User:OhHeckYeah/Jargon

Lead
Original text: "The main trait that distinguishes jargon from the rest of a language is special vocabulary—including some words specific to it and often different senses or meanings of words, that outgroups would tend to take in another sense—therefore misunderstanding that communication attempt."

My edit: The key characteristic that distinguishes jargon from the rest of a language is its specialized vocabulary, which includes terms and definitions of words that are unique to the context. This can lead outgroups to misunderstand communication attempts.

Reasoning: Concision and clarity. Added hyperlink to "outgroups" on Wikipedia for readers to reference.

Original text: "In Russian linguistics, jargon is classified as an expressive form of language, while secret languages are referred to as argots. "

My edit: Deleted line.

Reasoning: Unnecessary and confusing line. What is meant by "Russian linguistics?" Linguistics is the scientific study of language. I am not familiar with this idea that different countries have their own "linguistics." There is no citation to support this, so I deleted this. Furthermore, where did "secret languages" come from? Why is this being introduced here?

Specifics
Original text: "A main driving force in the creation of technical jargon is precision and efficiency of communication, when a discussion must easily range from general themes to specific, finely differentiated details without circumlocution."

My edit: The primary driving forces in the creation of technical jargon are precision, efficiency of communication, and professionalism.

Reasoning: Stating that "jargon enriches everyday vocabulary with meaningful content" feels opinionated and unnecessary within the context of this paragraph.

Original text: "Jargon enriches everyday vocabulary with meaningful content and can potentially become a catchword. "

My edit: Terms or phrases that are considered jargon can become catchwords.

Reasoning: Jargon itself cannot become a catchword, hence my edit.

Original text: "This is usually accepted as an unavoidable trade-off, but it may also be used as a means of social exclusion (reinforcing ingroup–outgroup barriers) or social aspiration (when introduced as a way of showing off)."

My edit: This is usually accepted as an unavoidable trade-off, but it may also be used as a means of social exclusion (reinforcing ingroup–outgroup barriers) or social aspiration (when introduced as a way of demonstrating expertise).

Reasoning: "Showing off" felt informal.

Original text: "Some academics promote the use of jargon-free language, as an audience may be alienated or confused by the technical terminology, and thus lose track of a speaker or writer's broader and more important arguments. "

My edit: Some academics promote the use of jargon-free language, or plain language, as an audience may be alienated or confused by the technical terminology, and thus lose track of a speaker or writer's broader and more important arguments.

Reasoning: Jargon-free language is widely known as and referred to in industry as "plain language."

Fields using the term
Original text: "The term is used, often interchangeably, with the term buzzword when examining organizational culture."

My edit: Delete sentence.

Reasoning: I found no sources that agreed with this statement.

Industry term
Original text: "An industry term... is a type of technical terminology that has a particular meaning in a specific industry. It implies that a word or phrase is a typical one in a particular industry and people working in the respective industry or business will be familiar with and use the term."

My edit: An industry word is a specialized kind of technical terminology used in a certain industry. Industry words and phrases are often used in a specific area, and those in that field know and use the terminology."

Reasoning: Wikipedia discourages direct quotes like this. Wikipedia prefers as little citation as possible, so I reworded this quote and maintained the citation.

Corporate Jargon
The use of jargon in the business world is a common occurrence. The use of jargon in business correspondence reached a high popularity between the late 1800's into the 1950's. In this context, jargon is most frequently used in modes of communication such as emails, reports, and other forms of documentation. Common phrases used in business jargon includes:


 * Common share
 * Dividend
 * KPI (Key Performance Indicator)
 * Pursuant
 * ROI (Return on Investment)
 * SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats)
 * Undersigned

Reasoning: ditto, as per, etc are NOT limited to business contexts. "Please be advised" is not a phrase that should be considered jargon... it is a common phrase in multiple industries--not just business. Left pursuant because the definition is different in this context, making it jargon. Also, changed "business" to "corporate."

Medical jargon
Medicine is rich in scientific terminology that is used amongst medical professionals, making it another common profession where jargon is known to be found. Most patients encounter medical jargon when referring to their diagnosis or when receiving or reading their medication. Some of the most commonly used terms in medical jargon are:


 * Code blue
 * Dyspnea
 * Hematoma
 * Hypertension
 * Palliative care
 * Tachycardia
 * Triage

Reasoning: Deleted unnecessary sentences such as the following: "However, using these terms with patients or non medical professionals has caused issues." Deleted words that were not jargon, but simply the names of medical conditions. "Vertebrae" is not jargon; it is literally the name of a series of bones. Some terms added to this initial list were verbs, not the original term. I tried to include terms that are "complex" words for issues that people can understand.

Legal jargon
Jargon is commonly found in the field of law. These terms are often used in legal contexts such as legal documents, court proceedings, contracts, and more. Some common terms in this profession include:


 * Acquittal
 * Affidavit
 * Adjudication
 * Tort
 * Libel
 * Litigation

Education jargon

 * Capstone project
 * Curriculum
 * ELL (English Language Learner)
 * IEP (Individualized Education Program)
 * Pedagogy
 * PLC (Professional Learning Community)
 * STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

Accessibility and criticism
Original text: "With the rise of the self-advocacy movement within the disability movement, "jargonized" language has been much objected to by advocates and self-advocates." Jargon is largely present in everyday language, in newspapers, government documents, and official forms. Several advocacy organizations work on influencing public agents to offer accessible information in different formats. One accessible format that offers an alternative to jargonised language is "easy read", which consists of a combination of plain English and images.

My edit: With the rise of the self-advocacy within the Disability Rights Movement, "jargonized" language has started to face repeated rejection for being language that is widely inaccessible. However, jargon is largely present in everyday language such as in newspapers, financial statements, and instruction manuals. To combat this, several advocacy organizations are working on influencing public agents to offer accessible information in different formats. One accessible format that offers an alternative to jargonized language is "easy read", which consists of a combination of plain language and images.

Reasoning: Added more context for the alleged "disability movement." Shared the name of the movement in full and hyperlinked the Wikipedia article that explains it. Added a source, citing an article that addresses jargon as being inaccessible language to frame the information introduced in this section. Edited the examples of "jargon that is present in everyday language," as government documents and official forms are not necessarily a part of an individual's everyday reading or correspondence. Added framing terms such as "however" and "to combat this" so that information flows more easily. Changed "plain English" to "plain language," as this is the term currently used in industry when referring to the opposite of jargon.

Original text: "The criticism against jargon can be found in certain fields when responding to specific information."

My edit: The criticism against jargon can be found in certain fields where professionals communicate with individuals with no industry background.

Reasoning: The original sentence does not say anything. I edited this for accuracy. Non-industry professionals are raising concerns about jargonized language because they do not understand information that is being relayed to them. I rewrote this sentence to express this idea. It also frames the example that follows it.

Original text: "In a study done by analyzing 58 patients and 10 radiation therapists, they diagnosed and explained the treatment of a disease to a patient with the use of jargon. It was found that using jargon in the medical field is not the best in communicating the terminology and concepts. Patients tend to be confused about what the treatments and risks were. "

My edit: In a study done by analyzing 58 patients and 10 radiation therapists, professionals diagnosed and explained the treatment of a disease to a patient with the use of jargon. It was found that using jargon left patients confused about what the treatments and risks were, suggesting that jargon in the medical field is not the best in communicating the terminology and concepts.

My reasoning: Replace the vague pronoun "they" for sake of clarity. Reworded the sentence so that the results and implications of the study follow its introduction. This edit was made for the sake of clarity.

Examples --> Jargon glossaries
Rename "examples" to "jargon glossaries." We already have examples of jargon within various industry contexts in this article. An examples section might lead to confusion. This section contains hyperlinks to various jargon glossaries and encyclopedias, leading to my suggestion of a name change.