The Use of Hedging Devices in English Texts Written by English and Kurdish Academics: A Comparative Study

Abstract

This study is entitled The Use of Hedging Devices in English Texts Written by English and Kurdish Academics: A Comparative Study. It examines the application of hedging devices in English research articles (RA) produced by English and Kurdish writers of English in the field of linguistics. Therefore, 50 English RAs are chosen for the purpose of analysis. The three sections of introduction, discussion and conclusion are analyzed through the computer software (AntConc). Moreover, the study adopts Varttala’s (2001) model for classifying hedging devices to analyze the data to elicit the differences and similarities in the frequency and types of hedges used by the two groups of writers. However, the main goal of the study is contributed to the study of hedging devices by adopting a practical examination and comparison of academic texts in a Kurdish and English setting. The most important finding is that native English writers employ much more hedges in RAs than the Kurdish writers. These results can have implications, particularly, to Kurdish writers of English to better conform to the standard style of academic writing in using hedges appropriately.