Journal of Business and Technical Communication Jan 1992

Categorizing Professional Discourse

BARBARA COUTURE

Abstract

Rhetorical categories can and should be developed by scholars of professional writing to identify how values held within professions constrain the ways discourse is interpreted in organizational settings. Empirical research (conducted by the author and others), discourse theory, and pedagogical practice in professional writing strongly suggest that at least three categories of professional writing exist: engineering, administrative, and technical/professional writing. The author demonstrates this claim and distinguishes the characteristics of these three categories. Engineering writing is shown to respond to professional values of scientific objectivity and professional judgment as well as to corporate interests. Administrative writing reflects the locus of decision-making authority and promotes institutional identity. Technical/professional writing aims to accommodate audience needs through complying with professional readability standards. Future research should focus on defining the characteristics of these varieties more precisely. Articulated definitions of these three varieties of professional writing can help scholars and practitioners better understand how discourse is framed and interpreted in organizational settings.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1992-01-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651992006001001
Open Access
Closed
Topics
empirical research professional writing multilingual writers

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (4)

  1. Conrad (2018)
    The Use of Passives and Impersonal Style in Civil Engineering Writing
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. Wolfe (2009)
    How Technical Communication Textbooks Fail Engineering Students
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Angouri et al. (2008)
    This Is Too Formal for Us...
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Spigelman et al. (2006)
    Why We Chose Rhetoric
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication

Cites in this index (5)

  1. Kent (1989)
    Paralogic hermeneutics and the possibilities of rhetoric
    Rhetoric Review
  2. Zappen (1989)
    The Discourse Community in Scientific and Technical Communication: Institutiona…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Little et al. (1987)
    Profile of Technical Writers in San Diego County: Results of a Pilot Study
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. Rubens (1981)
    Reinventing the Wheel?: Ethics for Technical Communicators
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Walter (1977)
    Technical Writing: Species or Genus?
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Also cites 7 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.1080/00335638309383643
     ↗
  2. 10.1177/002194368502200102
     ↗
  3. 10.2307/378007
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  4. 10.1177/002194369002700202
     ↗
  5. 10.1080/10510977809367983
     ↗
  6. 10.1111/j.1475-682X.1978.tb00825.x
     ↗
  7. 10.1177/0893318989002004002
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 22 View in citation network →

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