VERBS AS HEDGING DEVICES IN INFORMED CONSENT DOCUMENTS FOR COVID-19 VACCINATION
V. H. Kostenko, Iryna Solohor, Ivanna Znamenska, Ye.Ye. Honcharova · Тrаnscarpathian Philological Studies · 2024
Informed consent documents for COVID-19 vaccination play a crucial role in ensuring ethical and transparent communication with patients.These documents often employ hedging strategies, using language that softens the certainty of information or introduces possibilities of unknown outcomes.This paper explores the role of verbs as hedging devices in informed consent documents for COVID-19 vaccination and identifies the hedging strategies employed through verb usage.The findings demonstrate the lexical hedges are the most common way to express uncertainty in the informed consents approaching to 85% of all hedging, leaving only 15% attributed to non-lexical hedges Modal verbs have been found as the most preferred means for expressing hedging in the texts studied.Modal verbs 'may', 'might', and 'can' found as the most frequent are commonly understood by readers as indicators of possibility with an element of uncertainty that makes them easily interpretable and accessible to a wide audience.We revealed 26 types of lexical verb tokens used in the texts of the most commonly used lexical verbs belong to the category of communication verbs that reflects the inherent nature of informed consent documents, where a significant portion of the text involves expressing information, ideas, and suggestions for patients to consider.Modal and lexical verbs express tentativeness, acknowledging uncertainties without causing alarm, and allowing for flexibility in interpretation.They play a crucial role in downplaying potential risks or uncertainties related to the vaccination process, thereby implementing a threat-minimizing strategy.Another key strategy observed in these texts is the responsibility-shifting strategy, where modal and lexical verbs are usually applied to deflect responsibility away from the writer (healthcare providers) in order to protect the positive face by not making a categorical statement which is debatable regarding the respective issue. Key words: informed consent document, hedging