The present study examined the frequency and type of hedging devices adopted in the Discussion section of Chemistry Research Articles (RAs) written by Persian and English native writers. In so doing, 240 Chemistry RAs (120 written by native Persian writers and 120 by native English writers), published between 2013 to 2015 in accredited nationally- and internationally-indexed journals, were randomly selected and analyzed based on Salager-Meyer's (1994) taxonomy of hedging devices. The results of the Chi-square analysis indicated that there was a significant difference in the use of hedging devices in the Discussion section of the Chemistry RAs written by Persian native writers and those written by their English native counterparts. The possible reasons for this significant difference were investigated by interviewing 28 native Persian writers of Chemistry RAs having published in various sub-fields of Chemistry. The content analysis of the interviews and the coding of the transcribed data indicated that the main reasons for native Persian writers' lower use of hedging devices were lack of awareness of the use of hedging devices, cultural differences and issues, lack of linguistic knowledge, and the personality of the writers respectively.
