Thanks Viveka!
Who else is writing if not I (the author) or We (the authors)? No
other instance is writing through me. I am / We are responsible.
Jonas
__________
At 20:07 Uhr +1100 26.03.2008, Viveka Turnbull Hocking wrote:
>I was always of the view that writing in first person was central to the
>discipline of design since identity is so fundamental to our practice. Since
>the sciences and social sciences have finally come round to the idea that
>the observer is never neutral, I thought the design field was ahead in this
>regard. Luce Irigaray writes an interesting piece on this called 'In
>Science, is the Subject
>Sexed?<http://books.google.com/books?id=o5xXQG7T5ewC&pg=PA247&dq=IRIGARAY,+L.,+2002.+To+Speak+is+Never+Neutral,+London:+Continuum&lr=&source=gbs_toc_s&cad=1&sig=VkpvMR9cFKe-T-JAOCnEATdz3EM>'
>in IRIGARAY, L., 2002. To Speak is Never Neutral, London: Continuum
>On reading this I realised why it is important for design to use the first
>person.
>
>Thanks
>v.
>
>
>On 26/03/2008, Chris Rust <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>> Hello everybody.
>>
>> As we are in the middle of the review process for the DRS2008 conference
>> I thought it might be interesting to discuss some issues from the
>> reviewing. I'm in the very privileged position of seeing for seeing a
>> large number of the authors' proposals and reviewers' comments and,
>> while it would be wrong to talk about individual work, I feel there
>> might be value in looking at broader issues that come up.
>>
>> One that struck me very firmly is the question of whether it is
>> appropriate to use the first person, "I" and "we", in writing about your
>> research. It is clear that some reviewers don't like it, seeing it as an
>> indication of lack of rigour. Some people instruct students at all
>> levels that they must not use the first person in essays etc so this is
>> not a minor question. When I Googled the topic of <academic writing
>> "first person"> I found a great many university student guides and other
>> publications on the issue, most seemed to support the careful use of
>> first person but a minority assert the convention of third person only.
>> I have given four examples below of which one is in the third person camp.
>>
>> My personal view is that it is perfectly acceptable to write in the
>> first person, and in some cases it may be helpful. Of course it is
>> absolutely essential that it is done with clarity and precision, like
>> all aspects of academic writing, and it seems to me that using the first
>> person is both an important acknowledgment of the role of the researcher
>> in the work and a challenge to the writer's rigour. If you can write in
>> the first person and be completely clear about the way that you and your
>> actions affect and effect the inquiry then you have done yourself and
>> your readers a great service.
>>
>> I could say a great deal more but I am interested to hear what others
>> have to say.
>>
>> regards
>> Chris
>>
>> PS
>> Here, below, are the examples that I referred to above. Incidentally, as
>> we are dealing with rigour I should acknowledge that four examples
>> picked from the first page of a Google search might not be considered a
>> scholarly resource. I did not go to Google expecting to find the most
>> authoritative publications on the topic but I felt that it was a good
>> way to find quickly some of the resources that Universities offer their
>> students. I checked that the institutions were reputable places
>> representing a range of different kinds of universities. Three of the
>> items are official guides for students and the other is an article by an
>> academic from a distinguished university writing in a professional
>> journal.
>>
>> Now I am aware that some people would do a similar quick trawl on Google
>> then present what they find as unqualified evidence of their own broad
>> knowledge. I must admit that I have done it myself in moments of
>> weakness but it is essential for us all to be clear and precise about
> > what we know and how we know it.
>>
>> Dartmouth College, USA
>> Dartmouth Writing Program materials for students, 'What is an Academic
>> Paper' available online at
>> http://www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/materials/student/ac_paper/what.shtml
>> "Watch your personal pronouns. Students often wonder if it's OK to use
>> the pronouns "I" and "you" in a paper. In fact, it is OK - provided you
>> use them with care. Overusing the "I" might make the reader feel that
>> the paper was overly subjective. In fact, when a writer too often
>> invokes himself in the first person, he may be doing so to avoid
>> offering proof: "It's my own personal opinion, and I have a right to it.
>> I don't have to defend it." But of course, he does."
>>
>> Hull University, UK
>> Peter Wilson, 'Study Advice Series: Academic Writing' available online
>> at
>>
>>
>>http://www.hull.ac.uk/studyadvice/LearningResources/StudyGuidesPDFs/acadwrit.pdf
>> "Write in the third person ('it', 'he', 'they' etc.). Avoid the first
>> person ('I', 'me', 'my' etc.) - particularly in the singular."
>>
>> University of North Carolina, USA
>> UNC Student Handout: 'Should I use "I"?' available online at
>> http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/should_I_use_I.html
>> "In some projects, you need to explain how your research or ideas build
>> on or depart from the work of others, in which case you'll need to say
>> "I," "we," "my," or "our"; if you wish to claim some kind of authority
>> on the topic, first person may help you do so."
>>
>> Conall Hamill, of Queens University, Belfast has written on this issue
>> in the context of nursing education, noting that the use of third person
>> has become a rigid convention in his field, with unfortunate
>> consequences for many students' work.
>> Hamill C (1999) Academic essay writing in the first person: a guide for
>> undergraduates. Nursing Standard, 13, 44, 38-40. available online at
>> http://www.nursing-standard.co.uk/archives/ns/vol13-44/research.htm
>>
>> *********************
>> Professor Chris Rust
>> Head of Art and Design Research Centre
>> Sheffield Hallam University, S11 8UZ, UK
>> +44 114 225 2706
>> [log in to unmask]
>> www.chrisrust.net
>>
>> Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the
>> future of the human race. - H. G. Wells
>>
>
>
>
>--
>Viveka Turnbull Hocking
>Tel...........02 6456 7439
>Mobile.....0431 945 252
>Mail.........PO Box 1066,
> Jindabyne NSW 2627
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