Schematic Structure of Job Advertisements in English and Persian: A Comparative Study and Preliminary Framework

In this study the researchers intended to investigate the similarities and differences in the schematic structures of English and Persian job advertisements. In order to reach this objective, the researchers selected 20 job advertisements from Washington Post and 20 job advertisements from The Times; and also 20 job advertisements were selected from each of the following Persian newspapers Aseman-e dusti and Sahand. The selected data were analyzed for their moves and sub-moves and a separate X-move schematic structure was proposed for each. The regularities present in the data were calculated manually and an overall schematic structure (structural framework) was proposed for each set of the English and Persian job advertisements. The researchers were then able to compare the two overall schematic structures to investigate the existing similarities and differences. The results indicated that regularity existed in certain moves of the proposed structural frameworks, but there was no specific fixed pattern in their occurrence. That is, there is a difference in the distribution and sequence of the employed moves. Our results were in line with Bhatiaʹs (1993) study in that the proposed schematic structures appear not to vary systematically cross culturally and that more evidence and research are needed in this area.