Citation

Ghorban Abdolmalaki, Shahrbanou and Lee, Geok Imm and Abdullah, Ain Nadzimah and Victor Danarajan, Sharon Sharmini (2026) “Establishing a Territory” in Traditional and Article-based PhD Thesis Introductions: A Comparison of Rhetorical Moves and Linguistic Realisations. Journal of Communication, Language and Culture, 6 (1). pp. 94-111. ISSN 2805-444X

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Abstract

Thesis writing, especially the Introduction chapter, can be a challenge for PhD students. A clear understanding of rhetorical structure, including moves and steps, is crucial to achieve success in academic writing. Despite this, there has been limited research on the rhetorical strategies and their linguistic realisations in PhD thesis introductions, particularly in various thesis formats. This study examines how writers of traditional and article-based theses employ Move 1 (“establishing a territory”) and its linguistic realisations, based on Bunton’s (2002) move model. A corpus of 40 PhD thesis introductions (20 traditional, 20 article-based) was analysed. Findings indicate both groups commonly follow Move 1 and its steps, but they vary in the linguistic strategies employed. These insights are valuable for writing instruction and can assist doctoral students in crafting more impactful thesis introductions.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Thesis introduction, rhetorical structure, move and step, traditional thesis, article-based thesis
Subjects:	L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB2300-2430 Higher education
Divisions:	Others
Depositing User:	Ms Suzilawati Abu Samah
Date Deposited:	08 Jul 2026 05:01
Last Modified:	08 Jul 2026 05:01
URII:	http://shdl.mmu.edu.my/id/eprint/16237

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