How to develop arguments in writing (social sciences) scientific papers

Course description

Publishing scientific papers represents a core activity of researchers, and, increasingly, the career of young scholars is determined by their ability to publish in high-reputed outlets. The process has become more and more competitive, with acceptance rates in top-journals becoming extremely low and the publication process longer and extenuating in the extent of revisions needed. In such an environment, forging a strong argument to convince reviewers of the novelty and robustness of your findings in order to get their support has become a core dimension of scientific writing.

The goal of this workshop is to help PhD students to understand how to develop strong arguments in writing their own papers and to assess the extent to which they are likely to convince their readers and, specifically, journal editors and reviewers. Further, we will analyse how to engage in a (critical) discussion with reviewers and respond effectively to their comments,

The course will build on two main pillars. On the one hand, an understanding of science as a community of practice, where scholars discuss their ideas in front of peers and engage in discussions about their validity, whose outcome determines whether these ideas are included as part of the accepted realm of knowledge. On the other hand, the course will build on theories of human communication, which extensively analyse how argumentation can be used effectively to bring interlocutors, such as other scientists, to your side through strategic manoeuvring.

The workshop will be organised in face-to-face lectures and in practical exercises, in which students will analyse scientific texts for their argumentative content and simulate scientific debates playing both the proponent and opponent roles. It will focus in this respect on two major forms of scientific communication, i.e. the scientific paper and the grant proposal.

Recurrence: yearly

Link to offer

How to develop arguments in writing scientific papers