Rhetorical Moves and Linguistic Realization in Q1 Scopus-indexed Biochemistry Abstracts
Keywords:
biochemistry abstracts, linguistic realizations, rhetorical move analysis, genre analysis
Abstract
Abstracts play a critical role in academic dissemination, yet many novice non-native researchers struggle to align their writing with rigorous disciplinary conventions. Despite the existing research on abstract structures, there remains a lack of micro-level analysis that focuses on the specific genre characteristics and disciplinary conventions specifying the ideal realization model in Q1 biochemistry journals. This study employs a qualitative genre analysis that aims to assist researchers in communicating their research findings by outlining the rhetorical structure in biochemistry abstracts and revealing the linguistic characteristics commonly associated with specific informational moves. A corpus of 100 research article abstracts published in high-impact Q1 Scopus-indexed biochemistry journals, was gathered and analyzed according to Hyland’s (2000) five-move rhetorical model. To ensure accuracy, inter-rater reliability was established, achieving an initial agreement level of 87.35%. The subsequent analysis reveals that Move 4 (Results) is the most dominant (99%), reflecting the highly-results oriented conventions of the biochemistry discipline. Also, the study found that the researchers use “rhetorical compression” to meet strict word limits by embedded methodological details with result statements. These findings show the conventions of high-impact publishing. Ultimately, these results give novice researchers guideline on how to manage the limited space in abstracts while trying to achieving the results-oriented publication of reputable international journals.
References
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Kurniawan, E., & Sabila, N. A. A. (2021). Another look at the rhetorical moves and linguistic realizations in international and Indonesian journal articles: A case of tourism research article abstracts. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 11(2), 318–329. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v11i2.32055
Lubis, A. H., Kurniawan, E., & Wawan, G. (2022). Does journal indexation matter? A genre-approach move analysis of nursing English research article abstracts. Journal of Language and Education, 8(2), 92–105.
Malinauskaite, L., Cook, D., Davíðsdóttir, B., Ögmundardóttir, H., & Roman, J. (2019). Ecosystem services in the Arctic: A thematic review. Ecosystem Services, 36, 100898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2019.100898
Praminatih, G. A. (2023). Reporting Verbs in Hard and Soft Sciences of Journal Article Abstracts: An Insight from Indonesia. Cogent Arts & Humanities, 10(1), 2225326. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2023.2225326
Pratiwi, S. N., & Kurniawan, E. (2021). Rhetorical move and genre knowledge development of English and Indonesian abstracts: A comparative analysis. Studies in English Language and Education, 8(3), 885–900. https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v8i3.21038
Ren, H., & Li, Y. (2008). Genre analysis of research article abstracts written by non-native authors. English Language Teaching. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v1n2p13
Soy, A., Arsyad, S., & Syafryadin, S. (2023). Move Analysis of Review Article Abstracts: Variations and Commonalities in Two Health Science Subdisciplines. JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature), 8(2), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.33369/joall.v8i2.28587
Stotesbury, H. (2003). Evaluation in research article abstracts in the narrative and hard sciences. Journal of English for Academic Purposes. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1475-1585(03)00049-3
Suhadi, A. (2022). Students’ understanding in using rhetorical moves on thesis abstract. IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning. https://doi.org/10.24256/ideas.v10i2.3042
Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2020). A genre analysis of research article findings and discussion sections written by Indonesian undergraduate EFL students. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(1), 59–72. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v10i1.24989
Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2021). Does cognition reflect performance: Rhetorical organization of journal article abstracts written by Indonesian authors. In F. A. Hamied (Ed.), Literacies, culture, and society towards industrial revolution (pp. 209–228). Nova Science Publishers.
Swales, J. M. (2004). Research Genres: Explorations and Applications. Research Genres. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139524827
Tamela, E. (2020). Move Structure Analysis on Research Article Abstracts in National and International SCOPUS Indexed Journals. Proceedings of the International Conference on English Language Teaching (ICONELT 2019), 434, 12–17. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.200427.004
Tocalo, A. W. I. (2021). Move Structures And Their Rhetorical Verbs Of Research Article Abstracts Across Englishes. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 11(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.17509/IJAL.V11I1.34593
Triyanna, W., Harahap, A., & Yunita, W. (2025). Rhetorical Moves of Research Article Abstract in Linguistics and Language Journals with Different Quartile Value. Journal of English for Specific Purposes in Indonesia, 4(2), 105–113. https://doi.org/10.33369/ESPINDONESIA.V4I2.40109
Wahyu, L. C. (2016). The Rhetorical Moves and Verb Tense in Research Article Abstracts. Jurnal Pendidikan Humaniora, 4(4), 187–192. https://journal.um.ac.id/index.php/jph/article/view/8202
Yoon, H. J., & Casal, J. E. (2020). A Corpus-Based Analysis of Research Article Abstracts: Variation across Disciplines. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 45.
Al-Otaibi, & Hmoud M. (2015). A genre analysis of research article abstracts in applied linguistics: A comparative study of international and local journals [PhD Thesis]. University of Essex.
Alyousef, H. S. (2021). Structure of Research Article Abstracts in Political Science: A Genre-Based Study. SAGE Open, 11(3), 21582440211040796. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211040797
Amnuai, W. (2019). Analyses of Rhetorical Moves and Linguistic Realizations in Accounting Research Article Abstracts Published in International and Thai-Based Journals. SAGE Open, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244018822384
Becher, T., & Trowler, P.. (2001). Academic tribes and territories: intellectual enquiry and the culture of disciplines. https://books.google.com/books/about/Academic_Tribes_and_Territories.html?id=7GlEBgAAQBAJ
Belleza, M. V. (2026). Rhetorical Move Structures in Research Article Abstracts: A Comparative Genre Analysis of Local and International Publications. IJELTAL (Indonesian Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics), 11(1), 119–132. https://doi.org/10.21093/IJELTAL.V11I1.2667
Bhatia, V. K. (2014). Analysing Genre: Language Use in Professional Settings. Analysing Genre: Language Use in Professional Settings, 1–246. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315844992/analysing-genre-bhatia/rights-and-permissions
Biber, D., Connor, U., & Upton, T. A. (2007). Discourse on the Move. Studies in Corpus Linguistics, 28. https://doi.org/10.1075/SCL.28
Ebadi, S., Salman, A. R., Thuy, T., Nguyen, L., & Weisi, H. (2019). Rhetorical Structure Variations in Abstracts and Introductions of Applied Linguistics Master’s Theses by Iraqi and International Students Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research. Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research, 7(1), 101–117. http://ijltr.urmia.ac.ir
Firdausyiah, Z. S., & Roselani, N. G. A. (2025). Rhetorical move structure of applied linguistics research abstracts across Sinta journal rankings. Linguistics Initiative, 5(2), 315–329. https://doi.org/10.53696/27753719.52328
Hyland, K. (2000). Disciplinary Discourses, Michigan Classics Ed. University of Michigan Press/ELT. https://doi.org/10.3998/mpub.6719
Hyland, K. (2004). Disciplinary Discourses: Social Interactions in Academic Writing. University of Michigan Press.
Kanoksilapatham, B. (2005). Rhetorical structure of biochemistry research articles. English for Specific Purposes, 24(3), 269–292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esp.2004.08.003
Kanoksilapatham, B. (2013). Generic Characterisation of Civil Engineering Research Article Abstracts. The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, 3(3), 1–10.
Karimah, N. A., Munir, A., & Anam, S. (2023). Rhetorical Moves of Research Article Abstracts Written by American and Indonesian Authors: Comparative Study. Lensa: Kajian Kebahasaan, Kesusastraan, Dan Budaya, 13(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.26714/lensa.13.1.2023.1-14
Kurniawan, E. (2023). Humanities dissertation abstracts in Indonesian and English universities: A comparative move analysis. GEMA Online Journal of Language Studies, 23(2), 57–74. https://doi.org/10.17576/gema-2023-2302-04
Kurniawan, E., Lubis, A. H., Suherdi, D., & Danuwijaya, A. A. (2019). Rhetorical organization of applied linguistics abstracts: Does Scopus journal quartile matter? GEMA Online Journal of Language Studies, 19(4), 184–202. https://doi.org/10.17576/gema-2019-1904-10
Kurniawan, E., Nabilla, S. N., & Mauludini, Y. R. (2024). Introduction in social science research articles by Indonesian authors: A comparative move analysis. LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, 27(1), 336–355. https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v27i1.8191
Kurniawan, E., Putri, M. E., & Lintao, R. B. (2026). A corpus-based move analysis of highly-cited biochemistry research articles in high-impact Scopus journals. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 15(3), 523–536. https://doi.org/10.17509/Z03ZTB73
Kurniawan, E., & Sabila, N. A. A. (2021). Another look at the rhetorical moves and linguistic realizations in international and Indonesian journal articles: A case of tourism research article abstracts. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 11(2), 318–329. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v11i2.32055
Lubis, A. H., Kurniawan, E., & Wawan, G. (2022). Does journal indexation matter? A genre-approach move analysis of nursing English research article abstracts. Journal of Language and Education, 8(2), 92–105.
Malinauskaite, L., Cook, D., Davíðsdóttir, B., Ögmundardóttir, H., & Roman, J. (2019). Ecosystem services in the Arctic: A thematic review. Ecosystem Services, 36, 100898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2019.100898
Praminatih, G. A. (2023). Reporting Verbs in Hard and Soft Sciences of Journal Article Abstracts: An Insight from Indonesia. Cogent Arts & Humanities, 10(1), 2225326. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2023.2225326
Pratiwi, S. N., & Kurniawan, E. (2021). Rhetorical move and genre knowledge development of English and Indonesian abstracts: A comparative analysis. Studies in English Language and Education, 8(3), 885–900. https://doi.org/10.24815/siele.v8i3.21038
Ren, H., & Li, Y. (2008). Genre analysis of research article abstracts written by non-native authors. English Language Teaching. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v1n2p13
Soy, A., Arsyad, S., & Syafryadin, S. (2023). Move Analysis of Review Article Abstracts: Variations and Commonalities in Two Health Science Subdisciplines. JOALL (Journal of Applied Linguistics and Literature), 8(2), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.33369/joall.v8i2.28587
Stotesbury, H. (2003). Evaluation in research article abstracts in the narrative and hard sciences. Journal of English for Academic Purposes. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1475-1585(03)00049-3
Suhadi, A. (2022). Students’ understanding in using rhetorical moves on thesis abstract. IDEAS: Journal on English Language Teaching and Learning. https://doi.org/10.24256/ideas.v10i2.3042
Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2020). A genre analysis of research article findings and discussion sections written by Indonesian undergraduate EFL students. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 10(1), 59–72. https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v10i1.24989
Suherdi, D., Kurniawan, E., & Lubis, A. H. (2021). Does cognition reflect performance: Rhetorical organization of journal article abstracts written by Indonesian authors. In F. A. Hamied (Ed.), Literacies, culture, and society towards industrial revolution (pp. 209–228). Nova Science Publishers.
Swales, J. M. (2004). Research Genres: Explorations and Applications. Research Genres. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139524827
Tamela, E. (2020). Move Structure Analysis on Research Article Abstracts in National and International SCOPUS Indexed Journals. Proceedings of the International Conference on English Language Teaching (ICONELT 2019), 434, 12–17. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.200427.004
Tocalo, A. W. I. (2021). Move Structures And Their Rhetorical Verbs Of Research Article Abstracts Across Englishes. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 11(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.17509/IJAL.V11I1.34593
Triyanna, W., Harahap, A., & Yunita, W. (2025). Rhetorical Moves of Research Article Abstract in Linguistics and Language Journals with Different Quartile Value. Journal of English for Specific Purposes in Indonesia, 4(2), 105–113. https://doi.org/10.33369/ESPINDONESIA.V4I2.40109
Wahyu, L. C. (2016). The Rhetorical Moves and Verb Tense in Research Article Abstracts. Jurnal Pendidikan Humaniora, 4(4), 187–192. https://journal.um.ac.id/index.php/jph/article/view/8202
Yoon, H. J., & Casal, J. E. (2020). A Corpus-Based Analysis of Research Article Abstracts: Variation across Disciplines. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 45.
Published
2026-10-21
How to Cite
Novalia, F., & Kurniawan, E. (2026). Rhetorical Moves and Linguistic Realization in Q1 Scopus-indexed Biochemistry Abstracts. Indonesian Journal of EFL and Linguistics, 11(2), 175-193. https://doi.org/10.21462/ijefl.v11i2.1042
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Articles
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