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Janice Lauer Annotated Bibliography Books

In their book, Asher and Lauer discuss various methods of inquiry and argue that empirical research plays an increasingly important role in composition studies. They argue a multimodal approach to research is appropriate for composition studies’ “complex domain” (7). They advocate for a “reciprocal use of both experimental and descriptive research” (174). Asher and Lauer focus on research methods that come from the fields of psychology and anthropology. The authors stress the importance of measurement and statistics but do not attempt to give instruction in these mathematical areas. The book outlines common empirical research designs and practices, which include case studies, ethnographies, sampling and surveys, quantitative descriptive studies, prediction and classification studies, measurements, true and quasi-experiments, meta-analyses, and program evaluations. Lauer and Asher break up their discussion of each design into procedures, which are “selection of subjects, formulation of hypotheses or questions, data collection, variable identification, and conclusions,” and the authors posit each design and practice within specific composition studies (20). They hope to aid readers and educators who have little or no knowledge of empirical research, so they can understand the different types of research and choose an appropriate research method for themselves. Finally, they wish to further enlighten readers who are familiar with empirical research in ways that will impact their own research.

This textbook, which came out of “years of investigating how writers work,” intends to offer “direct help to writers of all ages” (2). The authors view writing as a way of learning, a multimodal process, a whole-brained activity, and as a record of meaning. They give students and readers four worlds of writing: the private world, the public world, the college world, and the work world. The private world is described as “the world of meaningful places,” filled with people “we care about” (5). The public world is the place of the media and the issues of society. The college world is made of classes and courses with notes, reports, papers and exams, and the working world is the “the world of jobs, careers, and professions” (5). The book positions writing aims or goals (expressive aims, persuasive aims, expository aims, or a combination of aims) within the four worlds. The authors offer help to students by addressing, providing examples of, and guiding students through real writing situations. Each chapter, focusing on one writing aim and one writing world, consists of sections on guiding questions and potential situations, exploration, focus and situation, audience and modes of organization, and guidelines for revision. The book also provides readers with a guide to editing and sentence combining.

In this reference book, Lauer gives an overview of the history of invention, a major rhetorical component. Her overview “stretches back to the sophists” and includes “a narrative of developments in intentional theory since the mid-twentieth century” (1). Lauer addresses the relationship between theories on invention and composition pedagogy. She also defines terms dealing with invention from classical to present-day discussions. The books main focus is to outline the scholarly debates surrounding invention and composition pedagogy. She narrates debates over invention’s nature, purpose, and epistemology, such as arguments “over the types of strategies, tactics, heuristics, or guides that best facilitate invention” (119). The book also discusses the issues of inventional pedagogy, which focus on whether or not hermeneutics or heuristics are effective approaches. Lauer concludes her book with an extensive glossary of terms dealing with invention and an annotated bibliography of works on rhetorical invention.

In their book, Lauer and Atwill examine the “status of research in rhetorical invention at the beginning of the millennium”(xi). Lauer says that for research on rhetorical invention to “continue and flourish, it must remain sensitive to shifts in epistemology, ethics, and politics”(x). They discuss what they see as the new focus in invention theories—theory instead of practice. The essays come from many perspectives and assess the role of invention or the ways invention challenges aspects of these perspectives and approaches. Many of the essays grapple with and challenge postmodern ideas, which have problemitized the study of invention in many ways, such as “disrupting the rhetoric triangle” (16). Other essays focus on rhetoric’s civic functions and the place of invention in institutions and communities. The final essays analyze invention from a historical perspective, by tracing the “transformation of writing from a craft and functional skill to an intellectual enterprise” and examining Vico’s triangular invention (190).