<![CDATA[This study investigates the rhetorical structures realized in the Background of the Study sections of EFL master’s theses using Swales’ (1990, 2004) Create-A-Research-Space (CARS) model. Unlike previous studies that primarily focused on move identification, this study examines rhetorical structures in terms of moves and steps as well as their frequency, sequence, and completeness. Employing a qualitative genre-analysis approach, the study analysed 49 Background of the Study sections selected from EFL master’s theses. The data were coded using Bunton’s adaptation of the CARS model to identify rhetorical moves and steps and subsequently analysed for their frequency, sequence, and completeness. The findings reveal that all three CARS moves are present, with Move 1 (Establishing a Territory) dominating the corpus and accounting for 73% of all move occurrences. Within this move, Step 3 (Reviewing Previous Research) and Step 2 (Making Topic Generalizations) occur most frequently. In contrast, Moves 2 and 3 are less frequently realized and are often only partially developed. Furthermore, 45 out of 49 theses (91.8%) follow the conventional Move 1–Move 2–Move 3 sequence, indicating a strong tendency toward the expected rhetorical progression. However, considerable variation exists in the completeness of move realization, particularly in establishing research gaps and justifying the need for the study. These findings suggest that EFL master’s students generally follow the conventional rhetorical organization of the Background of the Study but vary substantially in realizing its communicative purposes. The findings further indicate that rhetorical effectiveness depends not only on structural conformity but also on the extent to which research gaps, justifications, and significance are rhetorically developed. The study contributes to genre-analysis research by providing empirical evidence on rhetorical structures and patterns in EFL master’s thesis writing and offers pedagogical implications for academic writing instruction and thesis supervision.]]>
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