Abstract

A Research Paper is often defined as a specialized text where research results are published. This seems to be a neutral and naive view, as it does not take into account that the fact of writing and publishing a Research Paper is always a strategic persuasive action. It is not enough to present some results; it is also essential to persuade the audience about their relevance in the context of well-established knowledge as well as in relation to their value. Based on a theoretical, bibliographic, and reflective approach, an alternative is proposed to study the Research Paper. As a main result, the notion of author strategic positioning is introduced in order to account fully and exhaustively for social and discursive aspects underlying knowledge transmission.