Analyzing
Professional Rhetoric
IMRAD
Format
A. Introduction:
- Move 1
What is the topic?
- Move 2
Describe the current state of research as outlined in the article:
- Move 3
What gap is this article intended to fill?
- What question is this article addressing or attempting to answer?
- Move 4
What is the purpose and/or structure of this research?
B. Methods
Section:
- Describe and summarize the kind of research being conducted for this article.
- Are there any problems or unanswered questions about the methods? (i.e. are they effective for serving
the purpose of the article?)
C. Reporting
Results:
- What are the results of the research?
- How are they presented? (i.e. numbers, charts, comparative analysis, anecdotal evidence, inter-textual
comparison)
- How effectively does the data serve the purpose of the article?
- Are there areas of the topic that are not addressed?
D. Discussion
Section:
· What is the magnitude
and direction of the effects observed (compared with what others found or compared with what might be expected)
· What are the
advantages and limitations of the methods used in the research (and how these features may have influenced the observed effects)
· What are the
implications of the findings for current practice or theory
· What are the
research questions that remain
· Could you infer
any bias on the part of the writer that may have affected the research or conclusions?
References:
- Are the documents referenced for the article reliable?
- Are there any references of questionable quality?
- Has any of the information referenced by the author(s) been misrepresented or mis-quoted?
