A Comparative Study On Reporting Verbs In The Introduction Parts Of Ocean Engineering Research Articles By Chinese And Native English Authors

Reporting verbs,one of the most significant realizations of reporting,serve as an essential device in establishing writer’s own research space and showing attitude towards the reported proposition.The comparative study is based on self-compiled corpora of introduction parts of research articles,aiming to analyze reporting verbs employed by Chinese and native English authors in ocean engineering.Based on the taxonomy proposed by Hyland(2002),the thesis targets at exploring the usage of reporting verbs in terms of frequency distribution,taxonomy,tense and voice.The following conclusions are drawn:(1)In terms of the overall frequency,Chinese authors tend to overuse reporting verbs but lack diversity.It is found that propose is the most frequently employed reporting verb by Chinese authors,while use is most frequently utilized one by native English authors.The frequencies of propose,investigate,study,carry out and perform employed by Chinese authors are more than those by their counterparts,which are significantly different.The frequencies of present,use and report used by native English authors are more than those utilized by Chinese authors,which are significantly different.(2)In terms of taxonomy,they both show an.obvious preference for research act verbs,followed by discourse act verbs and cognition act verbs.There is:a significant difference in using research act verbs between two groups of authors.Chinese authors are inclined to overuse them.They both tend to use factive and non-factive verbs and avoid using counter-factive verbs.The significant difference is found in adopting discourse act verbs between them and it indicates that Chinese authors are inclined to underuse discourse act verbs.They both use assurance verbs most frequently followed by doubt verbs and no counters.(3)In terms of tense,they both employ the simple’ past most frequently,followed by the simple present and the present perfect.There is a significant difference in simple past,which is overused by Chinese authors.The statistical significance is found in present perfect,which is underused by Chinese authors.In terms of voice,they both tend to employ active voice rather than passive voice.The significant difference is found in using passive voice by them and passive voice is overused by Chinese authors.The research helps Chinese EFL learners improve their competence of using reporting verbs and provides pedagogical reference for English for Academic Purposes teaching.