4.7 Reporting Verbs


Reporting verbs are an important resource in the language of argumentation because using the work of published researchers as evidence to support your arguments and ideas is essential in your assignment writing. Apart from directly quoting these writers (which should only be done very occasionally in your essays), there are several ways to cite your sources which will be examined in this section. These include using a reporting verb and a summary or paraphrase of the original text as shown below.

Note: Remember that it is always necessary to cite your source, even if you re-write the original in your own words.

Different reporting structures

1. Author's name + date + reporting verb + summary/paraphrase

e.g. Smith (2004) notes that early intervention leads to...

2. Summary/paraphrase + author's name + date

e.g. Early intervention leads to... (Smith, 2004)

3. Passive structure + summary/paraphrase + author's name + date

e.g. Evidence has been found for... (Harvey, Lim & Levy, 2000)

4. Using the impersonal 'it' structure + summary/paraphrase + name + date

e.g. It has also been argued that ... (Kim, 1999)

5. Using the 'there is/are' structure + summary/paraphrase + name + date

e.g. There is evidence for ... (Tanaka & Alonso, 2001)

6. Using a noun instead of a verb + summary/paraphrase + name + date

e.g. The suggestion is that ... (Singh, 2002)

7. Using the 'according to' phrase + name + date + summary/paraphrase with NO reporting verb

or: Summary/paraphrase + 'according to' + name + date, again NO reporting verb.

e.g. According to Olivier and Krauss (2003), deforestation is a major cause of ....
Deforestation is a major cause of ... according to Olivier and Krauss (2003).

NOTE 1: If you find you have paraphrased a lot of an author's work in one passage, it is a good idea to use reporting structure no.1 (above), rather than leaving it to the end before you give the author's name. This technique reassures the reader (the person marking your essay!) that you are citing your source correctly and not plagiarising.

NOTE 2: All the above reporting structures can be used with direct quotes, but you must add the page number(s) immediately after the quote.

e.g. Olivier and Krauss (2003) argue that "a major effect of deforestation is..." (p.37).
"A major effect of deforestation is ..." (Olivier & Krauss, 2003, p,37).

NOTE 3: Remember that direct quoting should be kept to a minimum in your assignments. A maximum of two or three direct quotes in a 1500 word essay can be taken as a guide.

Different reporting verbs

Using different reporting verbs allows you to show the original author's attitude and purpose. Some verbs are considered 'neutral', and function as synonyms of 'say'. Others show degrees of certainty or doubt, or positive or negative attitudes, and these are referred to as 'coloured' reporting verbs:

Some reporting verbs and their meanings:

Neutral verbs

Say, State, Observe, Comment, Write, Show, Demonstrate, Indicate, Point out, Report, Explain, Note, Add, *Describe All these verbs function as synonyms of 'say'

Coloured verbs

Doubt Be uncertain as to the truth or otherwise

Claim State quite strongly

Contend Debate, argue

Maintain Defend a position, an argument

Agree/disagree Be of the same/different opinion

Argue State quite strongly, contend

Question Doubt

Declare State quite strongly, assert

Believe Be of the opinion that...

Affirm State, establish to be true

Assert State quite insistently as true

Emphasise Stress, state quite insistently

See Present a point of view

*Challenge Call into question, doubt

Tenative verbs

Suggest Put forward an idea for consideration

Propose Put forward an idea for consideration

* Be careful when using these verbs as the reporting structure does not follow the usual Verb + 'that' clause. e.g. Jones (2001) argues that ....

Describe: Fitzherbert (2004) describes the theory of constructivism as ....
Challenge: Griffiths and Evans (1999) challenge the argument that ...

Note: Remember that reporting verbs and reporting structures allow you to give evidence to support your ideas, arguments and understanding. Support is the key word here.Learning the techniques for citing sources and giving evidence is not enough to produce a good essay. While it is essential that you give supporting evidence from published researchers in your academic work, it is your ideas and understandings which should drive your writing, not the evidence. The evidence supports what you have to say.

Using reporting verbs to show your own judgement

As well as indicating the author's purpose and attitude, reporting verbs can reflect your judgement. Be careful about sounding too critical however. A critique is an analysis - not a reason to disparage or put down an expert's ideas!

e.g. Zimmerman (2000) claims that …  However it can be argued that because …..
Here the student writer is disputing Zimmerman’s claim and is providing a reason for disagreeing with the expert.

Mellor, Inglis and Urquhart (2004) believe that …., but Snow (2005) questions this proposal.
Here the student writer disagrees with the first researchers and is providing evidence from another expert as support.

Williams (2002) contends that the evidence shows …  However this could be interpreted as …
Here the writer shows doubt about Williams’ argument through the use of the modal ‘could’ before giving his/her own interpretation.
[See 3.15 for explanations of the modal verbs].