The Dutch Journal of Applied Linguistics (DuJAL) is the official journal of the Dutch Association of Applied Linguistics (Anéla). It publishes research on (second) language use, learning, teaching and policy and particularly values both theoretically and practically driven research that is of societal relevance. Read more about Dujal's scope and mission here. DuJAL encourages open science, allows for publication of instruments and data, and publishes on a rolling basis.
Why should I care? Research ethics in the field of adult L2 Literacy
The aim of research ethics is to ensure that research is conducted responsibly, with respect for the rights, dignity and wellbeing of participants. This viewpoint paper describes ethical challenges that can arise when conducting research with adult migrants who are learning an additional language (L2), while also acquiring literacy for the first time. Anchored in our own experiences, we reflect on how an ethics of care perspective corresponds to the relational and contextual realities of our research. Through this lens, we advocate for deeper consideration of the responsibilities and responsiveness of researchers and ethics committees when assessing and addressing the potential vulnerabilities of participants. In this paper we offer the following viewpoints for consideration: Standard institutional (macro) research ethics procedures are often inappropriate when involving adult L2 literacy learners in research. Ethics procedures do not prepare you for the reflexive, micro-ethical decision-making that is usually required when conducting research with these learners, and can create barriers for inclusive research practices. Ethical procedures and practices should embrace an ethics of care framework, encouraging caring conduct throughout the research process and in consideration of all involved.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Louise Shepperd, Dr. Kaatje Dalderop https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The fine balancing act: Tension between macro and micro ethics -A response to “Why should I care? Research ethics in the field of adult L2 literacy”
There are increasing interests around research ethics which are reflected through the ongoing dedicated conferences, edited volumes and journal special issues. While there is no shortage of “formal” guidance, e.g. the Singapore Statement on Research Integrity (2010; Resnik and Shamoo, 2011), the British Educational Research Association’s Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research (BERA, 2024), and the British Association for Applied Linguistics’ Recommendations on Good Practice in Applied Linguistics (BAAL, 2021), the article “Why should I care? Research ethics in the field of adult L2 literacy” by Shepperd and Dalderop serves as a solemn reminder that the current ethics and governance structure in the “Global North” context is far from perfect. In this response piece, I discuss some of the issues highlighted by the vignettes shared by Shepperd and Dalderop. I echo and extend their call for the practice of ethics of care, and the importance of raising awareness among researchers, ethics reviewing committee, as well as gatekeepers including editors and reviewers at the publication of end of research cycle.
Copyright (c) 2026 Alex Ho-Cheong Leung https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Academic vocabulary size as a predictor for early academic achievement - A case study of an easy-to-administer, low-stakes, post-entry test
This study investigates the predictive value of an academic vocabulary size screening test in Dutch for early academic achievement in higher education, in a context where Dutch is the predominant L1 of instruction. The research compares the performance of an academic vocabulary size screening test with a general vocabulary counterpart, revealing that the academic test exhibits slightly stronger reliability and similar associations with personal and educational characteristics, often with more pronounced effect sizes. Regression analyses demonstrate that academic vocabulary size significantly contributes to predicting Grade Point Average (GPA) and Cumulative Study Efficiency (CSE). However, prior secondary education remains the most critical predictor of academic achievement. The findings suggest that an academic vocabulary size screening test can be a valuable tool for supporting the initial success of incoming higher education students.
Copyright (c) 2025 Pieterjan Bonne, Jordi Casteleyn https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Accessibility, researcher training, and sampling: A care-ful approach
In this contribution, we argue that our research should matter to the people we collect data from. This requires us to consider how we publish our results, how we educate scholars within our community, and how we sample from various populations.
Copyright (c) 2026 Scott Sterling, Merja Kytö, Luke Plonsky, Kate Yaw, Tove Larsson https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
How Should I Care: Research Ethics and Its Tensions in Participatory Action Research
In Shepperd and Dalderop (forthcoming)’s viewpoint Why should I care? Research ethics in the field of adult L2 Literacy, the authors make three important assertions regarding research ethics with so called vulnerable participants. This response considers the tensions explored by the authors, in light of my experience conducting a Participatory Action Research (PAR) project with refugee women in the Netherlands.
Copyright (c) 2026 Amber I Bartlett https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This is a reflection on a paper by Shepperd and Dalderop, ‘Why Should I Care? Research Ethics in the Field of Adult L2 Literacy.’ I agree with their analysis that there is often a 'gap' between formal ethics procedures and actual 'good research' as it is understood in practice. I think this 'gap' extends more generally and I offer some brief thoughts on possible reconceptualizations of 'autonomy', 'informed consent' and 'virtue' that might be relevant for research ethics.
Copyright (c) 2026 Thomas R.V. Nys https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Gatekeeping and gate-opening: Ethical and reflexive research with LESLLA stakeholders
With their self-reflective article and vignettes, Shepperd and Dalderop provide valuable insights into their personal quest for ethical and reflexive research and make an important contribution to research ethics in applied linguistics. In our viewpoint, we would like to elaborate on their reflections on informed consent and voluntary participation by providing our thoughts on potential gate-openers/ gate-opening in LESLLA research. Their article considers three core areas of ethical care (consent, participation and minimising harm while optimising beneficence) to be exercised in LESLLA research and frames these as “layers of vulnerability” (see Luna, 2019). Similarly to Shepperd and Dalderop, we navigated these layers of vulnerability in our individual LESLLA research contexts in Norway (Live), Australia (Skye and Jemima) and Finland (Eva) through various institutional and research gatekeepers and will discuss relevant personal and contextualized reflections of our own in this viewpoint.
Copyright (c) 2026 Eva Malessa, Skye Playsted, Jemima Rillera Kempster, Live Grinden https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Tussen jij en jouw - de spelling van homofone werkwoorden voor het gereduceerd bezittelijk en persoonlijk voornaamwoord je
The number of verb-spelling errors decreases as students’ education level increases (Borsten & Jongenelen, 2012). However, even for the best students in Dutch secondary education, the spelling of homophonic verbs before reduced pronoun je ‘you/your’ remains a problem, as the pronoun may be either the reduced form of personal pronoun jij ‘you’ or the possessive pronoun jouw ‘your’. This affects the spelling of the preceding verb: it gets a final –t or not. In this contribution, we analysed the legal framework, compared teaching methods, and performed quantitative analyses on a large set of students’ spellings of verbs to test possible associations between spelling errors in homophonic verbs and the two functions of the reduced pronoun je, taking into account education level, and education stage. The results show that homophonic verbs preceding je indeed contain significantly more spelling errors than other homophonic verbs. Accordingly, we formulate recommendations for Dutch language education.
Copyright (c) 2025 Alex Reuneker, Mette Rebel https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Newly Arrived Migrant Students’ perceptions of second language learning conditions in Emergency Remote Teaching: the case of Flanders
When Newly Arrived Migrant Students (NAMS) enter their country of arrival, they are expected to get familiarized with the new educational system, while simultaneously acquiring the language of instruction. Within this context, comprehensible input and meaningful interaction are needed to effectively acquire a second language. While educational systems worldwide switched to Emergency Remote Teaching due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, such online learning environments often fail to meet these language learning conditions adequately. We investigated NAMS’ perceptions of second language learning conditions during online learning through six semi-structured focus groups with 23 NAMS. Results show that participants encountered greater difficulties in understanding their teachers’ input in online classes. Although alternative input channels, such as video recordings, reportedly did not entirely compensate the lack of interaction in the online environment, participants believed that processing alternative sources of input enabled them to maintain their Dutch proficiency through Emergency Remote Teaching.
Copyright (c) 2025 Shauny Seynhaeve https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Teachers’ beliefs about multilingual students and their language choice: exploring the effect of language hierarchies
This study investigated Dutch primary school teachers’ attitudes towards multilingualism and whether their beliefs are influenced by the social prestige of the languages involved. Using an online questionnaire, we investigated to what extent teachers are concerned about Dutch language development of child L2 learners, what they would advise parents, how they respond to home language use in the classroom and the schoolyard, and whether teachers’ responses are influenced by language hierarchies (i.e., are there any differences between attitudes towards a French child called Emile speaking French, or a Pakistani child called Mohamed speaking Urdu?). Our results showed great individual variation in teachers’ attitudes, but no effects of language status. Moreover, teachers with more multilingual students in their class and teachers who had received training on multilingualism were more likely to accept L1 use at school, while the proportion of multilingual students was negatively related to teachers’ concerns about L2 development.
Copyright (c) 2024 Jasmijn Bosch, Jet Doedel https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Integration, demands and accommodations: An exploration of summative assessment practices in Dutch bilingual secondary education
In content and language integrated learning (CLIL), the goal is to support learning of both subject content and (subject-related) language, through an integrated approach. Based on the principle of constructive alignment (Biggs, 1996), it is logical to assume that such integration carries through to assessment. This study explores the extent to which this is the case in the context of bilingual secondary education in the Netherlands. Drawing on quantitative, self-report data from a teacher questionnaire, and qualitative analysis of assessment materials, we explore the relative roles of language and content, the use of accommodations and translanguaging as support, and the cognitive and linguistic demands posed by assessments. In line with previous research, it appears that assessment practices do not always align with the integrated goals of CLIL. Implications for practice are discussed, as is the need for more attention for this aspect of CLIL in research and teacher education.
content and language integrated learning
Copyright (c) 2025 Tessa Mearns, Catherine van Beuningen, Niels Nederlof, Nivja de Jong https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Multilingual book clubs: Reading in your heritage language at school
Reading skills and motivation in Dutch adolescents are rapidly declining, but reading interventions typically focus solely on the school language, neglecting multilingual students' heritage languages. This study examines the impact of a multilingual book club intervention, where 12- to 13-year-old students read and discussed books in their heritage language during Dutch language classes. Using a mixed-methods approach, we analyzed how students perceived the book clubs and reading in their heritage language, and whether the (multilingual) book clubs led to increased intrinsic reading motivation and more positive reading attitudes. While quantitative results show no improvements in reading motivation or attitudes, qualitative findings highlight the value of social interaction and acknowledging students’ multilingual literacy. The study suggests that integrating multilingual literacy in education may foster student engagement, inclusivity and awareness of linguistic diversity.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jasmijn Bosch, Suzanne Aalberse, Jurgen Tijms, Judith Rispens https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Diamonds are not just a scientist’s best friend
In this response to Diamond is a scientist's best friend, Ron Oostdam argues that diamond open access is morally worth striving for, but may be difficult to achieve.
Copyright (c) 2024 Ron Oostdam https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The role of foreign language anxiety and task complexity on fluency in German learners of Dutch
This study investigated which aspects of fluency are related to foreign language anxiety and proficiency, and how this interacts with task complexity during a non-exam situation. Sixty-one low-intermediate German learners of Dutch completed a foreign language anxiety questionnaire, a proficiency test and two speech production tasks. Correlational analyses showed that anxiety was negatively related to number of mid-clause pauses in a complex task. Proficiency was positively related to numerous speed and breakdown fluency measures in a simple task. Mixed-effects models demonstrated that proficiency predicted two fluency measures. Task type positively predicted speed fluency. Anxiety was not a significant predictor of any fluency measure, which may be related to participants’ relatively low anxiety level. This finding suggests that anxiety may not have a strong influence during speaking tasks that are not part of formal assessments.
Copyright (c) 2024 Foekje Reitsma, Esther Ruigendijk https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
It only works if we all participate. A response to ‘Diamond is a scientist’s best friend. Counteracting systemic inequality in open access publishing.’
As the chair of Anéla (Dutch Society for Applied Linguistics) and chair of VIOT (Vereniging Interuniversitair Overleg Taalbeheersing) we respond to the position paper by Andringa, Mos, van Beuningen, Gonzalez, Hornikx and Steinkraus (2024) titled ‘Diamond is a scientist’s best friend. Counteracting systemic inequality in open-access publishing.’ We suggest some additional actions we can undertake as associations within the fields of applied linguistics and language and communication to achieve the goal set out by the authors: making Diamond Open Access publishing the standard in publishing. We conclude by adding two more benefits when doing so.
open scholarship; open access; research culture; publishing
Copyright (c) 2024 Tessa van Charldorp, Nanon Labrie https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Open science publishing practices can break commercial publishers’ dominant position in the dissemination of scientific results
In this response to Diamond is a scientist's best friend, Pascal Braak discusses open science practices from a bibliographic perspective and among other things, sketches how a fully open and transparent knowledge generation process may break the power of commercial publishers.
diamond, open access, preprints, open peer review
Copyright (c) 2024 Pascal Braak https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Universities of Applied Sciences and diamond open access
Response to the article 'Diamond is a Scientist's Best Friend,' from the perspective of applied sciences.
Copyright (c) 2024 Anne Marie Meijer https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
An exploratory study on the aspects of vocabulary knowledge addressed in EAP textbooks
Vocabulary knowledge, which plays an important role in foreign or second language (L2) learning, involves a range of aspects such as form and meaning, grammatical functions, or word parts. Little research, however, has investigated how aspects of vocabulary knowledge are addressed in L2 textbooks. This study aims to fill that gap by examining the aspects of vocabulary knowledge that English for Academic Purposes (EAP) textbooks pay attention to. To that end, four EAP textbooks of upper-intermediate and advanced levels were investigated. A total of 873 vocabulary activities were identified and analysed based on Nation (2013) and Brown’s (2011) frameworks. Results show that grammatical functions, associations, and word parts receive the most attention in the EAP textbooks while written form, constraints on use, and spoken form receive the least attention. The findings also demonstrate variations among the EAP textbooks in their amounts of attention to different aspects of word knowledge.
Copyright (c) 2021 Duy Van Vu, Marije Michel https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
An exploratory study of predictors of vocabulary knowledge of Vietnames preschool-age children in a city
This study explores the effects of child-external and child-internal factors on vocabulary skills of Vietnamese pre-schoolers. Thirty-nine Vietnamese children (54-77 months) were tested on vocabulary and cognition skills. Their parents completed a questionnaire on background information. Correlation and regression analyses were performed to explore the contribution of multiple factors to the variability in vocabulary skills. Results showed that the effects of multiple factors varied across modality and domain. Productive vocabulary was individually sensitive to more factors than receptive vocabulary; and phonologically-based vocabulary was more sensitive than semantically-based vocabulary. The strongest predictor of receptive vocabulary, productive vocabulary, semantically-based vocabulary and phonologically-based vocabulary was child intelligence, child pre-schooling length, household income and child age, respectively. The findings seem to support the multidimensional views of language with evidence that different domains or modalities of vocabulary skills respond to the effects of multiple factors differently; and components of verbal ability should be examined separately.
Copyright (c) 2021 Giang T. H. Hoang, Kristof Baten, Ludovic de Cuypere, Thang T. Hoang, Miriam Taverniers https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Learners’ Reflective Practice between the Repeated Performances of Tasks: Effects on Second Language Development
This study attempted to explore the role of reflection in the accurate use of the English regular past tense structure using task repetition. Thirty-one learners were assigned into two conditions: task repetition only (TR) and task repetition with self-reflection (TR+SR). Both groups repeated an oral narrative task two times and then carried out a new task of the same type (i.e., another oral narrative task). However, only the TR+SR learners were engaged in self-reflection through responding to a questionnaire developed for the purpose of this study. Results revealed that learners’ reflection on their first task performance helped them notice the gap between their existing and target structure use as attested by their significantly high scores in the repeated tasks as well as the new task. The results therefore indicate the potential of reflective practice as an effective intervention strategy between repeated performances of the same task in terms of accuracy.
Copyright (c) 2021 Sima Khezrlou https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Hoe universeel zijn receptieve meertaligheidsstrategieën?
There are multiple ways in which language learners’ multilingual repertoire can be put to use in foreign language learning and teaching. One such use is receptive multilingualism (RM, cf. Blees & Ten Thije 2017). Despite the fact that RM has been found to be an effective means of communication between adult speakers of typologically related languages, like Dutch and German (see Beerkens, 2010; Van Mulken & Hendriks, 2015; Ribbert & Ten Thije, 2007), there is hardly any research investigating its use and effectiveness in younger learners in school settings (Ten Thije, Gulikers & Schoutsen, 2020). In this contribution, we present the results of a pilot study in which we investigate whether German secondary-school students make use of their multilingual repertoire by employing receptive multilingual strategies when decoding an unknown, but typologically related language (Dutch) and whether they can transfer these skills when decoding a less typologically related, unknown language (Maltese).
Copyright (c) 2021 Eva Knopp, Sabin Jentges, Chrissy Laurentzen, Margot van Mulken https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Prosody training benefits in perception vs. production skills in simultaneous interpreting: an experimental study
The present study investigates the prosody training benefits for interpreter trainees in perception vs. production skills in simultaneous interpreting. Two groups of student interpreters were formed. Participants were assigned to groups at random. The control group received routine instruction in interpreting skills. The experimental group spent 20 minutes less time per session on the routine curriculum and instead re­ceived awareness training on prosodic features of English. The total instruction time was the same for the students in two groups, i.e., 15 hours. Students then took a posttest in interpretation skills. The results showed that the experimental group performed better than the control group in simultaneous interpretation performance. Moreover, the study revealed that prosody training enhances the students’ perception skills more than that of the production skills. These results have pedagogical implications for curriculum designers, interpreter training programs, and all who are involved in language study and pedagogy.
Prosody, simultaneous interpretation, interpreter trainees, training program
Copyright (c) 2021 Mahmood Yenkimaleki https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Measuring (online) word segmentation in adults and children
Since Saffran, Aslin and Newport (1996) showed that infants were sensitive to transitional probabilities between syllables after being exposed to a few minutes of fluent speech, there has been ample research on statistical learning. Word segmentation studies usually test learning by making use of “offline methods” such as forced-choice tasks. However, cognitive factors besides statistical learning possibly influence performance on those tasks. The goal of the present study was to improve a method for measuring word segmentation online. Click sounds were added to the speech stream, both between words and within words. Stronger expectations for the next syllable within words as opposed to between words were expected to result in slower detection of clicks within words, revealing sensitivity to word boundaries. Unexpectedly, we did not find evidence for learning in multiple groups of adults and child participants. We discuss possible methodological factors that could have influenced our results.
Copyright (c) 2021 Iris Broedelet, Paul Boersma, Judith Rispens https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Dutch listeners’ responses to Dutch, British and American English accents in three contexts.
The aim of this study was to assess Dutch listeners’ responses to native-accented Englishes compared with Dutch-accented English in terms of speech understandability and speech evaluations in three professional communication contexts. In a matched-guise experiment Dutch listeners (N=392) responded to a Dutch English, a standard British and American accent in terms of speech understandability (intelligibility, comprehensibility, interpretability) and speaker evaluations (status, affect, dynamism). Dutch listeners evaluated these accents in three communication contexts: Lecture, Audio Tour, Job Pitch. Only context affected speech understandability: comprehensibility and interpretability were higher for the Lecture compared to the Audio Tour and the Job Pitch. Accent only negatively affected status evaluations for Dutch-accented English. Context only evoked more affect in the Audio Tour and the Lecture than in the Job Pitch. Our main conclusion is that Dutch-accented English negatively impacts status, but not understanding, affect and dynamism. Context impacts understanding and affect.
Copyright (c) 2021 Warda Nejjari, Prof. dr. M. Gerritsen, Prof. dr. R. van Hout, Dr. B. Planken https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Speaker discrimination as a function of vowel realization: does focus affect perception?
The acoustic-phonetic characteristics of speech sounds are influenced by their linguistic position in the syllable or sentence. Because of acoustic-phonetic differences between different speech sounds, sounds vary in the amount of speaker information they contain. However, do spectral and durational differences between realizations of the same sound that were sampled from different linguistic positions also impact speaker information? We investigated speaker discrimination in [−focus] versus [+focus] word realizations. Twenty-one Dutch listeners participated in a same-different task, using stimuli varying in focus, vowel ([aː], [u]), and word context ([ɦ_k], [v_t]), spoken by 11 different speakers. Results showed that an effect of focus on speaker-dependent information was present, but limited to words containing [u]. Moreover, performance on [u] words was influenced by (interactions of) word context and trial type (same-vs. different-speaker). Context-dependent changes in a speech sound’s acoustics may affect its speaker-dependent information, albeit under specific conditions only.
Copyright (c) 2022 Willemijn Heeren, Cesko Voeten, Tessi Marks https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Processing mismatching gendered possessive pronouns in L1 Dutch and L2 French
The results of a self-paced reading experiment show that reading times in Dutch increase when there is a gender mismatch between the subject and a subsequent possessive pronoun, signaling an increase in processing difficulty. We hypothesized that Dutch learners of French incorrectly apply the rules of their L1 in their L2 and should therefore also show an increase in reading times in French upon encountering a possessive pronoun for which grammatical gender differs from the biological gender of the subject (the possessor). At the same time, we expected that they would have no or less difficulties in processing ungrammatical French sentences in which the biological gender of the subject/possessor matches the gender of the possessive pronoun. We did not find either of these effects in a second self-paced reading experiment. We assume that the Dutch learners of French parse the foreign language sentences in a shallow fashion.
Copyright (c) 2022 Gert-Jan Schoenmakers, Theresa Redl, Sebastian Collin, Rozanne Versendaal, Peter de Swart, Helen de Hoop https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Adolescents and Verb Spelling: The Impact of Gender and Educational Track on Rule Knowledge and Linguistic Attitudes
The present paper examines the correlation between adolescents’ gender and educational profile on the one hand and their knowledge of the Dutch verb spelling rules and spelling attitudes on the other hand. A two-part survey was conducted among 451 Flemish students from different educational tracks. We conducted this survey in order to complement our previous research in which we observed social patterns in adolescents’ verb spelling errors on social media (Surkyn et al., 2019, 2020, 2021). Our results reveal that girls and theoretically oriented students care most about correct verb spelling. Moreover, theoretically oriented students have a better knowledge of the verb spelling rules. This survey provides additional evidence for the interpretation of the social patterns in our corpus research on Dutch verb spelling errors.
Copyright (c) 2022 Hanne Surkyn, Dominiek Sandra, Reinhild Vandekerckhove https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Structure-based Versus Dynamic Usage-based Instruction
In the Netherlands, teaching programs for French as a foreign language in secondary school usually involve an explicit focus on grammar. This is partially motivated by early findings in SLA research, which showed that explicit instruction is more effective in foreign language acquisition (Norris, & Ortega, 2000; Spada, & Tomita, 2010) and is even considered essential to achieve accuracy in advanced writing (Gunnarsson, 2012). The aim of this classroom study is to test these claims as it compares a structure-based (SB) method to a Dynamic Usage-Based (DUB) method in developing writing mastery in a pre-university program for French. The results suggest that both programs are equally effective in achieving grammatical accuracy and obtaining general text scores, but a DUB program seems more effective in achieving lexical complexity and fluency.
Copyright (c) 2022 Wim Gombert, Merel Keijzer, Marjolijn Verspoor https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
This paper discusses the state of affairs of dialect education in the southern Dutch province of North Brabant. The dialects spoken here lack formal recognition. Therefore, the province pursues a heritage policy that protects and promotes the dialects as cultural capital. However, a recent questionnaire among teachers and material developers has revealed that local and provincial initiatives for dialect education have not yet been implemented in a sustainable way in primary and secondary education (Doreleijers, 2021). Although teachers indicate willingness to implement dialect in education, there is a lack of knowledge of existing materials and a discrepancy between demand and the quality of supply. The aim of this paper is to look for ways to implement non-recognized dialects in the curriculum. It argues that the current situation in North Brabant can be improved by integrating dialects into the holistic model for multilingualism in education (Duarte & Günther-van der Meij, 2018).
Copyright (c) 2022 Kristel Doreleijers https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Miss Belgium, Coca-Cola and Flemish carwashes
This article explores recent (1995-2018) discourses on ‘multilingualism’ in the Dutch- and French-medium written press in Belgium: how is the notion of ‘multilingualism’ thematised and evaluated and how does this reflect underlying historical, political and socio-economic sensitivities linked to the long-standing Belgian conflict? Based on a corpus of 1710 news articles and using Ruíz’ (1984) language orientations as heuristics for quantitative and qualitative analyses, the study aims to provide objectification and reflexivity over an emotional, versatile and multi-layered language-ideological debate. Similar to (inter)national tendencies indicated in previous studies, our results generally reveal attention for and a positive bias towards (prestigious) multilingualism, mainly linked to discourses of economic utility and plurality. Differences between the Dutch- and French-medium corpus, as well as recurring argumentative patterns in both corpora, however, can be traced back to ideological sensitivities of the Belgian conflict and point to the imperative historicity of Belgian language debates.
Copyright (c) 2022 Ilias Vierendeels, Laurence Mettewie, Ulrike Vogl https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0