Scientific Communication and Authorial Identities in Cognitive Neuroscience Handbooks from a Diachronic Perspective

Abstract

One noteworthy aspect is that the more famous the authors are, the less they tend to conform to generic norms and standard scientific reporting style. The present paper will show, with qualitative data from the Introductions of influential volumes by Christie (1970), Critchley (1970), Dalgleish & Power (1999), Kolb & Wishshaw (2003) Gazzaniga (2004), Goldstein & McNeil (2004), how authors feel free to use a more personal language, constructing a delicate balance between consideration for the canons of scientific reporting and the need for more authentic, holistic interaction with the audience. Far from disguising their personal involvement, they highlight how their research fits into a larger picture, engaging the readers as participants in a disciplinary discourse that functions as situated social interaction. Evidence will be given of the discoursal features these famous authors use to ‘trade’ knowledge from their personal perspectives – explicitly appraising both individual and collective work – in a complex interplay of ‘delayed’ adherence to generic norms and assertion of individual identity.