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- Non-native English speakers face additional barriers to scientific publishing, from journal guidelines accessible only in English to higher rates of language-related manuscript rejection.<\/li>\n
- Journals, congresses, and others are beginning to offer support ranging from English language mentoring programmes, training, and buddy systems to free AI proofreading tools.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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<\/p>\nWith English the prominent language of scientific dialogue, non-native speakers can face challenges both day-to-day and longer term, including through the publication development process<\/a>. Recently, Dr Gabriel Nakamura and Professor Bruno Soares shared their experiences<\/a> in a climate where non-native English speakers are ~2.5 times more likely to face language-related manuscript rejection<\/a> than native English speakers. However, efforts by journals and others in the scientific communication ecosystem mean the situation is beginning to change.<\/p>\n
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Non-native English speakers are ~2.5 times more likely to face language-related manuscript rejection than native English speakers.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
A recent EcoEvoRxiv<\/em> preprint<\/a>, discussed in a Nature <\/em>news article<\/a> by Mariana Lenharo, delved into barriers and potential solutions in the biological sciences. Dr Henry Arenas-Castro and colleagues looked at 736 biological sciences journals, finding that:<\/p>\n
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- only 8% provided full author guidelines in a non-English language<\/li>\n
- less than 7% published articles in non-English languages<\/li>\n
- just 10% explicitly allowed authors to cite non-English language references<\/li>\n
- only 2 journals (0.3%) stated manuscripts would not be rejected based on perceived English language quality.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
These figures support calls from Dr Nakamura and Prof. Soares for stakeholders to recognise language barriers and address them to improve inclusivity for non-native English speakers.<\/p>\n
Journals, congresses, and institutions are starting to offer schemes and tools, including:<\/p>\n
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- English language mentoring programmes, where authors can work with an editor or volunteer to refine their manuscript wording, or prepare congress abstracts and presentations<\/li>\n
- allowing congress presentations in multiple languages, with live translations and captioning<\/li>\n
- buddy systems and English language training and practice activities<\/li>\n
- journals offering authors free use of artificial intelligence proofreading tools, rather than directing to (paid) professional editing services.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
While interventions are having a positive impact<\/a>, we look forward to seeing any further action from the medical publishing community to help drive change.<\/p>\n
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