When To Use Jargon In Technical Writing
Unlike many forms of writing, jargon isn’t a disease to be scorned for most technical documents. In fact, specialized jargon just might be what your writing needs in order to produce the best results.
Jargon is defined as technical terminology specific to a group of professionals. It can comprise of terms used in your industry, in your particular market or even those restricted to within your organization. For technical documents, using jargon is completely appropriate, even recommended, if the target audience is limited to those who can recognize it.
Why do we constantly hear advice, even from integrated lessons in your favorite writing software, that discourages us from injecting jargon into our writing? Because most advice is geared towards writers who create materials for a more general audience. For such types of output, jargon can be destructive element – one that can leave the document confusing, to the point of being incomprehensible.
The decision to use jargon depends on your intended audience. If you’re composing a report for colleagues in your company’s engineering department, for instance, squeezing in the most technical terms is well within your acceptable parameters. In case you’re writing up those reports for the company newsletter, however, steering clear of jargon should be in your best interest.