How to Write in a Scholarly Voice

By Lon W. Schiffbauer, BA, MBA, PhD, SPHR

Academic writing shouldn’t be a merciless barrage of multisyllabic jargon couched in sentences of breathtaking complexity. Writers that practice this form of intellectual torment are doing so, not to inform and persuade, but to impress the ignorant, baffle with bull, or weaponize boredom in hopes that the reader’s eyes will glaze over and blindly accept whatever dubious conclusions are offered.

Yeah. I feel kind of strongly about this.

Scholarly or academic voice is all about presenting your work in a credible light, one which then informs, educates, and ultimately persuades the reader based on the strength of that credibility. Credibility being the key, it is important to understand what adds to or diminished from a writer’s credibility:

Write in clear, concise sentences. There’s a propensity for some to confuse sentence length and complexity with intelligence and quality. This often results in long, convoluted, and tortured run-on sentences, some containing as many as 50 to 60 words. Granted, the principles, theories, and ideas you’re discussing may be complex, but that doesn’t mean that your writing needs to be. Avoid complex sentence structures that cloud and obfuscate the message.

Use the appropriate terminology specific to the particular field of study. The words and phrases we use tell the reader that we know what we’re talking about and not just faking it. For example, if someone asks me to explain my teaching approach, I know they are likely not someone ensconced in academia. On the other hand, if they were to ask about my pedagogy, well now then I might be dealing with someone that knows their way around a tenure track. Fields of study typically have their own lexicon; learn it and use it properly.

Properly source your facts and assertions. There is perhaps no surer way to deep six your academic credibility than by building your argument on a bed of sand made up of assumptions, opinions, speculations, and outright erroneous information. Likewise, if the citations you do offer are not trusted, peer-reviewed sources then you’re basically asking the reader to accept someone else’s opinions and speculations as fact. It’s important that all—and I mean all—your assertions are supported by credible sources.

Maintain objectivity. There’s little doubt that you have a strong interest and passion for your topic, otherwise you wouldn’t have chosen it. That said, you need to make sure that bias doesn’t creep into your writing. This bias tends to find its way into the content in the form of:

  • Sweeping generalizations: Phrases such as “Everyone knows that…” or “Most people believe that…”
  • Commentary: Phrases such as “It’s obvious that…” or “This is the most important…”
  • Emotional declarations: Phrases such as “It’s morally criminal that…” or “It’s heartbreaking to think of…”

Write in third-person (in most cases). This means avoiding speaking in the first and second person (“I” and “you”) and instead referring to yourself in such ways as “the researcher” or “this author,” and referring to the reader as, well, “the reader.” It may feel strange at first, but eventually it will become second nature.

Avoid clichés, slang, and casual language. This guide is a very poor example of scholarly voice. It includes clichés (“deep six”), slang (“yeah”), and very casual language. In fact, you may have found yourself questioning the credibility of this writing guide based on these scholarly sins. If so, then see what I mean?

Avoid gender-bias. Become very comfortable with phrases such as “his or her” when referring to an individual in general.

Use active voice. Passive voice is often used to indirectly approach a topic that the writer isn’t completely sure about themselves. This is the last impression you want to leave with a reader. If you’re uncertain what the difference is between active and passive voice, or how to identify the two, visit the Purdue OWL page on the subject.

Use correct grammar and spelling. This should be self-explanatory. Justly or otherwise, there are few things that can toss credibility out the window faster than poor grammar and spelling. It suggests a certain lack of attention to detail, which will call your research, study execution, and findings into question. Finally, when readers start to find errors they shift from reading your material to looking for errors, turning it into a perverse sort of “Where’s Waldo” exercise—Waldo being errors.

So there you are. Follow these guidelines and before long you’ll develop a strong, persuasive, and credible scholarly voice that will serve you well in your academic career.

Lon is an Associate Professor of Business Management at Salt Lake Community College and holds an MBA, a PhD, and is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). In addition to his academic background, Lon spent close to 30 years working and consulting for such companies as FedEx, Intel, eBay, and PayPal, as well as a variety of small to mid-sized companies around the world.