Analyzing journal abstracts written by Japanese, American, and British scientists using Coh-Metrix and the Gramulator

Authors

  • Philip M. McCarthy University of Memphis, Department of English, Memphis, USA
  • Charles Hall University of Memphis, Department of English, Memphis, USA
  • Nick D. Duran University of Memphis, Department of Psychology, Memphis, USA
  • Maki Doiuchi University of Memphis, School of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, Memphis, USA
  • Yuko Fujiwara University of Tennessee, Department of Physiology, Knoxville, USA
  • Benjamin Duncan University of Rochester, College Writing Program, Rochester, USA
  • Danielle S. McNamara University of Memphis, Department of Psychology, Memphis, USA

Keywords:

Coh-Metrix, Gramulator, corpus, discriminant analysis

Abstract

This interdisciplinary study comprises two complementary analyses on a corpus of journal abstracts written in English by American, British, and Japanese scientists. The fi rst analysis uses the computational tool Coh-Metrix to assess text at the discourse level. The second analysis uses the computational tool the Gramulator to compare the frequency of n-grams across the three sources of abstracts. The Coh-Metrix and Gramulator analyses both suggest signifi cant differences between all three varieties of English. The greatest differences were apparent when comparing abstracts written by Japanese and English speakers; however, a number of differences were also apparent when comparing the British English and American English varieties. The results lend weight to the conclusion that native-English speakers (reviewer, editor, or reader) of either the British or American variety may interpret Japanese-English texts as lacking in key areas of the proto-typical style of the English register. Our findings provide information for instructors, course developers, and scientists on how and where text might be modifi ed in order to facilitate the production of more native-English-like representations.

Author Biographies

Philip M. McCarthy, University of Memphis, Department of English, Memphis, USA

Philip McCarthy is assistant professor at The University of Memphis. He is a computational linguist, primarily interested in devising, writing, and testing algorithms for text disambiguation. He has numerous publications in several fields including linguistics, artifi cial intelligence, and cognitive psychology.

Charles Hall, University of Memphis, Department of English, Memphis, USA

Charles Hall is associate professor of applied linguistics at the University of Memphis. His major areas are English teaching methodology, ESP for Law, and curriculum development for o nline courses. He has led sponsored workshops in almost 30 countries. He was chair of the TESOL ESP Interest Section in 2005.

Nick D. Duran, University of Memphis, Department of Psychology, Memphis, USA

Nicholas Duran is a researcher at the University of Memphis in the Department of Psychology and the Institute for Intelligent Systems. His research interests include action dynamics, language use and representation, corpora analysis, and deceptive behavior. He holds a MS in Experimental Psychology (Cognitive Emphasis) and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology.

Maki Doiuchi, University of Memphis, School of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, Memphis, USA

Maki Doiuchi, M.A., is a doctoral candidate in the School of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology at The University of Memphis. She is primarily interested in speech acoustics and vocal development in infancy. Her native language is Japanese but she is fluent in English.

Yuko Fujiwara, University of Tennessee, Department of Physiology, Knoxville, USA

Yuko Fujiwara is an Assistant Professor at University of Tennessee, Health Science Center in Memphis. She received Ph.D. in cell biology and her research focuses on the function of bioactive lipids. Her native language is Japanese but she writes and speaks English fluently.

Benjamin Duncan, University of Rochester, College Writing Program, Rochester, USA

Benjamin Duncan, Ph.D. teaches at the College Writing Program at the University of Rochester. His research interests include technical and science writing and English second language issues.

Danielle S. McNamara, University of Memphis, Department of Psychology, Memphis, USA

Danielle McNamara is a Professor at the University of Memphis and Director of the Institute for Intelligent Systems. Her work involves the theoretical study of cognitive processes as well as the application of cognitive principles to educational practice. Her current research ranges a variety of topics including text comprehension, writing strategies, building tutoring technologies, and developing natural language algorithms.

Downloads

Issue

Vol. 30 No. 2 (2009)

Section

Papers

License

The authors grant the journal all copyrights relating to the published works. The concepts issued in signed articles are the absolute and exclusive responsibility of their authors.