Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Jul 1991

Passive Voice and Rhetorical Role in Scientific Writing

Kathryn Riley University of Minnesota, Duluth

Abstract

As analysts of scientific writing begin to modify their stance against the passive voice and explore the complexities of its use, more research is needed on the rhetorical functions it serves in scientific writing. An analysis of twelve articles reporting experimental studies in speech-language pathology revealed consistently higher percentages of passive structures in the Method and Results sections, with relatively lower percentages in the Introduction and Discussion sections. These findings suggest that passive structures are more appropriate for expository purposes, in those sections where the author's rhetorical role is to describe procedures and present data. In contrast, active structures are more appropriate for argumentative purposes, in those sections where the author is criticizing previous research or advocating a new thesis.

Journal
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Published
1991-07-01
DOI
10.2190/y51y-p6qf-3lcc-4auh
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Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism scientific writing
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (6)

  1. Mau et al. (2025)
    Integrating move analysis and sentence reconstruction in automated writing eval…
    Assessing Writing
  2. Conrad (2018)
    The Use of Passives and Impersonal Style in Civil Engineering Writing
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Smith et al. (2016)
    The Communicative Work of Biology-Journal Captions: Lessons for Technical and P…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  4. Ding (2002)
    The Passive Voice and Social Values in Science
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Riggle (1998)
    Using the Active and Passive Voice Appropriately in On-the-Job Writing
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Show all 6 →
  1. Rodman (1994)
    The Active Voice in Scientific Articles: Frequency and Discourse Functions
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication

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CrossRef global citation count: 23 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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