The interpretation study in English applied linguistics Research Article Discussions (RADs) in reputable journals

Since studies on rhetorical structures of research article discussions (RADs) have received scholarly attention from many linguistics scholars, interpreting research findings becomes one of the important linguistic aspects that needs to be investigated for knowledge expansion in research. However, although some scholars have studied rhetorical moves in RADs, none of them focus on interpretation as a single focus. As a result, interpretation still leaves several questions that need further analysis. After understanding this critical gap, this study intends to address three important purposes: the role of interpretation in applied linguistics Research Article Discussions (RADs) in international reputable journals, the elements that authors interpret, and rhetorical strategies for interpretation. To realize these purposes, this study used a genre-based approach by conducting top-down and bottom-up approaches for the analysis. Then, it employed a mixed-method to report the analysis results. The findings revealed that interpretation is quasi-obligatory in RADs. Authors interpret their research findings and their discussion. They employed two rhetorical strategies to realize interpretation as presented further in the results section. These findings have implications to extend knowledge in the literature regarding interpretation knowledge and create a contribution to provide understanding for students and novice authors.