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Publishing in English or another language: An inclusive study of scholar’s language publication preferences in the natural, social and interdisciplinary sciences

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Listed:
  • Daniel Stockemer

    (University of Ottawa)

  • Michael J. Wigginton

    (University of Ottawa)

Abstract

To what extent has English become the dominant language of scientific communication? What factors push non-native speakers to publish their research in English rather than their native language? Using a survey of more than 800 authors of scientific papers in Springer Nature journals we find that the average non-anglophone researcher makes approximately 60% of their journal submissions in English. This percentage varies across disciplines, regions, and age groups, with younger scholars, Europeans, and those in the natural sciences favouring English more heavily. Finally, we find that the belief that publishing in English will increase the reputation of one’s work is a primary motivator; in contrast, perceived institutional pressures to publish in English do not seem to influence researchers’ language choice.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel Stockemer & Michael J. Wigginton, 2019. "Publishing in English or another language: An inclusive study of scholar’s language publication preferences in the natural, social and interdisciplinary sciences," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 118(2), pages 645-652, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:scient:v:118:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s11192-018-2987-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s11192-018-2987-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Irene López-Navarro & Ana I. Moreno & Miguel Ángel Quintanilla & Jesús Rey-Rocha, 2015. "Why do I publish research articles in English instead of my own language? Differences in Spanish researchers’ motivations across scientific domains," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 103(3), pages 939-976, June.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Li Yan & Wang Zhiping, 2023. "Mapping the Literature on Academic Publishing: A Bibliometric Analysis on WOS," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(1), pages 21582440231, March.
    3. Adriana Bin & Sergio Salles-Filho & Ana Carolina Spatti & Jesús Pascual Mena-Chalco & Fernando Antonio Basile Colugnati, 2022. "How much does a Ph.D. scholarship program impact an emerging economy research performance?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(12), pages 6935-6960, December.
    4. Gerhard Reichmann & Christian Schlögl, 2022. "On the possibilities of presenting the research performance of an institute over a long period of time: the case of the Institute of Information Science at the University of Graz in Austria," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(6), pages 3193-3223, June.
    5. Václav Linkov & Kieran O’Doherty & Eunsoo Choi & Gyuseog Han, 2021. "Linguistic Diversity Index: A Scientometric Measure to Enhance the Relevance of Small and Minority Group Languages," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(2), pages 21582440211, April.
    6. Valentina Della Corte & Giovanna Del Gaudio & Fabiana Sepe & Simone Luongo, 2021. "Destination Resilience and Innovation for Advanced Sustainable Tourism Management: A Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-19, November.
    7. Xiatinghan Xu, 2023. "Options in the (Semi-)Periphery: A Review of Multilingual Scholars’ Choices of Topics, Methodologies, and Theories in Research and Publishing," Publications, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-21, November.

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