IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/jintbs/v45y2014i9p1133-1151.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How non-native English-speaking staff are evaluated in linguistically diverse organizations: A sociolinguistic perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Martyna Śliwa

    (Essex Business School, University of Essex, Colchester, UK)

  • Marjana Johansson

    (Essex Business School, University of Essex, Colchester, UK)

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of evaluations of non-native speaking staff’s spoken English in international business settings. We adopt a sociolinguistic perspective on power and inequalities in linguistically diverse organizations in an Anglophone environment. The interpretive qualitative study draws on 54 interviews with non-native English-speaking staff in 19 UK business schools. We analyze, along the dimensions of status, solidarity and dynamism, the ways in which non-native speakers, on the basis of their spoken English, are evaluated by themselves and by listeners. We show how such evaluations refer to issues beyond the speaker’s linguistic fluency, and have consequences for her or his actions. The study contributes to the literature on language and power in international business through offering fine-grained insights into and elucidating how the interconnected evaluative processes impact the formation and perpetuation of organizational power relations and inequalities. It also puts forward implications for managing the officially monolingual, yet linguistically diverse organizations.

Suggested Citation

  • Martyna Śliwa & Marjana Johansson, 2014. "How non-native English-speaking staff are evaluated in linguistically diverse organizations: A sociolinguistic perspective," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 45(9), pages 1133-1151, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:jintbs:v:45:y:2014:i:9:p:1133-1151
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/jibs/journal/v45/n9/pdf/jibs201421a.pdf
    File Function: Link to full text PDF
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/jibs/journal/v45/n9/full/jibs201421a.html
    File Function: Link to full text HTML
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Devi Vijay & Vivek G. Nair, 2022. "In the Name of Merit: Ethical Violence and Inequality at a Business School," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 179(2), pages 315-337, August.
    2. Helene Tenzer & Siri Terjesen & Anne-Wil Harzing, 2017. "Language in International Business: A Review and Agenda for Future Research," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 57(6), pages 815-854, December.
    3. Päivi Karhunen & Anne Kankaanranta & Tiina Räisänen, 2023. "Towards a Richer Understanding of Language and Identity in the MNC: Constructing Cosmopolitan Identities Through “English”," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 63(3), pages 507-530, June.
    4. Sousa-Filho, José Milton de & Matos, Stelvia & da Silva Trajano, Samara & de Souza Lessa, Bruno, 2020. "Determinants of social entrepreneurial intentions in a developing country context," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 14(C).
    5. Vesa Peltokorpi, 2023. "The “language” of career success: The effects of English language competence on local employees’ career outcomes in foreign subsidiaries," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(2), pages 258-284, March.
    6. Drori, Israel & Manos, Ronny & Santacreu-Vasut, Estefania & Shenkar, Oded & Shoham, Amir, 2018. "Language and market inclusivity for women entrepreneurship: the case of microfinance," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 395-415.
    7. Vesa Peltokorpi & Markus Pudelko, 2021. "When more is not better: A curvilinear relationship between foreign language proficiency and social categorization," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(1), pages 78-104, February.
    8. Nurmi, Niina & Koroma, Johanna, 2020. "The emotional benefits and performance costs of building a psychologically safe language climate in MNCs," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 55(4).
    9. Zilber, Tammar B., 2015. "Turning a disadvantage into a resource: Working at the periphery," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 423-430.
    10. Natalie Victoria Wilmot, 2024. "Language as a Source of Epistemic Injustice in Organisations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 195(2), pages 233-247, November.
    11. Ting Liu, 2018. "The Review of Language Studies in International Business: Suggestions and Future Directions for Japan," Discussion Papers in Economics and Business 18-30, Osaka University, Graduate School of Economics.
    12. Back, Hilla & Piekkari, Rebecca, 2024. "Language-based discrimination in multilingual organizations: A comparative study of migrant professionals’ experiences across physical and virtual spaces," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 59(3).
    13. Laura J. Reeves & Alexandra Bristow, 2024. "Political Organisational Silence and the Ethics of Care: EU Migrant Restaurant Workers in Brexit Britain," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 194(4), pages 825-844, November.
    14. Barner-Rasmussen, Wilhelm & Gaibrois, Claudine & Wilmot, Natalie Victoria, 2024. "Perfection, hybridity or shutting up? A cross-country study of how language ideologies shape participation in international business," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(1).
    15. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Dieleman, Marleen & Hirsch, Paul & Rodrigues, Suzana B. & Zyglidopoulos, Stelios, 2021. "Multinationals’ misbehavior," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(5).
    16. Michalski, Marina P. & Śliwa, Martyna, 2021. "‘If you use the right Arabic…’: Responses to special language standardization within the BBC Arabic Service’s linguascape," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(5).
    17. Stacey Fitzsimmons & Mustafa F. Özbilgin & David C. Thomas & Stella Nkomo, 2023. "Equality, diversity, and inclusion in international business: A review and research agenda," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(8), pages 1402-1422, October.
    18. Hokkinen, Maria & Barner-Rasmussen, Wilhelm, 2023. "Refugees' language learning and career aspirations: An agentic lens," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 29(5).
    19. Welch, Catherine & Piekkari, Rebecca, 2017. "How should we (not) judge the ‘quality’ of qualitative research? A re-assessment of current evaluative criteria in International Business," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(5), pages 714-725.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:jintbs:v:45:y:2014:i:9:p:1133-1151. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.palgrave-journals.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.