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The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of leaders’ use of motivational language on psychological relatedness and its effect on employee well-being in flexible and remote working conditions.

A survey among 375 full-time working professionals in the US was conducted with varying frequencies of remote work arrangements. For the analysis, we used a series of PROCESS analyses to examine the moderating effect of leaders’ motivational language use on the relationship between participants’ remote work status and relatedness, with employee well-being as the dependent variable.

The findings revealed a significant moderating effect of leaders’ perlocutionary (direction-giving) language use on the relationship between employees’ remote work status and relatedness. Specifically, the relationship between remote work status and relatedness was stronger when the use of perlocutionary (direction-giving) language gradually increased. Such enhanced relatedness, in turn, generated higher satisfaction and psychological well-being. The study shows the strategic advantage of direction-giving language in enhancing relatedness, thereby contributing to higher levels of employee satisfaction and psychological well-being in remote work environments.

The originality of this article lies in its integration of motivational language theory and self-determination theory to explore the well-being of employees within flexible and remote work status. Furthermore, we conceptualize remote work as a continuous variable with different degrees of flexibility, ranging from occasional telecommuting to fully remote work, allowing for a nuanced understanding of how leaders’ use of motivational language interacts with varying levels of remote work arrangements to influence employee well-being.

High-stakes decision-makers, including human resource (HR) professionals, often exhibit accent biases against second language speakers in professional evaluations. We extend this work by investigating how HR students evaluate simulated job interview performances in English by first and second language speakers of English.

Eighty HR students from Calgary and Montreal evaluated the employability of first language (L1) Arabic, English, and Tagalog candidates applying for two positions (nurse, teacher) at four points in the interview (after reading the applicant’s resume, hearing their self-introduction, and listening to each of two responses to interview questions). Candidates’ responses additionally varied in the extent to which they meaningfully answered the interview questions.

Students from both cities provided similar evaluations, employability ratings were similar for both advertised positions, and high-quality responses elicited consistently high ratings while evaluations for low-quality responses declined over time. All speakers were evaluated similarly based on their resumes and self-introductions, regardless of their language background. However, evaluations diverged for interview responses, where L1 Arabic and Tagalog speakers were considered more employable than L1 English speakers. Importantly, students’ preference for L1 Arabic and Tagalog candidates over L1 English candidates was magnified when those candidates provided low-quality interview responses.

Results suggest that even in the absence of dedicated equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) training focusing on language and accent bias, HR students may be aware of second language speakers’ potential disadvantages in the workplace, rewarding them in the current evaluations. Findings also highlight the potential influence of contextual factors on HR students’ decision-making.

This study aimed to investigate the process of nominalization in English, German, and Indonesian, utilizing a contrastive analysis approach, and to apply the findings to teaching English to Indonesian learners of German.

This mixed-method study used an exploratory sequential design. The qualitative method used contrastive analysis to focus on the nominalization process in English, Indonesian, and German, and the quantitative method assessed student responses related to the developed English teaching material.

The study found similarities and differences in the nominalization process between the languages, with nominalization occurring by adding various affixations. Most students considered the learning materials developed based on the findings of contrastive analysis to help understand the nominalization process in English.

The study’s findings hold significant implications for the global application of foreign language teaching, particularly in English as the first foreign language (FL1) or as the second foreign language (FL2). The research suggests that an effective method of teaching English grammar involves providing examples equivalent to those used in the learner’s first language or other languages. These results may contribute to developing pedagogical practices and enhancing language learners' proficiency in FL1 and FL2 contexts.

This study contributes to the existing literature by comparing the nominalization process in German, Indonesian, and English and explaining how the results of contrastive analysis can be applied in teaching English to Indonesian students majoring in German.

This case study aims to enrich research on language teacher identity and cognition by detailing the experiences of English language teachers instructing students with visual impairments in Türkiye, exploring the (re)formation of their identity and cognition within this context.

This study uses a qualitative approach, combining interviews, observations, field notes and legal document analysis. Hiver and Al-Hoorie's (2016) Complexity Theory guides data collection and analysis, supported by MAXQDA software.

The findings highlight the influences of personal, social, cultural and educational factors on language teacher identity and cognition, with a focus on interactions in preservice education, institutional requirements and instructional methods at the School for the Blind.

This case study provides practical and theoretical insights into language teacher identity and cognition within special education schools, contributing to the broader discourse on diversity in this field.

English is the language of global communication, worldwide mobility, job progress, and access to new information and research. Given the numerous roles that English plays in today's society, higher education institutes (HEIs) all over the world are pursuing English-medium education. For Pakistan, however, English-medium education is a colonial legacy rather than a deliberate choice. Research suggests that English-medium education is not devoid of controversy in higher education in Pakistan; nonetheless, students have to seek English-medium education in universities to compete with the world. In fact, being committed to SDG 4.7 Education for sustainable development and global citizenship, Pakistan is supposed to educate its citizens to become global citizens, for which English-medium education is essential. Given the fact that each of the five provinces of Pakistan has a distinct culture and sub-cultures, it is important to see how Pakistani students’ attitudes to English-medium education to become global citizens are different based on their cultural identities. Therefore, the present study aims to analyze undergraduates’ attitudes toward English-medium education based on their cultural identities to become global citizens.

Under the quantitative research paradigm, the present research adopted a comparative design. One hundred and fifty undergraduates participated in the study. The data were collected using a 15-item questionnaire on a 5-point Likert scale, and it was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 27.0.

The results of the study revealed that participants regardless of their cultural identities have positive attitudes towards English-medium education as they believe it to be a source of career development, and improvement of their language, communication, and interpersonal skills. The participants also did not see English-medium education posing any threat to traditional culture and local languages. The findings of the present study also revealed that there is no statistical difference across the different categories of cultural identity.

The findings of the present study regarding students’ attitudes toward English-medium education will have implications for policymakers and university administration. Since cultural identity does not hinder acceptance of English-medium education, students’ positive attitudes can help policymakers promote multilingualism and English-medium education for career development. However, high-quality English language programs are crucial for maximizing the benefits. Likewise, positive attitudes of students towards English-medium education in Pakistan suggest students’ openness to intercultural dialogue. Therefore, university administration can further enhance student exchange programs for transnational research and development. Likewise, the study implies that cultural identity may not hinder English-medium education implementation in developing countries provided that practical benefits like career advancement and communication skill are emphasized.

The study is unique in the sense that it analyses undergraduates’ attitudes towards English-medium education concerning students’ cultural identities and global citizenship which have not been studied previously.

This study explores the effect of language on service satisfaction among Finland-Swedes, a national minority language group in Finland, in the context of early childhood education. Models of public service satisfaction hold standard process and outcome related factors, such as availability and quality, as drivers of the satisfaction. However, although research has shown significant variation in satisfaction between different groups of citizens (race, ethnicity, age etc.), research has largely overlooked group specific factors as explanations for the satisfaction.

A randomized survey experiment with a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design analyzed the impacts of language, service accessibility, and quality on service satisfaction. The data was analyzed with ANOVA.

The results revealed that language significantly impacts Swedish speakers’ satisfaction, suggesting that for minority groups, language may override typical satisfaction determinants like quality and accessibility. Interestingly, special linguistic needs are relatively more pertinent in low-quality services than in higher-quality ones.

The study shows how group related factors of public service, in our case language, in an important factor explaining satisfaction with the service. The findings have implications for the literature on citizens’ satisfaction with public services with demographic and identity facets, especially in a typical Nordic welfare state.

This study aims to investigate the potential effect of project-based learning (PBL) in alleviating the negative psychological factors that hinder language learning in an intensive-English course at a private Lebanese university through its meaningful, student-centered, collaborative, and creative pedagogical approach and supporting students in constructing a positive self-identity as an English language learner and user.

The L2 Motivation Self System theory describes the roles of the Ideal L2 Self, the Ought to L2 Self, and the L2 Learning Experience as the three dimensions that trigger L2 motivation, which is an important factor in achieving L2 learning outcomes. This pre- and post-test questionnaire study aims to investigate the impact of designing and implementing project-based learning as a creative pedagogical method on the L2 Learning Experience of tertiary EFL students undertaking an intensive English language course.

The paper found that such a pedagogical approach decreased students’ foreign language anxiety and positively impacted their attitudes toward L2 learning as they actively engaged in their projects in a meaningful, connected, and creative manner. This paper concludes that the adopted innovative pedagogical approach created an L2 language learning experience for EFL students to move closer from their actual self to their potential or imagined Ideal L2 Self as they embraced their creative self, social self, and risk-taking self within the frame of identity negotiation and construction. Findings from this study map to the wider literature on L2 language acquisition and foreign language learning.

This study has theoretical and practical implications. Theoretically, this research contributed to the existing body of literature on L2 education from a nuanced lens that maps students’ motivation, engagement, characteristics, and psychology to their identity as L2 learners to make their learning journeys more rewarding, productive, and connected.

Practically, this study showcases how the implementation of the PBL approach in a creative and aligned manner can positively impact students’ attitudes toward English teaching and learning, making novel reading a more engaging task that prompts students’ creativity, critical thinking, and risk-taking while facilitating the negotiation and construction of their identity as L2 learners and users. Additionally, the implementation of such creative pedagogical approaches prompts on an educational policy level the shift from the traditional ways of English teaching and learning to a more student-centered, engaging and connected state, creating a set of exemplars for EFL and ESL instructors to use to ensure that L2 learners connect to their own experiences and develop a range of transferrable skills while acquiring language capabilities.

This paper concludes that the adopted innovative pedagogical approach served as a channel for EFL students to move closer from their actual self to their potential or imagined Ideal L2 Self as they embraced their creative self, social self, and risk-taking self within the frame of identity negotiation and construction. Findings from this study map to the wider literature on L2 language acquisition and foreign language learning.

This study aims to advance knowledge in international management research about how researchers’ cultural identity in fieldwork encounters may be grounded in the choice of language in multicultural and multilingual projects.

The study is based on critical reflections on the experience of two co-authors as Chinese nationals conducting research in overseas Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) in developing economies.

Drawing on social identity theory, the authors demonstrate that the cultural identity and cultural insider/outsider positionality of both the researcher and research participants can be shaped by language, translation and other artefacts in cross-cultural interviews, constantly being shifted, managed and renegotiated during qualitative interviewing. This study highlights the politics of language which, when combined with other forms of power relations, such as the researcher’s perceived status, economic development of the MNCs’ home country and the participants’ organisational hierarchy, affect power distribution between the researcher and participants. Researchers often need to move from being an “insider” to an “outsider” and often to an “in-betweener” at different stages in an interview interaction to balance power.

This study contributes to international debates about the complex interplay of languages, politics and identity in multilingual and multicultural qualitative research. In contributing to these literatures, the authors focus on the relatively under-researched Chinese MNCs in other developing countries including Mongolia and Tanzania. Recommendations for researcher training and reflexivity are proposed.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the English-speaking challenges confronted by English as Foreign Language (EFL) students in the context of Kazakhstan, a Central Asian, post-Soviet nation, particularly focusing on the interrelation of English language fluency issues, psychological conditions and the influence of environmental factors.

This qualitative inquiry is firmly situated in Krashen’s second language acquisition theory. The research cohort comprises ten undergraduates from the esteemed Foreign Languages and Translation Studies Department, their narratives forming the basis for data analysis. The author conducted structured interviews with the participants.

The findings demonstrate that limited language proficiency not only hinders fluency but also initiates psychological challenges, forming a difficult cycle. Additionally, environmental elements, such as interactions with teachers and peers, have both beneficial and adverse impacts on speaking improvement. Acknowledging and tackling these complex dynamics is crucial for developing focused interventions that foster a supportive learning environment conducive to enhancing language acquisition and fluency.

The limitation of this research is that the triangulation method in the form of additional semi-structured interviews and/or observation was not used to get more in-depth data.

The study might be helpful for stakeholders to reflect on the English difficulties they experience and to prepare effective teaching and learning strategies. In particular, EFL teachers may need to use more speaking activities in lessons to help students overcome language barriers in speaking. EFL teachers might also adopt strategies such as not judging learners’ mistakes in the first phase of their language practices until they get used to speaking without any psychological blocks and paying additional attention to vocabulary and grammar knowledge in communicative lessons. EFL students may use the strategies to consciously evaluate their skills and not learn the speaking material by heart beforehand. In addition, university administration may organize regular speaking clubs for students in order to create an immersive environment. Moreover, they might require teachers to show up with their speaking capabilities before hiring English teachers, especially in English-related specialization departments.

The research indicates a lack of support and a judgmental environment, passive involvement in communicative pursuits and memorization as instrumental strategies for augmenting oral proficiency. These reasons have created difficulties in speaking English for students studying in English-specialized departments in Kazakhstan.

Much of the vocabulary of digital rights have not been translated into Kiswahili. This means that technology experts and digital rights defenders often use English words when they are discussing technology. This contributes to the frailty of efforts to defend digital rights because those who attempt to explain the importance of these issues to the broader societies are forced to rely on English vocabulary that is not rooted in or connected to Kiswahili contexts. This paper aims to discuss the importance of inviting people to use African languages on the internet.

Kiswahili is the most widely spoken African language in the world. Nearly 140 million people in East Africa speak Kiswahili as a first or second language, including in Kenya and Tanzania where it is the national language. There is a long history of Kiswahili writing, publishing and cultural production in Kiswahili. Kiswahili is also the only African language that is an official language at the African Union. Even so, Kiswahili lags behind significantly in the development of a vocabulary and grammar of technology.

Beyond vocabulary, the use of African languages online is important to strengthening democracy on the internet because language is keenly connected to identity. Efforts to translate the vocabulary of technology into Kiswahili are aimed at encouraging societies in East Africa to build communities online that represent their interests keenly. This article therefore looks at the importance of language in building society and the efforts by residents of East Africa to decolonise the internet, so that they are able to exist in their fullness on the internet. The article further examines the semiotics of language in digital innovation, and the importance of representing Kiswahili language communities properly online in efforts to decolonise the internet. This paper does not presume that Kiswahili is the only African language that can decolonise the internet, because even Kiswahili has a history of domination over other language communities in the region. Rather, the article uses the example of Kiswahili to urge the use of indigenous languages to defend digital diversity.

The importance of this article is in demonstrating the importance of language in the movement to develop digital rights and especially to remove colonial approaches to technology, an issue that, to the best of the author’s knowledge, has never been discussed in relation to the Kiswahili language.