Cognitive load of L2 academic writing in L2 English vs. L1 plus translation

GARCÍA, ADOLFO M.; DELORME BENITES, ALICE; NUÑEZ, LEONARDO; EHRENSBERGER-DOW, MAUREEN; ANDERMATT, KATRIN; NORMA, FONSECA; TEIXEIRA, ANDRÉ LUIZ; ALVES, FABIO; PAGANO, ADRIANA; FERREGUETTI, KICILA; SCHAUB-TORSELLO, ROMINA

Germersheim

Congreso; 2nd International Congress on Translation, Interpreting and Cognition; 2019

Johannes Gutenberg University

Social inclusion has become a moral imperative throughout Europe, and reducing inequalities is a priority goal worldwide. In this context, it runs counter to principles of equality and sustainability that inadequate proficiency in English might be silencing voices in parts of the world that do not have the resources for implementing language proficiency policies. Other issues also arise in this context, such as the extent to which academic disciplines function effectively when English is enforced as the working language regardless of researchers? proficiency levels in that language. Evidence from neuroscience suggests that cognitive load, negative emotions and stress ? which have all been associated with the use of foreign languages ? trigger an inhibitory mechanism that encourages avoidance. This can result, in turn, in exclusion from participation and decision-making. Academics with lower levels of proficiency in English may not achieve the recognition that their work deserves simply because they publish in other languages or they have trouble having their work accepted by mainstream English-language journals (e.g. Carli & Ammon 2007; Drubin & Kellogg 2012). For example, well-respected scholars from Latin American countries sometimes find it difficult to achieve the level of academic English that the top-tier journals in their disciplines demand (see Fradkin 2017), and early-stage researchers often struggle to have their English-language submissions to international conferences accepted. Swiss researchers seem to find it easier to participate in scientific discourse in English, perhaps because of the longer tradition of English teaching in that country or the closer cultural proximity to English academic writing norms (see also Bennett 2014).