Language Practices for Knowledge Production and Dissemination: The Case of Brazil

By Laura K. Baumvol

Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)

The use of English as a global common language for academic and scientific communication has become central to accelerate scientific progress. This has stimulated a growing number of studies in the field of English for Research and Publication…

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Version 1.0 - published on 31 Jul 2025

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The use of English as a global common language for academic and scientific communication has become central to accelerate scientific progress. This has stimulated a growing number of studies in the field of English for Research and Publication Purposes (Cargill & Burgess, 2008) focusing on non-anglophone scholars (Burgess et al, 2014; Li & Flowerdew, 2009; Hanauer & Englander, 2011). However, investigations about the Brazilian context are still scarce. The present research addresses this gap by examining (1) the use of the English and Portuguese languages in the eight  disciplinary communities according to the classification of Brazilian funding agencies in i) publications (articles in academic journals, full books, book chapters, and full papers in conference proceedings), ii) presentations given in academic events, and  iii) international research collaborations; and (2) scholars’ English proficiency and its potential relationship with the language used to share knowledge. Two large datasets were analyzed under quantitative paradigm: a large-scale online questionnaire (Questionnaire study), and  Lattes CVs of scholars working in Brazil’s  higher education (HE) institutions (CV study). Common trends were identified in the results of both studies: (1) scholars in the fields that integrate the ‘harder’ sciences (Agricultural Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering, Exact and Earth Sciences, and Health Sciences) tend to use English to produce and disseminate knowledge to a much greater extent than those in the ‘softer’ sciences (Applied Social Sciences, Human Sciences, and Linguistics, Literature, and Arts); and (2) academics from three of the five fields that integrate the ‘harder’ sciences (Biological Sciences, Engineering, and Exact and Earth Sciences) have higher self-rated English proficiency than the other fields, and scholars in the field of Human Sciences have lower self-rated English proficiency in comparison to all other fields. Therefore, the preference of English over Portuguese by Biological Sciences, Engineering, and Exact and Earth Sciences scholars might be associated with their higher self-rated English proficiency, among various other factors that influence knowledge production and dissemination language practices. It is hoped that the results obtained can inform national and institutional language policies and investments in Brazilian HE institutions, so as to provide language support to meet the needs of scholars from different disciplinary communities and to improve their English proficiency.

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  • Baumvol, L. K., (2025), "Language Practices for Knowledge Production and Dissemination: The Case of Brazil", HSSCommons: (DOI: )

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