Talking to the Academy

Written Communication Apr 1996

KEN HYLAND

Abstract

Hedging refers to linguistic strategies that qualify categorical commitment to express possibility rather than certainty. In scientific writing, hedging is central to effective argument: Hedging is a rhetorical means of gaining reader acceptance of claims, allowing writers to convey their attitude to the truth of their statements and to anticipate possible objections. Because hedges allow writers to express claims with precision, caution, and modesty, they are a significant resource for academics. However, little is known about the way hedging is typically expressed in particular domains or the particular functions it serves in different genres. This article identifies the major forms, functions, and distribution of hedges in a corpus of 26 molecular biology research articles and describes the importance of hedging in this genre.

Journal: Written Communication
Published: 1996-04-01
DOI: 10.1177/0741088396013002004
Open Access: Closed
Topics: multimodality scientific writing

Citation Context

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CRISMORE et al. (1993)

Metadiscourse in Persuasive Writing

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THOMPSON (1993)

Arguing for Experimental “Facts” in Science

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