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Active vs. passive voice

Most ecology writing generally uses active first-person voice to create a modern and concise style rather than the more old-fashioned passive voice. For example:

However, the passive voice has its place and you will find that your writing is a mixture of active and passive sentence structures. 

Use the passive voice:

1. When the doer of the action is unknown, irrelevant or obvious.

2. When you want to emphasise the action rather than the doer (eg, methods section).

3. To maintain the logical flow of information.

For further information about when and why to use the active or passive voice see:

Active vs passive voice [Duke Graduate School] 

Writing tips: The value of the passive voice [BioMedical Editor]

 


BioMedical Editor. (n.d.). The value of the passive voice. Retrieved December 16, 2014, from http://www.biomedicaleditor.com/passive-voice.html

 
    
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