Investigating Multimodal Scientific Communication: An Analysis Of Communicative Modes In Biology And Engineering Research Articles

The dissemination of knowledge in science and technology relies on efficient communication, with a noticeable shift towards multimodal communication. This research explores the subtle patterns of multimodal scientific communication to comprehend how several modes work together to enhance discourse quality. Twenty research articles, ten from the field of Engineering and ten from Biology, written over the previous three years by researchers of the University of El Oued, Algeria were collected from credible journals and then examined using a qualitative content analysis. The findings demonstrated that the authors used a multimodal approach in their research articles, presenting their research outcomes through a combination of textual explanations and visual components including graphs, tables, images, and diagrams. The study’s findings highlighted the interdependent nature of text and images and their importance in communicating scientific discourse. Furthermore, the data displays differences in the modes selected by these researchers, which reflects the specificities and particular needs of each discipline in choosing the modes. The study suggests that researchers’ active participation in workshops and training sessions can improve their proficiency in multimodal scientific communication. Moreover, it recommends additional research to broaden the area of enquiry and improve knowledge of multimodal communication in scientific discourse.