Genre, Identity, and the Brain: Insights from Neuropsychology

The article explores several perspectives on the interconnection between genre and identity, an issue that has generated significant scholarship in rhetorical genre studies. It suggests that current work in neuroplasticity—that is, changes in the brain that can occur through learning and experience—complicates and problematizes the issue and is important to introduce into conversations about genre. Utilizing advanced brain technology, recent neuropsychological studies indicate that certain skills and experiences that contribute to identity formation can now be discerned in the brain but that the brain can change frequently in a variety of settings. These studies thus suggest that identity is not an essentialized or static construct. Rather, it should be viewed as multifaceted, altering frequently in response to various environmental factors. The article argues that although genres, in particular academic genres, may have at least some influence on identity, the interconnections are complex and fluid, can be understood in terms of performativity, and can be influenced by student agency. It also emphasizes the importance of addressing genre and metacognitive awareness in the classroom as a means of enabling students to understand and choose the identities they wish to assume.