Academic writing in this Research Topic refers to the type of writing demonstrating students’ disciplinary knowledge of and proficiency in synthesizing, analyzing, and responding critically to new information (Hyland, 2004; Swales, 1990) which may include those genres like course essays, project reports, research proposals, lab notes, journal articles, conference paper, theses and dissertations. As the current workplaces have become increasingly specialized, higher education worldwide has been increasingly charged with the task of developing students’ academic writing and correspondingly on students’ parts, learning through writing has been necessary for them to succeed in higher education. To prepare university students for writing challenges, during the past decades, numerous studies have been devoted to the study of linguistic and rhetorical resources in students’ academic writing under such umbrella terms like style, reader awareness, authorial voice, writers’ identity, stance, evaluation, textual structures, steps and moves (Charles, Hunston & Pecorari, 2009; Hinkel, 2002).

However, previous research on academic writing has been predominantly focused on the linguistic and rhetorical aspects, namely the final product of students’ writing, while the nature and processes of composition, students’ engagement and individual differences, and the influence of contextual factors like emerging technology have been under explored. Thus, the goal of this Research Topic is to bring a process-oriented and dynamic perspective to the study of textual production in academic contexts by both encouraging an expanded view of existing research paradigms, and also welcoming novel approaches.

Data can be collected by using corpus building, interviews, and questionnaires, but we would also welcome the use of experimental methods and a mixed-method approach for data collection. Meanwhile, previous research mainly studied university students who were learning English as a second or foreign language, hence we also welcome research examining first language writers and students who are learning a second or foreign language other than English.

We believe for the study of the complex phenomenon like academic writing, no single method or tool can suffice. Therefore, we strongly recommend a more creative perspective in data collection and analyzing and interpreting academic writing. Papers can present quantitative data analyses based on experimental design, or qualitative data analyses stemmed from more ethnographic oriented research. Systematic review studies are also welcome. We encourage contributions related, but not restricted to the following topics:

1. Cognitive processes in academic texts’ planning, composing and revisions, and student writers’ individual differences;

2. Metacognition and self-regulation in academic texts’ planning, composing and revisions, and student writers’ individual differences;

3. Motivation and self-efficacy in academic texts’ planning, composing and revisions, and student writers’ individual differences;

4. Linguistic and rhetorical choices, identity construction, and disciplinary knowledge construction;

5. Student writers’ textual production, peer feedback, and interactions with discourse communities;

6. Affordances and challenges of artificial intelligence (AI) in the process of academic textual production in higher education.

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