Doing discourse analysis

Criteria for developing a discourse analysis project a well-focused idea that is phrased as a question or set of closely related questions an understanding of how discourse analytic techniques can be used an understanding of why your question/s are important in a wider context familiarity with and access to the location where your project will be carried out

Criteria for developing discourse analysis project ability to get the data the time it will realistically take to carry out the project, analyse the results, and write up the results being competent in the ways of collecting the data being competent in the method/s of analysis

Choosing and focussing a research topic: an example Topic 1: A comparison of Chinese students’ essay writing in Chinese and English written in their first year of undergraduate studies Topic 2: A comparison of students’ Master’s theses in Chinese and English Topic 3: An examination of newspaper articles in Chinese and English from a intercultural rhetoric perspective Final topic: A contrastive study of letters to the editor in Chinese and English

A contrastive study of letters to the A contrastive study of letters to the editor in Chinese and English editor in Chinese and English Turning the topic into a research question What are the differences between letters to the editor in Chinese and English? Focusing the question/s Focusing the question/s In what ways are Chinese and English letters to the editor similar or different? Can we use genre theory and intercultural rhetoric to understand these similarities and differences?

Kinds of discourse analysis projects Replication of previous discourse studies Using different data but the same methodology Analysing existing data from a discourse perspective Analysing discourse data from a different perspective Considering the validity of a previous claim Focusing on unanalysed genres Combining research techniques

Two sample studies Nakane, I. (2007), Silence in Intercultural Communication: Perceptions and Performance. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Wang, W. (2004), ‘A contrastive analysis of letters to the editor in Chinese and English’, Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, 27, 72–88.

Silence in Japanese-Australian Classroom Interactions Aim of the study to examine the communication problems faced by Japanese students in mainstream English-medium university classrooms Summary of the study combined the techniques of conversation analysis with ethnographic data in order to get multiple perspectives on the question

Methodology video and audio recordings of classroom interactions video and audio recordings of classroom interactions individual interviews individual interviews focus group discussions focus group discussions questionnaires questionnaires field notes and artifacts from the classroom observations field notes and artifacts from the classroom observations stimulated recall interviews and follow-up interviews stimulated recall interviews and follow-up interviews large-scale survey large-scale survey data from classrooms in Japan - video recordings, field notes and artifacts data from classrooms in Japan - video recordings, field notes and artifacts conversation analysis of the English classroom data conversation analysis of the English classroom data content analysis of the interview and stimulated recall data content analysis of the interview and stimulated recall data

Results of the study silence was one of the major problems for the Japanese students in the English medium classrooms, both for themselves and for their lecturers Commentary Further research

Letters to the editor in Chinese and English Research questions Research questions In what ways are Chinese and English letters to the editor similar or different in terms of their rhetorical structure In what ways are Chinese and English letters to the editor similar or different in terms of their rhetorical structure To what extent can systemic functional genre theory and intercultural rhetoric be used to explore and understand these similarities and differences To what extent can systemic functional genre theory and intercultural rhetoric be used to explore and understand these similarities and differences What are the reasons for the similarities and differences in the performance of this genre in the two different linguistic and cultural settings. What are the reasons for the similarities and differences in the performance of this genre in the two different linguistic and cultural settings.

Methodology 10 letters to the editor in Chinese 10 letters to the editor in Chinese 10 letters to the editor in English 10 letters to the editor in English generic structure of each of the two sets of data generic structure of each of the two sets of data rhetorical types (such as ‘problem/solution’, ‘evaluation’ and ‘exposition’) represented in the two data sets rhetorical types (such as ‘problem/solution’, ‘evaluation’ and ‘exposition’) represented in the two data sets logico-semantic relationships between the clauses and clause complexes in the two sets of texts logico-semantic relationships between the clauses and clause complexes in the two sets of texts discussions of differences in collectivism and individualism in Chinese and Western writing and cultures discussions of differences in collectivism and individualism in Chinese and Western writing and cultures

Results of the study Chinese and English letters to the editor share some similarities at the level of generic structures. There are, however, also differences. For example, there is often an editor’s preview in Chinese letters to the editor that is absent in the English letters. Appeals to values and needs are used to support claims in the Chinese letters whereas the English letters use evidence to do this. Commentary Further research

Evaluating a discourse project Reliability Consistency of the data collection Consistency of the data analysis Consistency of the interpretation of results Replicability of the studyValiditiy Credibility Dependability Transferability Importance of an audit trail

Further reading