A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Letters of Recommendation
Pergamon
English for Specific Purposes, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 241-265, 1998
© 1998 The American University. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd
All rights reserved. Printed in Great Britain
0889-4906/98 $19.00+0.00
PII: S0889-4906(97)00012-4
A Cross-cultural Comparison of Letters of
Recommendation
Kristen Precht
Abstract--Letters of recommendation (LRs) from different countries are as individual as the local academic cultures from which they arise. Distinct regional patterns emerged in this comparative study of letters of recommendation from the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Eastern
Europe. Two types of analysis were performed: first, a quantitative analysis examined features such as linearity, symmetry, data integration, advance organizers and sentence types; second, a qualitative analysis examined the content of the sections of the letters. Differences were found cross-culturally in the quantitative analysis. Significant differences were also found in the organizational patterns and methods of support. Organizational patterns varied from topical to chronological organization. LR writers from different regions supported their recommendation of the applicant with different types of evidence, from factual lists of achievements to storytelling. The format of the letters themselves showed similarities cross-culturally. © 1998 The
American University. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Introduction
A great deal has been written in the past decade on cross-cultural differences in academic writing; not surprisingly most of this attention has been focused on the research article. Little notice has been given to the less public texts of the academic community, aptly named occluded genres in
Swales (1996). The purpose of these texts is primarily to conduct the business of the academic community--requesting reprints, recommending students, reviewing articles, evaluating colleagues, and so forth. Since these
English for Specific Purposes, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 241-265, 1998
© 1998 The American University. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd
All rights reserved. Printed in Great Britain
0889-4906/98 $19.00+0.00
PII: S0889-4906(97)00012-4
A Cross-cultural Comparison of Letters of
Recommendation
Kristen Precht
Abstract--Letters of recommendation (LRs) from different countries are as individual as the local academic cultures from which they arise. Distinct regional patterns emerged in this comparative study of letters of recommendation from the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and Eastern
Europe. Two types of analysis were performed: first, a quantitative analysis examined features such as linearity, symmetry, data integration, advance organizers and sentence types; second, a qualitative analysis examined the content of the sections of the letters. Differences were found cross-culturally in the quantitative analysis. Significant differences were also found in the organizational patterns and methods of support. Organizational patterns varied from topical to chronological organization. LR writers from different regions supported their recommendation of the applicant with different types of evidence, from factual lists of achievements to storytelling. The format of the letters themselves showed similarities cross-culturally. © 1998 The
American University. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved
Introduction
A great deal has been written in the past decade on cross-cultural differences in academic writing; not surprisingly most of this attention has been focused on the research article. Little notice has been given to the less public texts of the academic community, aptly named occluded genres in
Swales (1996). The purpose of these texts is primarily to conduct the business of the academic community--requesting reprints, recommending students, reviewing articles, evaluating colleagues, and so forth. Since these
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