Primary and secondary souuces

Primary, Secondary: Who Cares?

(The answer: we do). I often tell my students that there are several levels of "quality" of sources for their papers. The "gold standard" is the peer-reviewed journal article, though there are other good sources for information. Articles from peer-reviewed journals go through an extra level of "vetting,' that is, they are reviewed by experts in the field and accepted or rejected, or the authors are required to make changes to bring the article up to the standards of the journal.

When you read an article and cite what the authors write, you are doing a "primary-source citation." This means that you went to the original source for the information. However, when the authors of the articles you read cite someone else, and you want to cite these other authors too, what do you do? You can either find that original sources (and this is considered the best course of action, for reasons described below) OR use the form for a secondary source citation.

Say you read an article by Smith that cites Lowe and you want to cite the Lowe information too. What you do is use this form:

(Lowe, 1999, as cited in Smith, 2005).
[see page 178 of the APA Manual, 6th edition].

So, why do you need to use this secondary source citation? You need to be clear that you did not read the original source. It is the accepted form and gives proper credit. Your professor wants to know if you are doing this, and how often. In addition, what if Smith made an error in interpreting Lowe? Or what if Smith ignored Lowe's full results? Your writing would reflect this same error or bias. This way, the reader knows that you are simply reporting what Smith believed and stated about Lowe's work.

Too many secondary source citations can be cumbersome to type and read and it shows the reader (your teacher and grader) that you did not consult many primary sources. However, if this is what you did, then you MUST use this format.

How to Ruin a Paper

I have been thinking about this topic for a long time, actually the opposite of the title here, how to write a good paper. I thought, however, that one way to approach this would be to write in the converse, that is, what it takes to ruin a paper. Of course, the overall idea is that most papers are ruined through general disorganization and inattention, but let's see if any of the following grabs your attention to something you do. Anyone want to fess up? You can in the comments section.

The first rule to ruin a paper is to procrastinate. Start your paper the night before it is due. This leads to a whole waterfall of bad effects for your paper. Give yourself inadequate time for proper research. Google your search term, do a quick library search and grab the first somewhat relevant materials you find. Don't bother to find out if they are from reputable, reliable, academic sources; if they sound good, use 'em. And don't bother to find evidence that confirms what you have read- you are in a rush. Hurriedly read through the materials, not fully understanding nor absorbing them, which, after all, takes time. Crib from the articles- after all, these other authors sound like they know what they are talking about, right? And they say it better than you can. Plus paraphrasing takes time and effort. Do not carefully proofread nor edit your paper- you don't have time. Oh, and pad pad pad when you don't have enough information to fill up a paper. And just make vague statements of opinions, give unnecessary personal examples and repeat yourself.

When you start the paper, just begin typing in the words. Outlines are unnecessary and they take time too. Pull paragraphs together out of your head and stick them in some order. Don't use headings and subheadings-it is such a bother to figure out what APA wants and you don't really need that organizational help after all, right? Oh and guess at APA, it is sort of like MLA isn't it? Don't take the time to look up words or synonyms, nor to get help when you are uncertain of your grammar. Your profs will get it, won't they?

OK, so this is a parody and no one does all these things when they write a paper, but some of us do some of them. Anything strike a nerve? Ready to make a change, to move up to professional in your writing?

Time Management

My last entry reminded me of this topic: time management. In my 20 years of teaching graduate and undergraduate students, I have observed that the students with the best time-management skills were most often the best writers. These students were organized and scheduled their time, work first, fun second. More importantly, these students understood that good writing takes time. It takes time to well and fully research a topic, to search deeply and not be guilty of a "premature closure of inquiry" (that is, picking the first bit of info you happen on and using it in a scholarly work). It takes time to read and understand scholarly sources (and this includes time to reflect on what you read and re-read for clarity and confirmation of your original understanding). It takes time to analyze the resources you have collected. It takes time to formulate your ideas, and to organize them. And it takes time to write, edit and rewrite a paper.
So, what time management strategies can you use? One that works well for me (and that I get into trouble if I skip) is to start work well in advance of the project. The way I "trick" myself into doing this is to tell myself that all I have to do is a half hour of work. This is usually enough to get me going on the project, because it alerts me to all the work I need to do to write a great paper. In addition, I will often schedule work and a reward for doing that work (that is, an hour of writing, followed by 20 minutes of reading a novel, or looking at a fun web site or a small treat)- BUT you must make sure that the work comes before the reward and the reward does not stretch out too much (I had a friend who worked for an hour, then rewarded herself for 2!). Another strategy is the "elephant" strategy, that is, break the work needed down into smaller parts, schedule each part, and check it off as it gets done. Sometimes just the process of breaking the task down into its components is motivating in and of itself.
There are other, more elaborate strategies, like story boarding (a huge chart with the task categories pinned on it, and columns like to do, pending, done) or using a spread sheet for the component tasks, but I find the more elaborate the strategy, the more time it takes away from the work itself, the more it can be used to procrastinate and the less likely it is to be helpful.

Keep writing!

(related posts: multi-tasking, information versus knowledge)

Information Versus Knowledge

I recently had a discussion with my students about the difference between information and knowledge. We have all heard that we live in an information age. Information is readily available to most of us, all hours of the day or night (though the quality of this information is open to debate, given the explosion of the internet). So, what is information? Information is represented by facts, definitions, data, and details. Information differs from knowledge, however, and knowledge is what you strive for in your scholarly writing. Knowledge is based on information, it is taking all those bits of information, plus concepts and theories, and examining them as a whole. It is more "depthful" than mere information. Knowledge is more than this, however. Knowledge is developed over time. It is the process of taking in all the information relevant to a topic and reflecting on it, examining it for patterns, and analyzing and evaluating it. You cannot do this in one day and this is part of the reason procrastination is a real problem- how can you write a scholarly, knowledgeable, analytical paper if you have not spent the time and mental energy to find and review information, relevant concepts and theories, and formulate ideas, reflect and analyze? Think about it.

Keep writing!

Pet Peeves

I recently read an article in the New York Times about "pet peeve words." These are the words that drive us crazy, that we tell our students to NOT use (see entry on split infinitives). For me, it is the word "impact" when it is used to mean influence or affect. Unfortunately, there is no consistent way to know if a word is a pet peeve of your professor. In the article, the author said he hated to word "gingerly" because we also did not use the word "ginger" as a verb. I think gingerly is kind of cute and a good word to use in some contexts. The author did point out a pet peeve that I think should be universal: oversimplistic. This word really does not mean anything different from simplistic, though I know it is often use for added emphasis. I think simplistic is good enough, and think oversimplistic is over kill (or is that kill?) (plus, you may notice your spell checker marking it because it is not a real, compound word). Another "word" I sometimes find students using is irregardless. This may sound sophisticated, but is not really a word. Plus, regardless, a perfectly good word, means just the same. The "irr" prefix usually means the opposite of, so our use of "irregardless" to mean "without regard" does not make sense (it does make sense in the words relevant and irrelevant).
One way to avoid the problem of using your teacher's pet peeve words (if you do not know what they are in advance) is to vary your words. If I see one use of one "impact" I might note it, but if I see many uses of "impact," I mark it off as an overused cliche. Use a thesaurus to find other words to use to describe a same or similar thing. I am often surprised that students do not know what a thesaurus is-it is a listing of same of similar words (available in print and on-line).
Keep Writing!

Evidence -based writing

Evidence-Based Writing
You have probably heard of "evidence-based practice." This is practice that involves the use of the best available evidence in solving a problem. It includes understanding the best available intervention options for a particular client problem, as well as understanding the best available evidence that describes the problem, and using this information.
Evidence-base writing involves using the best available evidence in your writing. It is not required in all forms of writing (creative writing, journal entries), but it is an important skill in writing literature reviews, research papers and term papers. The first step is to find the best available evidence. In this search, you MUST not fall victim to "the premature closure of inquiry," that is, use the first thing you find that relates to your question. You need to spend a good amount of time in the "information universe" to determine what is good information, or good evidence. Good information comes from a credible, authoritative source (for example, I ask my students "which is the best source for a definition of depression: Dr. Joe's web page, Wikipedia or the DSM?")(BTW, Wikipedia might be great, but it is a wiki, a changing source, so cannot be considered authoritative). Good evidence is not unsupported opinion or biased. Good evidence is also (in general) repeated in the literature, or replicated. You should find several authoritative sources that report the same or similar bits of evidence or findings. The "gold standard" of authoritative evidence is the peer-reviewed journal article. These articles undergo extensive review by experts. Most search engines for journal article databases allow you to select "peer-reviewed only" (also called "refereed"). Other great sources of evidence include governmental databases and web sites (e.g., the US Census Bureau), University study centers and professional organization (e.g., NASW, APA).

The next step in evidence-based writing is to use that authoritative evidence in your paper or document. Using that information involves proper citation, quotation and referencing, of course. The information should be described clearly and should include some numbers. Numbers are quantitative evidence! Numbers tell us the base rate (or number of individuals studied-for example, reporting "1 of 4 students reported using illegal drugs" has a different meaning and value when only 4 students were asked, versus 40, versus 400), and the actual amount of change or difference ["the intervention group had lower depression scores than the control group" has a different meaning if the two scores were 13 (experimental) and 14 (control) on a 100 point scale versus 12 (experimental) and 42 (control).] If your paper relies on qualitative evidence, you generally do not report numbers, but must provide clear definitions, descriptions and analysis of assumptions and explanations.

Evidence-based writing is not the expression of your opinions, though evidence can be used to support your opinions. In many papers, students are asked to examine, analyze, evaluate, assess, or determine which is the best approach. To do this, you must use good evidence to support that opinion or judgment.

Next entry will be more on this topic...

Keep writing!

On-Line Dictionary

A colleague let me know about this nifty on-line dictionary that gives results from several different sites:

http://www.onelook.com/

It is our new favorite!

Keep writing!
(More posts coming soon!)

Writing Concise Sentences

The grammar site I wrote about last time was:

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/concise.htm#redundancy

One of my cohorts in teaching social work students writing and I are in love with this grammar site and we adore this particular page, on “Writing Concise Sentences.” It is a goal of mine to get students to write more concisely, to “omit needless words” as Strunk & White state and to “prune the redundant,” as per this web site. I often tell my students "If you can cut out a word(s) from a sentence and the meaning and grammar of that sentence still hold up, cut out that word(s)."

I am going to give just a few examples of the gems of this page.

Beware of:

Personally, I think: use instead: I think

My personal opinion: use instead: My opinion

Refer back to : use instead: Refer to

Small/large in size: use instead: Small/large

Summarize briefly: use instead: Summarize

The future to come: use instead: The future

Phrases to Omit:

NO: All things considered, cognitive treatment is most effective.

YES: Cognitive treatment is most effective.

NO: As a matter of fact, it showed that all subjects had improvement.

YES: All subjects improved.

NO: Because of the fact that they are minors, teens are subject to fewer penalties.

YES: Teens are subject to fewer penalties.

NO: What I meant to say is that social justice is our primary concern.

YES: Social justice is our primary concern.

NO: Needless to say, this was a big breakthrough.

YES: This was a big breakthrough.

Keep writing! Concisely!

Grammar and Writing Resource

A colleague sent me the link to a Grammar and Writing Guide:

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index2.htm

So far, it looks good with helpful information: from the site:
"This index includes 427 references to both the Guide to grammar and Writing and Principles of composition."

For example of part of an entry on the passive voice:

Verbs are also said to be either active (The executive committee approved the new policy) or passive (The new policy was approved by the executive committee) in voice. In the active voice, the subject and verb relationship is straightforward: the subject is a be-er or a do-er and the verb moves the sentence along. In the passive voice, the subject of the sentence is neither a do-er or a be-er, but is acted upon by some other agent or by something unnamed (The new policy was approved). Computerized grammar checkers can pick out a passive voice construction from miles away and ask you to revise it to a more active construction. There is nothing inherently wrong with the passive voice, but if you can say the same thing in the active mode, do so (see exceptions below). Your text will have more pizzazz as a result, since passive verb constructions tend to lie about in their pajamas and avoid actual work.

Keep writing!
Dr.T.

APA 6th Edition: Corrections

APA 6th Edition has errors and here’s what to do (from APA)

If you are one of the many students (or others) who purchased the 6th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2009) you need to know that there were apparently enough errors to require reprinting. You have several options to get the correct information you need:

Option 1: Corrections Supplement via the web: Go to the APA or APA style homepages on the web to find a link to the corrections supplement:
(www.APA.org or http://apastyle.apa.org). Purchasers can download or print the supplement: the supplement notes all known errors. The PDF version of the corrections supplement is available now.

Option 2: Corrections Supplement by mail. We will send out printed versions of the corrections summary upon request. Please note that the supplement is currently in production, the printed version is expected to be available on November 2.

Option 3: Replacement Copy: After reviewing the corrections supplement and the nature of the text errors, if a purchaser still feels they want a replacement copy of the manual we will provide one at no charge. We expect to begin shipping these replacement copies
on November 2.

IMPORTANT: In order to receive a replacement copy the purchaser will have to return their current copy of the manual (6th edition) to APA directly. The return must be in transit to or received by APA no later than December 15th, 2009. The returned copy requirement is to
protect APA against those first printing copies reemerging on the secondary market and therefore hurting future sales.

We would like to make this return as cost neutral to the customer as possible. We are researching being able to provide pre-paid postage hat purchases can use to return their current copy of the manual. We expect to have this system up and running by November 2.

Cliches and annoying words

This somewhat relates to my entry on cliches from July '08.

A fun note from: The Marist Institute poll (2009): http://maristpoll.marist.edu/107-whatever-takes-top-honors-as-most-annoying/

Most Annoying Words:

“If you’re like, “whatever,” and someone gives you a mean look, just remember it is what it is – certain sayings rub people the wrong way, you know? Anyway, at the end of the day, who cares?

If the above paragraph thoroughly irritated you, you’re probably not alone. The question is, which word or phrase bothered you the most?

Chances are it was “whatever.” In a recent Marist poll, nearly half of Americans – 47% – said they find “whatever” most annoying. The other sayings weren’t quite so loathed. 25% say they find “you know” most grating; 11% can’t stand “it is what it is”; 7% would like to ban “anyway” from all verbal exchanges; and 2% reported that they could do without hearing “at the end of the day.”

Interestingly, if you’re traveling to the Midwest, it might be especially wise to leave your store of “whatevers” at home. 55% of residents in that region dislike the term, while only 19% of them disapprove of “you know.” In contrast, 35% of Northeast residents say “whatever” is most annoying, while 32% are most bothered by “you know” (2009, para. 1-4).

Keep writing!

How to read a journal article

The response to the title of this entry is “it depends” (the favorite answer in social work!) How you read and the goal of reading an article vary from paper to paper, class to class, professor to professor. It also varies according to your level of education (undergrad versus graduates, first year MSW versus 2^nd year versus advanced standing). If you have had coursework in research methods and statistics, you will read the article differently than if you have not. In addition, different students have different skills and abilities when it comes to understanding results.

Reed and Ellis (2003) give some guidelines for beginning social work students and most undergraduates, as follows:

How to read a research article:

1. Read the Abstract, Introduction and Discussion sections first.

2. Abstract: is a short summary of the paper.

3. Introduction: answers the questions “Why was the study done?” “What were the researchers hoping to accomplish?” “Does this study seek to repeat (replicate) another study or fill a gap in knowledge?” “Does this study disprove, update or confirm another study?”

4. Discussion: answers “What did the study find?” “What are the implications of the findings?” “How do the researchers explain discrepancies or unexpected findings?” “Were result marred by mistakes or poor methods?” “Where do we go from here? What’s next?”

5. Next, check the literature review to gain background on the study. “What has been done before?” “How does this study fit in?”

6. Skim the results section.

Generally, look for answers to the following questions as you read the article:

1. Why was this study done?

2. What were the assumptions that guided this study?

3. What have other people said about this issue?

4. What other studies have been done on this issue?

5. How was the study done?

6. How were possible errors accounted for?

7. What are the implications of the results?

8. What are the ethical considerations?

9. What theories were used?

10. How well was this study done?

11. What variables were studied?

(Derived from Reed, C. & Ellis, CA. (2003). New Directions for Writers: College Writing and the World of Work. NY: Longman, p. 247-252).

Students in MSW programs have generally had more coursework in statistics and research methods, as well as more experience reading journal articles, than undergraduates. MSW students may be expected to do more than “skim” the results section and should read the entire article. You might want to talk to your professor to determine what you will be expected to understand and critique regarding statistical analysis. It would be great if you develop enough proficiency to critique statistical methods. In addition, it is probably expected that MSW students pay more attention to the methods section of research papers than undergrads and be able to critique this section (Why did the researchers make certain choices? What was good/bad? What might have worked better? Were there errors in the method that might affect the result of the study?). It is always a good idea to try to use peer-reviewed or refereed journal articles in writing your papers. These met a higher standard of excellence than non-reviewed articles. Such articles are reviewed by experts in the field and by editors who do often examine the statistics to insure they were done properly. When you are searching through databases for articles, you can often click on “peer reviewed only” through advanced search features.

Keep writing!

The doi and APA

The doi

A student requested I write about the doi, tell what it is, how to find it and how to use it.

Because documents on the internet may be moved around, international publishers developed a system called the doi or “document object identifier.” This number, which always begins with 10, is a number that will permanently mark and follow that document, making retrieval at a later date easier. Not all documents currently have a doi, though they are being assigned over time.

In the past, when you have referenced a journal article using APA (5th edition) you listed the retrieved on date and either the database from where you got the article OR the URL. Now, if there is a doi, you just use that, no retrieval date, no URL, no database name.

The doi’s I have seen are usually fairly easy to find, though some are hidden. I have found them at or near the top or the bottom of the first page of text (which APA recommends), under a copyright statement, or under the publication information. However, sometimes the doi is hidden behind a button (e.g. Article, CrossRef or PubMed button) and you must click on the button to get the doi. Make sure you cut and paste the doi onto your paper, as it is easy to mess up otherwise.

If you find a doi on a journal article, the reference entry will look like:

Washington, G. & Jefferson, T. (2000). Political alliances, past and future.

Journal of American Politics, 17, 33-41. doi 10.1021/2209-6133.22.4.033

(remember to indent every line after the first line within a reference entry 5 spaces- blogspot won't let me do it in the above example).

According to APA 6th edition, the doi can also be found on the database landing page for the article (full record display). It often DOES NOT say "doi" and is a long string of numbers and characters starting with 10.

Keep writing!

Splitting Infinitives

To Split an Infinitive

An infinitive is a verb with the word “to” attached to it. To run, to walk, to argue, to discuss are all infinitives. Splitting an infinitive is interposing an adverb (a word that describes how a verb is done) in between the “to” and the verb. Examples of split infinitives are:

To swiftly run

To slowly walk

To vehemently argue

To loudly discuss

It is technically incorrect and infinitives should not be split, so, instead write:

To run swiftly

To walk slowly

To argue vehemently

To discuss loudly

These are considered to be more correct.

However, some more recent sources (this rule has been around since the 14^th century!) suggest that splitting an infinitive is not a big problem. Some sources say it is OK to do when you are trying to emphasize the adjective. I would try to avoid splitting infinitives (I think it makes the verb seem “weaker” somehow) and wanted you to know what this is in the event you are told to NOT do it!

Keep writing!

Misused words

Strunk and White* have a long list of misused or commonly confused words and here are my top five picks, the ones I encounter frequently:

As to whether: whether is sufficient

Being:
Not appropriate to use after regard or as:
Don’t do: "He is regarded as being the best cook in the group".
Instead do use: "He is the best cook in the group".
(this use of “as being” weakens your writing as it is unnecessary).

Different than: you are comparing, so use different from.

Irregardless: is not a word. Use regardless.

Less versus fewer: less refers to quantity, fewer to number. “After she moved, we had fewer neighbors.” “As the sand fell, there was less in the top of the hourglass.”

Bonus: that versus which:
That is a defining, or restrictive pronoun.
Which is nondefining, nonrestrictive. What does this mean?
That specifies “The bicycle that is broken is in the shed.” This specifies the broken bicycle.
Which does not specify: the bicycle, which is broken, is in the shed.” In this case, you are incidentally made aware that the bike is broken...or give a fact about the only bicycle.

Double bonus: Dr. T's pet peeve "I honestly feel..." Aren't you always being honest?

*Strunk, W. and White, E.B. (1979). The Elements of Style (3rd ed.). NY: Macmillan.

Keep writing!

Multi-tasking

Occasionally I learn that a student was writing a paper for class while watching television, talking on the phone, conducting a conversation through text messaging or otherwise engaging in more than one task at a time. I then stare at the student in disbelief. Now, maybe it is just a generational thing, that younger students feels they must be able to do more than one thing at a time, versus people like me "of a certain age." You probably can do more than one thing at a time, but the important question is: can you do it well?

The New York Times recently had a column on multi-tasking. Based on it and my understanding of the writing process, you cannot multi-task and write a thoughtful, analytical, scholarly paper. As Ruth Pennebaker wrote on August 30, 2009:

Last week, researchers at Standford University published a study showing that the most persistent multitaskers perform badly in a variety of tasks. They don’t focus as well as non-multitaskers. They’re more distractible. They’re weaker at shifting from one task to another and at organizing information. They are, as a matter of fact, worse at multitasking than people who don’t ordinarily multitask.

“Multitaskers were just lousy at everything,” said Clifford I. Nass, a professor of communication at Stanford and one of the study’s investigators. “It was a complete and total shock to me....”

Initially suspecting that multitaskers possessed some rare and enviable qualities that helped them process simultaneous channels of information, Professor Nass had been “in awe of them,” he said, acknowledging that he himself is “dreadful” at multitasking. “I was sure they had some secret ability. But it turns out that high multitaskers are suckers for irrelevancy.”

The full article can be found at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/30/weekinreview/30pennebaker.html?_r=1&emc=eta1

Writing is a thoughtful process. It involves thinking through your paper, organizing it, writing, editing and editing again. It can be done in "chunks" of time, but these work periods need to be long, uninterrupted and focused.

Keep writing!

The Abused Apostrophe

The Abused Apostrophe

By M. Roberts, Guest Blogger

Such a small thing can make a BIG difference in one’s writing. It can affect the entire meaning of a word or sentence. The apostrophe, ( ’ or ' ) is a punctuation mark, and a diacritical mark (accent mark). It may seem like a tiny matter to a student when writing a formal paper, but when it changes the gist of a thought, it is a BIG deal. Incorrect use of an apostrophe can lower one’s grade substantially.

Here are a few rules to remember and follow about the little apostrophe:

1. ‘s Use this at the end of a noun to make it possessive.

For example: Mary’s purse, Bob’s dog, Lillian’s home, Charles’s friend (note that Charles ends with an s? Whatever the noun ends with, one STILL puts the apostrophe at the end of the noun).

2. ‘s In this case, the apostrophe is a contraction, meaning the two words: it is.

For example: It’s 8:00, it’s time to go, it’s all right, it’s my name, it’s your book, it’s fine, it’s the name of the class, it’s the best one yet, it’s going to be OK. (Do not forget, however, in formal papers contractions are not necessarily proper nor allowed.)

3. Its. The word. Often students wrongly place an apostrophe in this word when it is not needed. This is a gender neutral word, which is quite appropriate in formal writing. Use this word when one refers to groups of people:

For example: The researchers kept all subjects to its same rigorous standards. There is a place for everything, and everything has its place. Children and dogs scrambled to get out of its way.

Cliches

What’s wrong with this sentence?

“At the end of the day, the numbers speak for themselves.” (I actually heard this on the radio recently).

This sentence is an attempt to illustrate what happens when you write using clichés.

A cliché is an overused expression or idea, one that, over time, has lost its meaning or strength. When you write using a cliché, your meaning is often unclear, your writing can seem trivial and the cliché, though overused, may not be fully understood by your reader. Clichés are neither formal nor specific enough for scholarly writing.

Other common clichés include:
Perfect storm
Day in and day out
Hour of need
The real deal
Short and sweet
Off the beaten track
A matter of life and death
A dog’s life
No such thing as a free lunch
With all due respect
Beyond the pale
The light at the end of the tunnel
Stand on your own two feet
Bone of contention

So, how to fix the sentence above, that is:
“At the end of the day, the numbers speak for themselves.”

I would try to substitute clear, formal and accurate statements that contain evidence for the two clichés. Here are a few examples:

The result of the program was a 22% decrease in feelings of depression and isolation in nursing home residents (site your source here!!!)

or

Evidence suggests that the policy change resulted in improved nutritional status for school lunch program participants versus non-participants (again cite your source!!!)

Final program evaluation showed no decline in teen sexual activity in program participants versus controls (again cite your source!!!)

Keep writing!

Since Versus Because

Since Versus Because

I am writing about a “rule” in written English that is controversial, involving when to use the word “since” and when to use the word “because.” The rule used to be (and to some of us still is) that “since” is used when you want to denote the passage of time, that is:

“The store has been in operation since 1985.”

Or

“I wanted to be a social worker since I was eight years old.”

“Because” is used to ascribe cause, to explain a reason why, as in:

“Dogs should net be exposed to prolonged heat, because they cannot cool down except through panting.”

Or

“The researchers studied adolescents only, because they are the population at greatest risk for this disorder.”

Some people feel mixing up since and because is fine, some feel it is fine in spoken language only, never in written language, some say never mix them up at all. I am in the middle. I think students should use since and because properly in written communication (that is, follow the rule above), but can mix them up in informal speech.

Next time: what is a split infinitive and does it matter anymore?

Accuracy and Precision

Accuracy and Precision in Language
Note to readers: I am recovering from a strenuous hike up Old Rag Mountain (Great views! Sore legs!) so forgive me if there is a typo or two in here I did not find in my fatigued state!
We all know what the words accuracy and precision mean, but how do we translate them into action? Here are a few guidelines to follow that may help;
Numbers: numbers often convey a sense of precision. It is more accurate to say “35 percent” than “a third” (though sometimes the latter is Ok too). (It is possible to lie or misdirect with numbers, but that is a topic for another entry. A good book on this is “How to Lie with Statistics”).
Definitions and details help with precision. “Smith and Jones (200) studied depression” versus “Smith and Jones (200) studied the Beck Depression Inventory scores of 173 women aged 19 to 29, both before and after cognitive-behavior therapy.”
A problem I find in regard to accuracy in language is word meaning or using a word that does not quite get at the meaning the writer intends. Small versus miniscule, aggressive versus violent.
Word confusion: comprise and compromise are very similar in spelling, but mean different things.

Which is more precise?
“Most dog lovers like cats too” or
“About 57% of self-described dog lovers like cats too (Jones, 2000).”

“Welfare reform changed welfare as we knew it.”
“The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 reduced the welfare rolls by between 33 and 90 percent, varying by state” (citation).

“Positive rewards are more effective than punishment at changing behavior.”
“Positive reinforcement increases desired behaviors by 37 percent: punishment increases desired behaviors by 22 percent” (Brenner, 1995).

So, numbers help with precision (and also evidence-based writing).
Citations helps with precision.
Details can help with precision.
Definitions and descriptions can help with precision.
And using the correct, more specific word can help with precision.

Here are some real world examples of problems with precision in language:
A member of Congress “Tobacco kills with lethality.” Is there any other way to kill?
A student “I believe that child emotional abuse is more harmful than sexual abuse to me.” “I believe” implies “to me”, so drop the “to me”. Or was the student disclosing that she was abused? (I think not, but it could be read that way).
A student writes in a term paper “I just read that…” instead of “I recently read…” (did you read the referenced material immediately before you wrote it? Does that hold true a week later when the prof reads the paper?)
My friend wrote “My mother was a hard woman.” How hard? Like stone? How about “My mother was unsympathetic to my childhood needs” or “My mother rarely smiled or laughed” or “My mother appeared to suffer from chronic depression” whichever is more accurate.

I am sure I will have more to say on this topic in subsequent posts.

Keep Writing!
Dr.T.