{"id":386,"date":"2026-02-09T12:54:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T17:54:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/technicalwriting2ed\/?post_type=chapter&p=386"},"modified":"2026-03-26T20:11:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T00:11:46","slug":"5-4-integrating-and-synthesizing-sources","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/technicalwriting2ed\/chapter\/5-4-integrating-and-synthesizing-sources\/","title":{"raw":"5.4 Synthesizing and Integrating Sources","rendered":"5.4 Synthesizing and Integrating Sources"},"content":{"raw":" \r\n
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5.4 Learning Objectives<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

\r\n\r\nThis section focuses on the what<\/strong>, why<\/strong>, and how<\/strong> of synthesizing sources, and will help you\r\n
    \r\n \t
  1. Understand the various purposes for source synthesis<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. Apply the \u201crhetorical moves\u201d involved in synthesizing source materials<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Integrate quoted, paraphrased, and summarized material from sources clearly and effectively to achieve your purpose<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n \r\n

    Synthesizing Sources<\/h1>\r\nSynthesizing sources is arguably the most important writing move you will use in both academic and professional context. Where summarizing involves accurately conveying the main points from a source in condensed form, synthesis entails combining ideas and research from a variety of perspectives, voices and perhaps even fields of study, in order to both summarize these ideas and use them to support and develop your ideas. This can help establish your understanding of the complexity of the issue, determine your own perspective on this issue, and join the \u201cscholarly conversation.\u201d If you\u2019ve read a literature review <\/a>or a meta-analysis<\/a>, then you have seen synthesis in action. If you have checked several online restaurant reviews so that you can recommend the best chicken vindaloo in town to your visiting friend, you have engaged in a kind of source synthesis.\r\n\r\nAs a student, you will engage in synthesis when writing something that draws on information from multiple sources, such as a research essay or report. As a professional, you might combine information from various sources to understand a problem and recommend a solution to a workplace problem.\u00a0Synthesis, as a rhetorical move, allows you to \u201cborrow\u201d credibility and logical support from reliable research sources, to help you convince your reader to accept your position as valid. However, that does not necessarily mean that all of the sources you use will \u201cagree\u201d with or directly support your perspective.\r\n\r\nYou might consult sources that offer a range of approaches to a topic to establish a consensus among experts, or they might indicate what controversies and diverging approaches exist in the literature. You should avoid \u201ccherry picking\u201d, that is, only using sources that directly support your claims; look for a representative sample of sources that allow you to examine and include diverging viewpoints and potentially conflicting research. This approach will provide you with a sophisticated understanding of the complexity of the issue you are writing about. It also might allow you to see where \u201cgaps\u201d exist in the current knowledge and research, providing a potential \u201cspringboard\u201d for your own research or approach.\r\n

    Synthesis \"Moves\"<\/h1>\r\nSynthesizing source material entails a number of specific rhetorical \"moves\" that you might use, depending on your purpose. Scheidt and Middleton[footnote]D. Scheidt and H. Middleton \u201cThe tacit values of sourced writing: A study of source \u2018engagement\u2019 and the FYW Program as community of practice,\u201d WPA. Writing Program Administration<\/em>, vol. 45, no. 1, 2021[\/footnote] identify 5 rhetorical moves that authors use when incorporating ideas from other authors (inform, explain, react, develop, <\/em>and connect)\u00a0 <\/em>and they explain why you might use them:\r\n

    INFORM<\/strong>: you might refer to specific information, facts, definitions, etc., from respected sources to simply provide reliable information and background context that your reader will find credible.<\/p>\r\n

    EXPLAIN<\/strong>: you might summarize, paraphrase, or integrate quotations from a source in a way that moves beyond merely presenting facts. You might note that the sources have something significant to say, or you might be providing an in-depth explanation with help from the source, using the source to help you establish a framework and do argumentative or rhetorical work.<\/p>\r\n

    REACT<\/strong>: you might take a position in relation to the source and react to the source\u2019s ideas. You might use a source that you don\u2019t quite agree with to exemplify a common misunderstanding or set up your alternative perspective; or you might express your reaction by noting that the source ideas are \u201csurprising\u201d or \u201cshocking.\u201d<\/p>\r\n

    DEVELOP<\/strong>: you might build upon or analyze ideas from the sources. You might apply them to a new situation, take them in a slightly new direction, or explore them in more depth.<\/p>\r\n

    CONNECT<\/strong>: you might make connections between two (or more) texts or two (or more) authors to show how ideas relate to each other in a broader context, show a variety of perspectives, or engage in compare and contrast.<\/p>\r\n \r\n

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    EXERCISE 5.2 <\/strong>\u00a0 Read the two excerpts below and identify where the authors are using the synthesis moves\u00a0 of informing, explaining,\u00a0 reacting, developing, and connecting.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<\/header>\r\n

    \r\n\r\n\u201cA recent study showed that, in some contexts, [rhetorical framing] might have an even stronger effect on our reasoning than our own political views. In the study, participants were presented with brief passages about crime in a hypothetical city named Addison. For half of the participants, a few words were altered so that the passage said that crime was a \u201cbeast preying\u201d on the city of Addison. For the other half, crime was described as a \u201cvirus infecting\u201d the city. Simply changing the metaphor in this passage by altering a few words influenced people\u2019s beliefs about crime more than pre-existing differences in opinion between Republicans and Democrats. Those exposed to the \u201cbeast\u201d metaphor were more likely to believe that crime should be dealt with by using punitive measures, whereas those exposed to the \u201cvirus\u201d metaphor were more likely to support reformative measures. One of the most remarkable things about the metaphor\u2019s influence in this study was that it was covert. When participants were asked about what influenced their decision, no one mentioned the metaphor. They instead pointed to other aspects of the passage that were the same for all participants, such as statistics.\u201d\r\n\r\n(Steve Rathje, \"The power of framing: It's not what you say, it's how you say it<\/a>.\" The Guardian<\/em>, July 2017)\r\n\r\n
    \r\n\r\n\u201cPrevious work has demonstrated that using different metaphors can lead people to reason differently about notions like time, emotion, or electricity [6\u201311]. For example, people\u2019s reasoning about electricity flow differed systematically depending on the metaphoric frame used to describe electricity (flowing water vs. teeming crowds) [6]. Such findings on metaphorical framing are grounded in a larger body of work that has established the importance of linguistic framing in reasoning [12], and the importance of narrative structure in instantiating meaning [13]. However, questions about the pervasiveness of the role of metaphor in thinking remain. Critics argue that very little work has empirically demonstrated that metaphors in language influence how people think about and solve real-world problems [14].\r\n\r\nIn this paper we investigate the role of metaphor in reasoning about a domain of societal importance: social policy on crime.\u201d\r\n\r\n(P.H. Thibodeau and L. Boroditsy, \"    Metaphors we think with: The role of metaphor in reasoning<\/a>,\" PLOS One, 23 Feb. 2011)\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\nExamining these excerpts, you might note that Rathje informs<\/em> the reader about the study, explains<\/em> the study\u2019s methodology and findings, reacts<\/em> to the results (\u201cone of the most remarkable things\u2026\u201d), and connects<\/em> it to his overall thesis. (Note that this passage does not include in-text citations, because it is published in an online newspaper, not in an academic journal.) The authors of the second passage (from an academic article) use synthesis to explain, develop<\/em> and connect<\/em> ideas from several other sources in order to set up their own contribution to the scholarly conversation by noting where the gaps are.\r\n

    Applying Synthesis Moves<\/h2>\r\nWhen what you are writing requires research -- say a research essay for school or business proposal for work -- you might synthesize information from sources, applying the inform, explain, react, develop, <\/em>and connect<\/em> strategies, in the following ways:\r\n

    In the Introduction<\/strong>: use sources to establish the background information and context necessary to understand your purpose and the \u201ccontroversy\u201d or \u201cproblem\u201d you are addressing. You will need to include data that helps establish why this issue needs to be addressed, what current impacts are occurring, and who is directly or indirectly impacted.<\/p>\r\n

    Defining your Scope: <\/strong>use sources to justify the approach or framework you are using and the limitations you are applying to your project. For example, you might explain how other researchers have approached the problem, what frameworks or heuristics they have used, how similar solutions have been implemented, demographic data about users or other relevant parties, and how you have determined objectives and constraints for the problem you are addressing.<\/p>\r\n

    Validating and Supporting:<\/strong> use sources to help you support your claims and validate your solution idea. Sources might help you justify specific design features and principles, and convince your reader that your proposed idea will provide measurable benefits. You might include research on similar designs to prove your design is feasible; user experience research to show that your design is \u201cuser-friendly\u201d and accessible; sustainability research to show that your design will not have negative environmental impacts; and so on.<\/p>\r\n

    Addressing Opposition<\/strong>: depending on context, you may need to look at sources that might disagree with your approach or oppose your solution idea. The more you understand why someone might oppose your idea, the stronger you can make your case by addressing their concerns. In some cases, you might need to concede that they have some good arguments that need to be further considered or researched. This also bolsters your credibility as a person who is open to seeing other perspectives and not blindly following only one idea.<\/p>\r\nYou might use a chart like the one below to brainstorm specific ways that you might use your<\/em> secondary sources to support, develop, explain, diverge from or connect ideas in your research essay.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
    Author and Title info<\/th>\r\nMain Thesis or Argument<\/th>\r\nTypes of Evidence Used<\/th>\r\nImportant ideas or quotations<\/th>\r\nPossible uses (inform, react explain, etc)<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
     \r\n\r\n <\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
     \r\n\r\n <\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
     \r\n\r\n <\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\n

    Integrating Sources Using Quotation, Paraphrase and Summary<\/h1>\r\nIntegrating the words and ideas of others coherently and fluently into your own writing can be challenging from a grammatical and structural perspective. Structurally, there are three main ways of integrating source material: quoting<\/strong> directly, paraphrasing<\/strong>, and summarizing<\/strong>. Each of these methods had a set of conventions you should follow.\r\n

    Quoting Sources<\/h2>\r\nDirect quotations are useful when you want to call attention to the specific words or style of language being used by the author as the focus of your analysis, or when the author has stated something in such a way that you really cannot improve on or condense effectively. Quotations should generally be used sparingly because too many quotations can interfere with the flow of ideas and make it seem like you don\u2019t have enough ideas of your own. Quotations must be carefully contextualized both argumentatively and grammatically.\r\n\r\nCONTEXT<\/strong>: A quotation, statistic or bit of data generally does not speak for itself; you must provide context and an explanation for quotations you use. Essentially, you should create a \u201cquotation sandwich\u201d where you\r\n