Journal of ELT and Applied Linguistics (JELTAL) Volume 2, Issue—3, September, 2014 ISSN: 2347-6575 www.jeltal.com Page 53 Hedging Strategies in English and Chemistry Masters’ Theses in the University of Cape Coast, Ghana Adamu Musa Department of English, University of Cape Coast ABSTRACT The literature on academic writing maintains that, scientific texts, like any other form of communication, ought to obey certain conventions that characterize the norms of the discourse community. Following this argument, hedging, the technique of presenting claims with caution, precision, moderation, and humility has attracted much scholarly attention. However, a plethora of studies into hedging as an important rhetorical tool in academic writing have concentrated on experts writing, particularly, Research Articles (henceforth, RA) to the neglect of other forms of academic writing. Moving away from RAs, the current study explores the linguistic strategies that are employed as hedging devices in the Introduction and Discussion sections of English and Chemistry masters’ theses in the University of Cape Coat, Ghana, paying attention to their semantic implications. Employing mixed research design, the study uses a total data set of 40 theses (20 each from English and Chemistry). The study, which employs Quirk et al.’s (1985) functional principle for establishing word class and Hyland’s (1998) model as analytical frameworks, concludes that hedging in English and Chemistry masters’ theses is both lexical and grammatical phenomenon, though the use of the former far outweighs the latter. The study serves as a basis for further research in hedging at various levels in students’ writing. Key Words: Hedging, Theses, Ghana 1.0 INTRODUCTION Over the years, investigations into academic writing, particularly linguistically oriented studies of the rhetoric of scientific discourse, have produced abundant information on various fields of scientific inquiry. One area of research which has received considerable attention from scholars in linguistics and its allied fields is hedging, the technique that researchers employ in presenting claims with caution, precision, moderation and humility. The place of this concept as an inevitable rhetorical device in academic writing hinges on the popular belief that scientific texts are not neutral accounts of factual information derived from nature (Bazerman, 1988; Mulkay, 1979; Gilbert, 1976). Based on this premise, academic texts are currently regarded as socially constructed „rhetorical artefacts‟ (Hyland, 1998, p. 16) where, instead of always putting forward information in a straightforward manner, authors often engage in the processes of negotiation and persuasion. For instance, when the accuracy or precision of the information may be subject to debate, authors may wish to formulate their statements cautiously, adhering to central virtues of humility, caution and scientific honesty, normally expected by the scientific community, thus resorting to the strategies of hedging (Varttala, 2001).