Linguistic capital and inequality in aid relations
Linguistic capital and inequality in aid relations
Globalisation processes and the spread of English as a Lingua Franca are closely related. I consider language skills as symbolic capital and focus on the hegemony of English as Lingua Franca in international aid organisations. I argue that more attention must be paid to the role of language and linguistic capital when analysing global inequality and post-colonial power relations. Humanitarian and development organisations have so far received less sociological attention than other aspects of globalisation processes, whereas in the context of development studies, attention to language usually focuses on the ‘discourse of development’ rather than on the role of linguistic capital in multi-lingual settings. Aid work, which includes the transfer of skills and resources, simultaneously addresses and perpetuates global inequalities. Language structures power relations and inequality within aid organisations, in particular between national and international staff. My article is based on qualitative interviews with multi-lingual and mono-lingual aid workers from a wide variety of aid organisations. My article is innovative by demonstrating how linguistic capital intersects with other aspects of inequality in the global context of aid organisations. It makes an important contribution to the understanding of globalisation processes and to post-colonial sociology.
Aid Work, Development, Global Inequality, Humanitarianism, Intercultural Communication, Linguistic Capital, Multilingualism, Translation
38-54
Roth, Silke
cd4e63d8-bd84-45c1-b317-5850d2a362b6
March 2019
Roth, Silke
cd4e63d8-bd84-45c1-b317-5850d2a362b6
Roth, Silke
(2019)
Linguistic capital and inequality in aid relations.
Sociological Research Online, 24 (1), .
(doi:10.1177/1360780418803958).
Abstract
Globalisation processes and the spread of English as a Lingua Franca are closely related. I consider language skills as symbolic capital and focus on the hegemony of English as Lingua Franca in international aid organisations. I argue that more attention must be paid to the role of language and linguistic capital when analysing global inequality and post-colonial power relations. Humanitarian and development organisations have so far received less sociological attention than other aspects of globalisation processes, whereas in the context of development studies, attention to language usually focuses on the ‘discourse of development’ rather than on the role of linguistic capital in multi-lingual settings. Aid work, which includes the transfer of skills and resources, simultaneously addresses and perpetuates global inequalities. Language structures power relations and inequality within aid organisations, in particular between national and international staff. My article is based on qualitative interviews with multi-lingual and mono-lingual aid workers from a wide variety of aid organisations. My article is innovative by demonstrating how linguistic capital intersects with other aspects of inequality in the global context of aid organisations. It makes an important contribution to the understanding of globalisation processes and to post-colonial sociology.
Text
Linguistic Capital - accepted paper 27 August 2018
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 29 July 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 26 October 2018
Published date: March 2019
Keywords:
Aid Work, Development, Global Inequality, Humanitarianism, Intercultural Communication, Linguistic Capital, Multilingualism, Translation
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 424461
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/424461
ISSN: 1360-7804
PURE UUID: fa461f6e-8a54-4838-9d79-667ee0f2b2ef
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Date deposited: 05 Oct 2018 11:37
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 07:02
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