抄録
When writing research papers, native English writers tend to use hedging to soften their claims and protect themselves against criticism from readers. However, non-native English writers generally use fewer hedges in their articles than native English writers. To clarify this discrepancy, this study investigated how hedging was introduced in a total of 10 academic writing textbooks used by upper-intermediate and advanced Japanese learners of English. The study consists of two components; the first investigation focused on the extent to which these textbooks provided instructions on the use of hedging, while the second investigation focused on how frequently hedging was actually presented in the textbooks. The results showed that the use of hedging was not directly introduced in some investigated textbooks although it was adequately used in sample paragraphs and essays. The explanations on hedging and the number of relevant exercises varied among the textbooks. These findings highlight instructional areas that require additional focus. As hedging is used in English research papers and learners of English study various lexical hedges during the early stages of learning, teachers need to discuss its functions in more detail to help learners raise their awareness of using English hedges appropriately in the academic context.
https://ror.org/03cxys317 
