3.12 Passive voice and nominalisation

Rationale

These two structures allow the writer to present information in an impersonal way and achieve the objective tone which characterises academic writing.

Passive voice

This useful structure means the writer can not only avoid using the personal pronouns 'I' or 'we', but also put the emphasis on the more important ideas s/he wants to express. This is because, in English, the focus of a sentence is the information which comes before the verb.

Look at the following sentences and decide where the focus of each one lies:

We examined the endosperms under the microscope.
The endosperms were examined under the microscope (by us).

Sentence (a) is in the active voice where 'we' is the focus of the sentence, coming before the verb 'examined'. However the emphasis is better placed on the scientific information, not on the people carrying out the action (the agents). Overuse of the personal pronouns 'I' and 'we' can become intrusive, taking the emphasis away from the more important information.

In sentence (b) 'endosperms' are the focus, coming before the verb 'were examined'. By using the passive voice, the writer is able to write impersonally and put the emphasis on the more important scientific information. It is not even necessary to mention the people carrying out the action, as shown in the example.

Formation of the passive voice

The passive voice is formed with a form of the verb 'be' + the past participle.

Formation of the passive voice
	Active voice		Passive voice
	Singular	Plural	Singular	Plural
*Present*	examines	examine	is examined	are examined
*Simple past*	examined	examined	was examined	were examined
*Present perfect*	has examined	have examined	has been examined	have been examined

Example of a transformation from the active to the passive voice:

An administrative assistant [checks] the students' details after enrolment.
The students' details [are checked] after enrolment (by an administrative assistant).

NOTE: The students' details are more important information than the person checking them, therefore it is appropriate for this sentence to be in the passive. However it is for the writer to decide where s/he wants to put the emphasis. Sometimes the person or people carrying out the action are as important as, or more important than, other information in the sentence and can be the focus.

e.g. Einstein formulated the theory of relativity. (Active voice).

or: The theory of relativity was formulated by Einstein. (Passive)

Nominalisation

This technique involves creating abstract nouns from other parts of speech such as verbs or adjectives. Often quite long and complex noun groups form the subject of the sentence, allowing the writer to put the focus on issues and ideas and to express the complex relationship between these abstract concepts.

Some examples of nominalised forms:

Some common endings for nominalised words are: -tion or -sion; -ment; -ance or ence; -ancy or -ency; -ity; -ness; -al

Verbs: Examples of nominalised forms
Verb	Nominalisation (abstract noun)
Observe	Observation
Persuade	Persuasion
Judge	Judgement
Expect	Expectancy or expectation
Conform	Conformity
Remove	Removal

Adjective: Examples of nominalised forms
Adjective	Nominalisation (abstract noun)
Abundant	Abundance
Frequent	Frequency
Acute	Acuity or acuteness
Aware	Awareness

Notice how the focus shifts from the people to the ideas in the following sentences:

As nurses, we must adhere strictly to the new regulations and get patients' consent before we give them any medication. (Use of active voice).
The new regulations must be strictly adhered to and patients' consent obtained, before any medication is administered (by nurses). (Use of passives)
Strict adherence to the new regulations for patient consent is essential before the administration of any medication. (Use of nominalisation).

In sentence (a), the nurses are very active! As the subject of each of the three clauses, they adhere to the new regulations (1), they get patients’ consent (2), and after that, they give them medication (3). The nurses are the focus of each clause. The use of the pronoun ‘we’ makes for a personalised style of writing.

In sentence (b), the focus shifts away from the nurses and the writing is more impersonal. The use of the passive allows the writer to remove the personal pronoun ‘we’ and to put more emphasis on the information about correct procedures than on the people carrying them out. Once again, there are three clauses in this sentence: the rules must be adhered to (1), and patients’ consent (must be) obtained (2), before any medication is administered (3). Even though it is in the passive, sentence (b) is still more dynamic than sentence (c). This is because verbs show things happening, while abstract nouns denote ideas and states.

There is the same information in sentence 3, but it is all packed into one clause (or simple sentence), with just one finite verb ‘is’. At the same time, the focus is on the abstract ideas with several concepts conveyed in a single noun group: strict adherence to the new regulations for patient consent.

However, while nominalisation allows the writer to express complex ideas and the relationship between them very economically, it also makes for a static and very dense style of writing. Overuse of nominalisation can make the writer’s ideas hard to follow.

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