Beliefs and practices on academic writing in higher education: a literature review

Abstract

This literature review analyzes beliefs and practices about academic writing in Higher Education based on 47 studies published between 2005 and 2024. The analysis identifies five main thematic dimensions: beliefs about academic writing, writing practices, socio-affective factors, disciplinary differences, and competency development. The results reveal a persistent dichotomy between transmissional conceptions, predominant in technical disciplines, and transactional ones, more common in humanities and social sciences. Pedagogical practices oscillate between reproductive and epistemic approaches, significantly influenced by disciplinary context. Socio-affective factors, particularly self-efficacy, and anxiety, emerge as crucial mediators of writing performance. Disciplinary differences evidence the need for differentiated pedagogical approaches that balance disciplinary specificity and generic competencies. Developing writing competencies is a complex process requiring sustained and systematic attention. The research emphasizes the need for comprehensive programs that consider both technical and socio-affective aspects and highlights the importance of longitudinal studies examining the evolution of writing competencies across different disciplinary contexts.