3.3: Recognizing Patterns of Organization

Identifying the organizational pattern of a text can make it much easier to summarize, particularly for longer texts in which it can be particularly challenging to identify main ideas and important details. In this section, we’ll learn how to identify these and use them to summarize.

A. Identifying Organizational Patterns in Academic Writing

The purpose of academic writing is to present a number of ideas that logically fit together. Writers use an organizational pattern to help organize their ideas in ways that make an argument and help you to understand the material being presented. Organizational patterns can be identified by transitions or "signal words" the author uses. Recognizing the type of pattern can help the reader put all of the facts together and understand what the text is about.

\(\begin{array}{c}\text { ORGANIZATIONAL } \\ \text { PATTERN }\end{array}\) & & SIGNAL wORDS

Classification 

Also, and, another, a number of, as well as, too, besides, first, for example, for instance, furthermore, in addition, in fact, largest, least, moreover, most important, one plus, second, several, the following:

Pro/Con

Discusses advantages and

disadvantages

Pros: advantage, benefit, in favor of,

positive

Definition

Explains the meaning of new words

or phrases

Refers to, can be defined as, means,

consists of, is a term that, is called, is

characterized by

Chronological

Order (Time)

Describes the sequence in which

events occur in time

First, second, later, before, next, as soon
as, after

PRACTICE 1: Identifying Patterns of Organization

For each passage, identify the pattern of organization used by the author.

1. Responsibility, a basic concept of Reality Therapy, is here defined as the ability to fulfill one’s needs, and to do so in a way that does not deprive others of the ability to fulfill their needs. To illustrate, a responsible person is able to give and receive love. If a woman, for example, falls in love with a man, we would expect him either to return her love or to let her know in a considerate way that he appreciates her affection, but does not share her feelings. If he takes advantage of her love, we would not consider him responsible.

A responsible person also does that which gives a feeling of self-worth and a feeling that they are worthwhile to others. They are motivated to strive and perhaps endure privation to attain self-worth. When a responsible person says they will perform a job for us, they will try to accomplish what was asked.

Pattern of Organization:

Why:
2. It would seem, in retrospect, that the prohibition laws of the 1920s actually helped encourage, rather than hinder, illegal activity. Citizens in every section of the country showed nothing but contempt for laws, and any attempt to enforce laws was met with indifference or hostility. Probably the worst effect of the laws was that the control of liquor distribution fell into the hands of organized crime, which resulted in increased criminal violence throughout the country. Rather than decreasing crime, the prohibition laws actually helped to increase it.

Pattern of Organization:

Why:

3. Many high school graduates go straight on to college. Others go to work full-time, then decide later to start college. The graduate who goes off to a job always runs the risk of being unable to let go of that paycheck. It may be too hard to live the lean life of a student again. However, once the person does return to college, they usually bring a maturity that is a big asset in the classroom. True, that student will be older than the others when they finally get that college degree. On the other hand, this older student more often knows from experience what kind of job best suits them. The student is less likely to end up in a make-do job after college.

Pattern of Organization:

Why:

B. Organizational Pattern Practice

Let’s take a look at how we can use organizational patterns to explain the plot of a movie. Avengers: Endgame is three hours long, but we can summarize it in a concise way by using organizational patterns to capture the main elements of the film. Using the organizational pattern, we’ve chosen the most important details and can now use them to write a summary. A lot happens in this movie, but this is the overall gist:

One-Sentence Summary: The Avengers who are left on Earth work together to defeat Thanos and destroy the infinity stones to restore civilization.

Organizational Pattern: Problem/Solution

Problems

• Thanos used the infinity stones to make \(50 \%\) of the population in the universe disappear
• With the infinity stones, Thanos has ultimate power
• Thanos’ current whereabouts are undetermined
• Members of The Avengers and their family members have disappeared

Solutions

• Avengers use the quantum realm to travel back in time before Thanos acquired the infinity stones
• Avengers destroy the infinity stones
• Thanos is destroyed

PRACTICE 1: Organizational Pattern Practice

Use the outline below to summarize one of your favorite pieces of media.
Your Favorite Movie/TV Show/Novel:
One-Sentence Summary:
Organizational Pattern(s):

ORG PATTERN 1:	ORG PATTERN 2:
\(\bullet\)	\(\bullet\)

C. Combining Patterns of Organization

Don’t assume that every important thought in a multi-paragraph reading will be covered by a single organizational pattern. It’s possible for a writer to use one or more organizational patterns and still include important information that is not completely included in the pattern or patterns used to develop the main idea. The test for what’s important is always based on the main idea using questions like "What information do I need in order to fully explain or prove the main idea?"

Example \(\PageIndex{1}\): Cause and Effect plus Comparison and Contrast

A study in Romania suggests that children who are abandoned at birth and placed in state-run institutions can eventually thrive if they leave the institution and are placed in foster care. In fact, children in the study who were placed in foster homes ended up on par emotionally, intellectually, and physically with children of the same age who had grown up with their biological families. In contrast, orphaned children who never left the state-run institutions showed steady declines in their emotional and mental health over the course of their stay. While the study supports the idea that foster care for abandoned children is better than institutional life, it’s worth noting that Romanian institutions have a particularly horrific reputation for neglect. This may well account for the effects of long-term and unrelieved institutionalization upon abandoned children.

The paragraph opens with a clear cause and effect relationship: Orphaned children who enter foster care benefit from leaving the institution, and children who do not enter foster care do not fare as well. Note, however, that the two groups are also contrasted in order to prove the main idea expressed in the first sentence. Children abandoned at birth can thrive if they enter foster care. Thus, as the transitional phrase "in contrast" suggests, comparison and contrast is the second pattern used to organize the material.

Example \(\PageIndex{2}\): Classification based on Cause and Effect with Definition

According to economists, there are four different types of unemployment, each with its own specific cause. The first type of unemployment is seasonal. Workers in certain industries-such as agriculture, resorts and retail-are subject to fluctuating demands for their services because of peak and off-peak times in these industries. This type of unemployment is regular, predictable, and relatively short-term. The second type of unemployment is referred to as frictional. It is caused by school and college graduates seeking jobs for the first time and by workers changing jobs. These people usually remain unemployed for just a short time while they seek a position. A third type of unemployment is structural, caused, for example, by the use of new machinery, such as robots, that can perform simple repetitive tasks. Workers displaced by structural changes often experience long-term unemployment while seeking a job that matches their skills and salary expectations. The last type of unemployment is cyclical. This kind is produced by the overall business cycle. Cyclical unemployment increases in recessions; it decreases during growth periods.

The opening sentence provides two sets of clues. The phrase "four different types of unemployment" suggests classification, mainly because the sentence suggests that these four types comprise all the possible kinds of unemployment. If it did not, then simple listing would be the better answer. However, the phrase "each with its own specific cause" implies the cause and effect pattern. In addition, the italics for the names of the four types followed by a specific definition make it clear that the definition pattern is also in play.