Task 3

ESP

Unit 4 final task

Comparative Analysis of four Abstract in specialized journals

Carrizo Liliana

Consoli, Claudia

Comparing Abstracts from Assorted Perspectives

The American Psychological Association (APA, 2008) determines that an “abstract is a brief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; it allows readers to survey the contents of an article quickly (…)” (p.12).  According to Swales and Feaks(1994),abstracts usually consist of a single paragraph containing from about  four to ten full sentences and it is generally more important to the reader than the writer. This paper consists of a comparative analysis of four abstracts from different research articles concerning the medical and educational fields. This study will imply delving into the various parts and characteristics of this valuable section of a research article.When analysing and comparing the various abstracts, we will make use of the APA conventions to abstract writing.

On the one hand, the two medical articles are written in a structure form which includes bolded headings.Each heading identifies some of the sections of the Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion (IMRAD) formula. Both papers could be classified under the informative type of abstract. As regards linguistics characteristics, both papers make use of the past tense and the present and passive voice. The approach to writing is in both cases a summary.

On the other hand, the two educational papers present numerous differences between each other and the medical papers as well.

The abstract on the use of DVD is a short unstructured paragraph not following the IMRAD formula at all. It only provides the reader with a brief description of what the paper will deal with. It is an informative text which approach to writing is a summary. The writing style though rather simple is capable of engaging the reader into continuing reading. It is mainly written using the present tense and the present perfect tense.

The abstract on the use of video in the classroom is quite different. To begin with , it is longer and more detailed. It contains in paragraph form an attempt to the IMRAD formula. Nevertheless, it lacks the ¨Results¨ and ¨Conclusion¨ .It provides the reader with some definitions to unknown words and a general idea of the way of work. This text starts in the present tense moving between past tense, and passive voice accordingly. The approach to writing is also a summary but it also works as the blueprint of the paper ahead.

            All in all, it is noticeable that the medical and educational articles follow contrasting abstract features and parameters. The Medical papers provide a clear understanding of the research articles whereas the educational articles cannot shed light on all the reports’ sections. If writers wish their work to be accepted within their corresponding discourse community, they will have to adhere very strictly to the established principles for each field. Therefore, It could be concluded that the medical research articles abstracts hold the necessary parts and characteristics that are determined by the academic writing community. The papers seem to reflect the qualities of each field: the medical papers, precision of data and a clear format ; the articles on education, creativity and reader friendly characteristics to approach the classroom teacher as well as other researchers.

References

American Psychological Association (2008).Publication Manual (5th ed.). Washington, DC: British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data.

King,J. (2002) .Using DVD feature films in the EFL classroom . The weekly column, 88 (1). Abstract retrieved  from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=24130

Kokonis,M (1993) .The video in the classroom: Agatha  Christie’s ‘Evil Under the Sun’ and the teaching of narratology through film . Educational Resources Information Center. Abstract  retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=24128

Martinez, C., LAssimes,T., Mines,D.,Dell’Aniello,S, Suissa,S (2009). Use of venlafaxine compared with other antidepressants and the risk of sudden cardiac death or near death: a nested case-control study . British Medical Journal. 2010;340,c249doi:10.1136/bmj.c249 . Abstract retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=24124

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

Wijeysundera,D., Beattie,W. Elliot,R.F., Austin,P. Hux,J.Lapaucis,A.(2009) . Non-invasive cardiac stress testing before elective major non-cardiac surgery: population based cohort study. British Medical Journal. 2010;340:b5526doi:10.1136/bmj.b5526 . Abstract retrieved from http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=24126