Phrase frames in rhetorical moves of economic research article discussions

Abstract

The present study investigates the structure and functions of phrase frames (p-frames) aligned with their rhetorical moves in an important but under-researched part-genre: the discussion section of empirical research articles (RAs) in economics. Ninety-five texts in the corpus were manually annotated and cross-validated for eight rhetorical moves and their steps, of which the obligatory (Move 5) and conventional (Moves 2, 3 and 4) moves were identified by a relatively high frequency of occurrence. The p-frames in these four moves were structurally and functionally classified and analysed. The results show that the p-frames with different structures and functions in the four moves support the discourse construction and fulfil the functions of the respective moves. We claim that a specific part-genre connecting moves and phraseology can be helpful for RA authors to improve their genre awareness and language proficiency, thus enabling them to enhance their professionalism and competence in writing for international publications.