Just like in Kate Mckinney’s article, refraining from the use of first person or using “I” helps keep your writing objective. It is something that is typically important in all levels of school. Currently in college, all my psychology classes taught me to refrain from the the use of first person with their research papers. It’s agreed upon that it needs to be factual and using first person can take that away for a more opinionated piece. However, sometimes that opinion can help a paper.
Importance of First Person
First person can help with clarifying a statement or fact. It allows one to help restate a quote or explanation of that said quote. If we were to talk about papers or writing about something you own, first person is absolutely important in stating that the content discussed is your own writing. Having the writer’s opinion can be helpful in further exploring any topic. It can allow further discussion that can be then used to support a point made in any paper.
Although, being able to use first person or at least understanding its uses can help with knowing when not to use it. Excessively using first person in a paper can be redundant and almost all the time unnecessary. It should be used sparingly and not to just promote your own opinion without any actual facts to back them up. I just noticed that I kept being redundant in my last sentence and that is a great example of what not to do for a research paper of any kind.
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