Analyzing languages for specific purposes discourse

In the last 20 years, technological advancement and increased multidisciplinarity has expanded the range of data regarded as within the scope of languages for specific purposes (LSP) research and the means by which they can be analyzed. As a result, the analytical work of LSP researchers has developed from a narrow focus on specialist terminology coupled with generic discourse analysis to a wide-ranging set of perspectives involving multiple methods and databases. This article aims to explore this 20-year expansion process by examining the development of the domains of LSP research in which certain methods have been particularly productive and by providing an outline of how each method has been applied within LSP research. Among the areas examined are lexical and register analysis, genre analysis, conversation analysis, ethnography, and multimethod approaches. It is argued that developments in LSP analysis have generally been in the direction of greater contextualization of discourse, moving away from a concentration on lexicogrammatical features of text to include analysis of spoken and written discourses of specific domains. The article concludes with some comments on the needs, priorities, and challenges for future research in the analysis of LSP