Academic Writing and Plagiarism: A Linguistic Analysis

Description

Plagiarism has long been regarded with concern by the university community as a serious act of wrongdoing threatening core academic values. There has been a perceived increase in plagiarism over recent years, due in part to issues raised by the new media, a diverse student population and the rise in English as a lingua franca. This book examines plagiarism, the inappropriate relationship between a text and its sources, from a linguistic perspective. Diane Pecorari brings recent linguistic research to bear on plagiarism, including processes of first and second language writers; interplay between reading and writing; writer's identity and voice; and the expectations of the academic discourse community. Using empirical data drawn from a large sample of student writing, compared against written sources, Academic Writing and Plagiarism argues that some plagiarism, in this linguistic context, can be regarded as a failure of pedagogy rather than a deliberate attempt to transgress. The book examines the implications of this gap between the institutions' expectations of the students, student performance and institutional awareness, and suggests pedagogic solutions to be implemented at student, tutor and institutional levels. Academic Writing and Plagiarism is essential reading for those in applied linguistics concerned with the transmission and adaptation of knowledge and discourse.

Diane Pecorari is professor of English linguistics and head of the Department of Languages at Linnaeus University in Sweden

Attitudes to plagiarism are as diverse as the contexts in which it emerges, but this meticulous investigation makes an important contribution to the debate. It will make interesting reading not only for researchers in applied Linguistics but also for anyone concerned with academic writing, faculty academic conduct officers, directors of studies and academic registrars. * Times Higher Education * This is a book that deserves to be widely read, not only by researchers on written discourse, teachers of academic writing and supervisors, but more generally by those with responsibility for drafting and implementing plagiarism policies within the academic community... The value of this book lies in its provision of empirical evidence to back up its central argument. * System, 2008 * This book is a very useful contribution to the literature on writing using sources. It includes much of the key literature on the topic, and its use of empirical evidence to support its argument is particularly valuable. It provides a detailed descriptive analysis of a number of problems, together with some suggested solutions -- Rosemary Wette * Tesolanz Newsletter * "... this book is an important contribution to both our understanding of the controversies regarding plagiarism and to our ability to help students navigate the complexity of the issues that the discussion of plagiarism has raised." - English for Specific Purposes 2009 -- Joel Bloch By viewing plagiarism as a linguistic and cultural phenmenon and by draing on a range of methodological approaches, Pecorari provides researchers and instructors with much to think about when it comes to addressing student plagiarism, especially when working with nonnative-English-speakers. -- Rebecca Moore Howard, Writing Program Administration Reviewed in the Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, Vol. 33, Number 2 'Pecorari's book offers an important application of research into intertextuality in academic English and the findings of hr research project should not be ignored in any university where English is the language of teaching and learning' This text is useful not only for program administrators and recruiters (who need to be informed about what constitutes writing, plagiarism and language proficiency) but also for academic writing instructors and supervisors of Masters' theses and doctoral dissertations. * The Linguist List *