In this video, we are going to look at critical writing specifically the difference between
descriptive writing and critical writing. A lack of critical writing is one of the most common
issues we encounter when we review dissertations and thesis and research papers here at Grad
Coach. So today we will unpack the thorny issue of critical writing to help you ace your project. If
you are new to the oftentimes intimidating world of academic research and writing be sure to hit
that subscribe button for loads of plain language actionable advice. Also if you are currently
working on a dissertation or thesis be sure to grab our free dissertation templates which guide
you through each chapter step by step. You can find the links to those in the description below.
All right so let us jump into it. Writing critically is one of the most important
skills you will need to master for your academic journey but what exactly does this mean? Well,
when it comes to writing at least for academic purposes there are two main types descriptive
writing and critical writing. Critical writing is also sometimes referred to as analytical writing
so we will use these two terms interchangeably. Now to understand what constitutes critical or
analytical writing it is useful to compare it against its opposite descriptive writing. So let
us have a little showdown, descriptive versus critical. At the most basic level descriptive
writing merely communicates the what, where when or who in other words it describes a thing, place,
time or person. It does not consider anything beyond that or explore the impact, importance or
meaning of the situation. Here is an example of a descriptive sentence. Yesterday the President
unexpectedly fired the Minister of Finance. As you can see this sentence just states what
happened when it happened and who was involved, classic descriptive writing. Contrasted to this
critical writing takes things a step further and unveils the so what. Basically, it explained the
impact or consequence of a given situation. Let us stick with the same event and look at an example
of analytical writing. The President's unexpected firing of the well-respected Finance Minister
had an immediate negative impact on investor confidence this led to a sharp decrease in the
value of the local currency, especially against the US dollar. This devaluation means that all
dollar-based imports are now expected to rise in cost thereby raising the cost of living for
citizens and reducing disposable income. As you can see in this example the descriptive version
only tells us what happened the President fired the Finance Minister whereas the critical version
goes on to discuss some of the impacts of the President's actions. Ideally, critical writing
should always link back to the broader objectives of the paper or project explaining what each thing
or event means in relation to those objectives. In a dissertation or thesis, this would involve
linking the discussion back to the research aims, objectives and research questions. Sounds a bit
fluffy and conceptual well let us take a look at an example. If your research aims involved
understanding how the local environment impacts demand for speciality imported vegetables you
would need to explain how the devaluation of the local currency means that the imported vegetables
would become more expensive relative to locally farmed options. This in turn would likely have
a negative impact on sales as consumers would turn to cheaper local alternatives. So as you
can see critical or analytical writing goes beyond just describing that is what descriptive writing
covers and instead focuses on the meaning of things, events and situations. Within a research
context a dissertation or a thesis critical writing links these things to the research aims,
objectives and research questions the golden thread. If this sounds a bit foreign you can
learn more about the golden thread and how that all fits together in this video. Alright so as I
have mentioned descriptive writing focuses on the what while critical writing focuses on the so what
the meaning. To make this distinction a little more tangible let us look at how this plays out in
a typical dissertation or research project. Within a literature review, descriptive writing would
explain what a theory, author or journal article said whereas critical writing would explain how
that is relevant to the key issues and research questions. Similarly, within a methodology
chapter, descriptive writing would state which methods were used whereas analytical writing
would explain why these methods were relevant and justified in light of the specific research aims.
Lastly, within a discussion chapter, descriptive writing would merely state a relationship between
two variables whereas critical writing would explain what this relationship means in terms of
the research questions how it compares to existing research and if it contrasts with the literature
why this might be. So as you can see critical writing goes deeper scratching below the surface
to extract the meaning and impact of things. So does this mean you should avoid descriptive
writing altogether, not quite. For the most part, you will need some descriptive writing to lay the
foundation for the critical, analytical writing. You will usually need to state the what before
you can discuss the so what. Therefore description is simply unavoidable and in fact quite essential
but you do want to keep it to a minimum and focus your word count on the analytical side
of things. As you write a good rule of thumb is to identify every what in other words every
descriptive point you make and then check whether it is accompanied by a so what. In other words a
critical conclusion regarding its meaning or impact. Of course, this will not always be
necessary as some conclusions are fairly obvious and go without saying but this basic practice
should help you minimise description maximise analysis and most importantly earn you marks.
If you enjoyed the video please hit that like button and leave a comment. For more
videos like this check out the Grad Coach channel and subscribe for plain language
actionable research tips and advice. Also if you are looking for one-on-one support
with your research project be sure to check out our private coaching service
where we hold your hand throughout the research process step by step. You can
learn more about that and book a free initial consultation at gradcoach.com.