Abstract
The present study employs a bibliometric analysis to examine the research trends in the field of evaluation, appraisal and stance. The bibliometric information of publications between 2000 and 2015 was retrieved from the Web of Science SSCI Core Collection database. The indicators analyzed include the number of publications by year, most frequently explored topics, most cited works, major individual contributors, publication venues, distribution among countries/regions and institutions. Our findings showed that the annual publications increased dramatically, revealing an upward trend in this research field. The results concerning the most frequently addressed topics suggested that EAP has been a fruitful domain in terms of the evaluative dimension of discourse. Besides, future research will feature more discipline-specific and language-specific empirical studies and comparative cross-linguistic studies. Pedagogical applications of evaluation research also need to be explored. Citation results indicated that the groundbreaking monographs in this field generate the highest citation counts, and that the most cited works cover a variety of sub-fields of linguistics, which may further prove the heterogeneous nature of the evaluative dimension of language.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions. This work was supported by National Social Science Fund of China (Grant No. 15BYY179).
Appendix 1: Most frequently discussed topics in each of the two periods in the past sixteen years and a comparison
(Ranked by Chi and p values; normalized frequency = topic raw frequency divided by number of publications in the period)
Normed-Freq | Normed-Freq | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Topics | 2000–10 | 2011–15 | Chi Value | p. |
No Significant Change | ||||
narrative discourse | 19.48 | 8.96 | 3.90 | 0.05 |
lexico grammatical | 19.48 | 32.84 | 3.41 | 0.06 |
epistemic authority | 6.49 | 14.93 | 3.32 | 0.07 |
semiotic resource | 6.49 | 14.93 | 3.32 | 0.07 |
epistemic stance | 58.44 | 77.61 | 2.70 | 0.10 |
cross linguistic | 12.99 | 20.90 | 1.85 | 0.17 |
discourse strategy | 12.99 | 20.90 | 1.85 | 0.17 |
evaluative adjective | 12.99 | 20.90 | 1.85 | 0.17 |
quantitative and qualitative analysis | 19.48 | 11.94 | 1.81 | 0.18 |
across discipline | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
engagement resource | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
hedge and booster | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
linguistic variation | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
stance and engagement | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
vague language | 6.49 | 11.94 | 1.61 | 0.20 |
discourse function | 32.47 | 23.88 | 1.31 | 0.25 |
academic discourse | 38.96 | 29.85 | 1.21 | 0.27 |
academic writing | 45.45 | 35.82 | 1.14 | 0.29 |
stance taking | 64.94 | 53.73 | 1.06 | 0.30 |
stance marker | 25.97 | 32.84 | 0.80 | 0.37 |
pragmatic function | 12.99 | 17.91 | 0.78 | 0.38 |
affective meaning | 12.99 | 8.96 | 0.74 | 0.39 |
epistemic marker | 12.99 | 8.96 | 0.74 | 0.39 |
interpersonal function | 12.99 | 8.96 | 0.74 | 0.39 |
political discourse | 12.99 | 8.96 | 0.74 | 0.39 |
hearsay evidential | 19.48 | 14.93 | 0.60 | 0.44 |
quantitative analysis | 19.48 | 14.93 | 0.60 | 0.44 |
discourse community | 25.97 | 20.90 | 0.55 | 0.46 |
evaluative stance | 25.97 | 20.90 | 0.55 | 0.46 |
appraisal framework | 32.47 | 26.87 | 0.53 | 0.47 |
pedagogical implication | 12.99 | 14.93 | 0.13 | 0.71 |
affective stance | 38.96 | 41.79 | 0.10 | 0.75 |
rhetorical strategy | 12.99 | 11.94 | 0.04 | 0.83 |
syntactic device | 12.99 | 11.94 | 0.04 | 0.83 |
systemic functional linguistics | 58.44 | 56.72 | 0.03 | 0.87 |
appraisal theory | 71.43 | 71.64 | 0.00 | 0.99 |
Significantly Increased | ||||
conversation analysis | 12.99 | 38.81 | 12.87 | 0.00 |
social action | 0.00 | 23.88 | 23.88 | 0.00 |
news headline | 0.00 | 20.90 | 20.90 | 0.00 |
code switeching | 0.00 | 17.91 | 17.91 | 0.00 |
epistemic status | 0.00 | 17.91 | 17.91 | 0.00 |
evaluative resource | 0.00 | 17.91 | 17.91 | 0.00 |
affect word | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
authorial stance | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
discipline specific | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
engagement strategy | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
gender difference | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
nominal position | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
np clause | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
perception verb | 0.00 | 14.93 | 14.93 | 0.00 |
evidential marker | 6.49 | 20.90 | 7.57 | 0.01 |
epistemological stance | 6.49 | 17.91 | 5.34 | 0.02 |
evaluative language | 45.45 | 68.66 | 4.72 | 0.03 |
Significantly decreased | ||||
evaluative meaning | 77.92 | 38.81 | 13.11 | 0.00 |
qualitative analysis | 58.44 | 23.88 | 14.51 | 0.00 |
lexical bundle | 64.94 | 11.94 | 36.53 | 0.00 |
source of information | 58.44 | 11.94 | 30.72 | 0.00 |
identity construction | 32.47 | 11.94 | 9.49 | 0.00 |
modal verb | 25.97 | 8.96 | 8.29 | 0.00 |
sentence final particle | 25.97 | 8.96 | 8.29 | 0.00 |
wh cleft | 45.45 | 0.00 | 45.45 | 0.00 |
expression of emotion | 25.97 | 5.97 | 12.53 | 0.00 |
emotion concept | 32.47 | 0.00 | 32.47 | 0.00 |
modal adverb | 32.47 | 0.00 | 32.47 | 0.00 |
complement clause | 38.96 | 17.91 | 7.79 | 0.01 |
person pronoun | 32.47 | 14.93 | 6.49 | 0.01 |
epistemic modality | 25.97 | 11.94 | 5.19 | 0.02 |
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© 2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- “Am besten, du gehst.” Zur nähesprachlichen Verwendung des am-Superlativs im Vor-Vorfeld
- Mapping Evaluation, Appraisal and Stance in Discourse (2000–2015): A Bibliometric Analysis
- A Corpus-based Study of Transfers in English Nominal Groups
- A Picture-Book Based Corpus Study on the Acquisition of wh-words in Japanese
- Dative Alternation in Nigerian English: A Corpus-based Approach
- „Barbarische“ Sprachen im deutschen Sprachdenken des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts
- Die Sprachen der Neuen Welt in Belegen deutscher Sprachdenker des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts
- Book Reviews
- Sprachkontakt – Sprachmischung – Sprachwahl – Sprachwechsel. Eine sprachsoziologische Untersuchung der weißrussisch-russisch gemischten Rede “Trasjanka” in Weißrussland.
- Fachsprachen. Die Konstruktion von Welten. (utb 4962).
- Erratum
- Erratum to: Are Languages like Atoms? On Modelling Language Spread as a Physicist
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- “Am besten, du gehst.” Zur nähesprachlichen Verwendung des am-Superlativs im Vor-Vorfeld
- Mapping Evaluation, Appraisal and Stance in Discourse (2000–2015): A Bibliometric Analysis
- A Corpus-based Study of Transfers in English Nominal Groups
- A Picture-Book Based Corpus Study on the Acquisition of wh-words in Japanese
- Dative Alternation in Nigerian English: A Corpus-based Approach
- „Barbarische“ Sprachen im deutschen Sprachdenken des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts
- Die Sprachen der Neuen Welt in Belegen deutscher Sprachdenker des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts
- Book Reviews
- Sprachkontakt – Sprachmischung – Sprachwahl – Sprachwechsel. Eine sprachsoziologische Untersuchung der weißrussisch-russisch gemischten Rede “Trasjanka” in Weißrussland.
- Fachsprachen. Die Konstruktion von Welten. (utb 4962).
- Erratum
- Erratum to: Are Languages like Atoms? On Modelling Language Spread as a Physicist