Linguists and language workers : Collaboration, impact and realignment

Koller, Veronika (2019) Linguists and language workers : Collaboration, impact and realignment. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice, 16 (1). pp. 29-50. ISSN 2040-3658

Abstract

In this paper, I address two connected topics: firstly, the relationships between linguists working in academia and language professionals, such as communication managersand consultants, in other sectors; and secondly, how a strong emphasis on knowledgeexchange and impact in British higher education policy has led to increasedcollaboration between academic and non-academic language workers, but also toa realignment of traditional academic values with the interests of practitioners. Theinvestigation is partly based on published reflections – mostly by linguists – on collaboratingwith (language) professionals in other sectors, and partly on insights from 13interviews with language workers in consulting, communications and campaigning.The interviews are manually analysed for thematic categories and, where relevant, forpragmatic meanings in the context of the interview situation and conversational interaction.Findings suggest conflicts around registers and timescales, along with concernsover data and the relevance of academic interests. Crucially, language professionalsshow little concern about collaborating with academics, leading to an imbalance ininterests.