Diversity in Language and Cognition - Evelyn Ferstl, Anelis Kaiser, Alice Blumethal-Dramé, Adriana Hanulíková

Introduction to the FRIAS Research Focus and the Lecture Series

Language use is greatly influenced by a variety of individual characteristics of the communication partners, such as age, gender, or the linguistic and/or cultural background. A better understanding of the impact of such diversity dimensions on language processing is crucial, since institutions strive for creating an inclusive environment, but struggle with the challenges posed by the resulting diversity.

This lecture series aims to explore how the experimental language sciences can be enriched by including individual person characteristics. Neuro- and psycholinguistic research on the respective diversity dimensions has been conducted in rather separate research communities. In contrast, scholars in gender studies have stressed the importance of integrating the dimensions and considering them in concert. Intersectionality, as this approach is termed, has been applied in qualitative studies on inequality and discrimination in society, but its potential for quantitative studies on language has not yet been discussed.

By bringing together researchers from linguistics, cognitive science and gender studies, the lecture series aims to promote the interdisciplinary exchange about diversity in language.

For more information and to register for this event or the lecture series, please click here.