Positioning Patterns and L2 Students’ Genre Performance in Source-Based Argumentative Writing

Abstract

This study examines positioning patterns and their impact on genre performance in Chinese L2 students’ source-based argumentative writing. Drawing on positioning theory and analytical frameworks for source-based argumentation, analysis of 26 undergraduate English majors’ essays, stimulated recall interviews, and reflective journals revealed three overarching positioning patterns (single, negotiated, and simultaneous) and dynamic positioning shifts across essay segments. These patterns significantly influenced rhetorical move production: single and negotiated positioning led to constrained genre performance, while simultaneous positioning facilitated expected or partially identifiable moves depending on alignment. Dynamic positioning shifts further accounted for segment-level variability in rhetorical effectiveness within individual essays. The findings extend positioning theory beyond conversational dynamics to written discourse, demonstrating how positioning operates through momentary decisions and multiple engagement layers. This study reconceptualizes L2 genre performance as emerging from writers’ dynamic negotiation of positioning demands rather than stable capabilities. These insights suggest pedagogical shifts toward positioning-conscious revision strategies and temporal positioning scaffolds, contributing to both positioning theory and L2 writing research by elucidating how various factors materialize in student writing through positioning’s mediating role.