, p. 309).The simple past is also used to refer to previous studies related to the same problem, “Some professors or instructors

consciously used depoliticized language in course descriptions (…)”(Gorski, 2008, p. 309).

         On the other hand, in the paper by Kelders et al. (2011),  introduce the main topics of research in a quite straightforward manner. At the very beginning they start referring to the prevalence of overweight as a problem in our society: “The increasing prevalance of overweight is a problem in modern society” (Kelders et al., p. 33).  They also make reference to previous research by establishing a territory for their study: “Research has already shown the potential of web based applications for the achievement of weight loss and weight management.” (Kelders et al., 2011, p. 32). Nevertheless, they make a further move towards establishing the need for their research, by using a contrastive coherence device:  “However, most studies are focused on applications aimed at treatment or secondary prevention” (Kelders et al., 2011, p.33). Then they make a third move and state the main purpose of this study by announcing the existence of many questions to be answered: “Many questions remain about the users and the effectiveness of web-based applications for the prevention of health  problems by stimulating healthy behaviors” (Kelders et al., 2011, p. 33). Besides, at the end of the introduction, Kelders et al. (2011) directly state their research questions: “What characteristics of participants are related to the use of th HWA intervention? What effects does the HWA intervention have on the primary and secondary outcome measures?” (Kelders et al., 2011, p. 33).

     Kelders et al. (2011) establish the state of affairs that led them to carry out this study by means of descriptive statements. That is why, in the introduction, the predominant verb tense is the simple present as it is evident when they express “it is important to know who the users of these interventions are.” Nevertheless, when referring to the study itself, they use the simple past mainly in the first person plural to describe, for instance, the framework, theories, social and economic factors considered to be of key importance: “We incorporated the WHO framework and behavior theories in a study of use of the Healthy Weight Assistant (HWA), a Web-based lifestyle intervention” (Kelders et al., 2011, p. 33). As it was mentioned before, Kelders et al. (2011) establish the main purposes of their study by means of two imporatant research questions.

     Considering the Methods section, in the  article written by Gorski (2008) the word method was typed on the left margin whilst most researchers state that it should be centered at the start of the section. In this research paper Gorski (2008) divides the Method section in two parts: one called Data Collection and another one called Data Analysis. In both sections said processes are explained in detail. Besides, they are mostly written in the first person singular of the simple past active voice. In fact, the opening sentence for the former is “ I collected these syllabi trhough a sort of snowball sampling”(Gorski, 2008, p. 311). The first statement in the latter is “I limited my analysis to course descriptions, goals, objectives and other contextual or descriptive text (....)”(Gorski, 2008, p. 311). Contrary to the rules for the use of verb patterns that charachterize this kind of papers, the passive form in this section is scarce. An example of that verb form can be found in the sentence “once the syllabi were grouped using this typology, I began a deeper examination (....) ” (Gorski, 2008, p.4). It is important to mention that Gorski (2008) even makes use of a continuous verb tense in order to give some kind of support to the description of the procedures carried out during the first steps of the study: “In other words, I was not looking for the linguistic patterns but for patterns of thought and meaning.” (Gorski, 2008, p. 312).

     With respect to the methods section and unlike Gorski’s research paper,  the article by Kelders et al. (2011)  is divided in eight parts. In fact, Kelders et al. (2011) include the Recruiment Design, the Randomization, the Waiting List, the Research Instruments, the Electronic Surveys, the Participants and the Analyses. Considering what Pintos and Crimi (2011) state with respect to the methods section in a research paper, this study shows a very detailed description of the tools used and the participants involved when  collecting data. In fact, the said section even includes a flow chart of the study and a clear picture of the web site on which the study was based. Besides, there is also mention of both a questionnaire and its translation shown in Appendices 1 and 2. As to verb tenses, the authors make ample use of the present and past passive voice, as for example in the section Intervention, they state: “Users are ecouraged to reflect on their difficult moments (ie, moments at which it is tempting to engage in unhealthy behavior)”(Kelders et al., 2011, p. 36). However, there are other verb forms used as well. Both the simple present and the simple past active voice are used especially when defining and describing both instruments and procedures. In fact, “the Healthy Weight Assistant (HWA) is a Web-based lifestyle intervention developed by the Netherlands Nutrition Centre (....)” (Kelders et al., 2011, p. 36) is an example of the use of the simple present form.

    To sum up, after reading and working with the already mentioned articles, many important characteristics concerning their introductions, literature reviews and methods have been found, analyzed and compared between them. What is more, these essential features make the articles be considered clear examples of research papers regardless of the area they belong to.  Analyzing research papers and taking into account these aspects can make laymen as well as enthusiastic readers  have a better and concise perspective of the similitudes and differences in the essence of these kinds of papers. 

References

Gorski, P. (2008). What we´re teaching teachers: An Analysis on Multicultural  Teacher Education Coursework Syllabi.  Teaching and Teacher Education, 25, 309-318. Retrieved April 2011 from http://www.elsevier.com/locate/tate.

Kelders, S., Van Gemert-Pijnen,  J. , Werkman,  A., Nijland, N., Seydel, E. (2011). Effectiveness of a Web-based Intervention Aimed at Healthy Dietary and Physical Activity Behavior: A Randomized Controlled Trial About Users and Usage. Journal of Medical Internet  Research, 13, 32. Retrieved April 2011 from http://www.jmir.org/2011/2/e32/.

Swales, J.M., & Feak, C.B. (1994). Academic writing for graduate students: Essential tasks and skills. Ann Harbor, MI: The University of Michigan Press.