{"id":1708,"date":"2026-05-10T10:12:47","date_gmt":"2026-05-10T04:42:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/is-it-acceptable-to-use-first-person-pronouns-in-scientific-writing\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T14:37:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T09:07:08","slug":"is-it-acceptable-to-use-first-person-pronouns-in-scientific-writing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.editage.com\/insights\/is-it-acceptable-to-use-first-person-pronouns-in-scientific-writing","title":{"rendered":"Is it acceptable to use first person pronouns in scientific writing?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Novice researchers are often discouraged from using the first-person pronouns “I” and “we” in their scientific writing. The most common reason given is that such language may appear subjective, whereas science demands objectivity. However, this is a misconception. There is no universal rule prohibiting first-person pronouns in scientific writing, and many leading journals and style guides now encourage their appropriate use to enhance clarity and directness.<\/p>\n

What Experts Say About First-Person Pronouns<\/h2>\n

Leading voices in academic writing have challenged the outdated prohibition against first-person pronouns. Here’s what the experts recommend:<\/p>\n

Robert Day and Barbara Gastel<\/h3>\n

(Authors of “How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper”)<\/p>\n

“Because of this [avoiding first person pronouns in scientific writing], the scientist commonly uses verbose (and imprecise) statements such as ‘It was found that’ in preference to the short, unambiguous ‘I found.’ Young scientists should renounce the false modesty of their predecessors. Do not be afraid to name the agent of the action in a sentence, even when it is ‘I’ or ‘we.'”<\/p>\n

American Psychological Association<\/h3>\n

\u201cMany writers believe the \u201cno first-person\u201d myth, which is that writers cannot use first-person pronouns such as \u201cI\u201d or \u201cwe\u201d in an APA style paper<\/a>. This myth implies that writers must instead refer to themselves in the third person (e.g., as \u201cthe author\u201d or \u201cthe authors\u201d). However, APA Style has no such rule against using first-person pronouns and actually encourages their use to avoid ambiguity in attribution!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
APA guidelines on usage of first-person pronouns<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When to Use First-Person Pronouns in Scientific Papers<\/h2>\n

First-person pronouns should be used strategically in specific contexts where they add clarity and directness. Below are the appropriate situations:<\/p>\n

Best Use Cases for First Person<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Use Case<\/strong><\/td>\nExample<\/strong><\/td>\nJournal Section<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Describing your methodology<\/a><\/td>\n“We conducted a randomized controlled trial…”<\/td>\nMethods<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Stating assumptions<\/td>\n“Unlike Day and Gastel, I assumed that…”<\/td>\nMethods\/Discussion<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Explaining decisions made<\/td>\n“We decided to exclude…”<\/td>\nMethods<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Personal observations<\/td>\n“I observed that…”<\/td>\nResults\/Discussion<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Limitations you encountered<\/td>\n“We were unable to access…”<\/td>\nDiscussion<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Future research directions<\/td>\n“In our next study, we will…”<\/td>\nDiscussion<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

General Guidelines<\/h2>\n

When using first-person pronouns, follow these best practices:<\/p>\n