Academic Leaders - Watch Your Language!

I’ve been struck once again in recent days by the incredible power of language to divide and exclude.

In contrast, successful communication requires real connection. We disregard our linguistic choices at our peril. As an academic leader, how much attention are you paying to your choice of words?

In one example, Rush Holt, CEO of AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science), has argued that the academic community itself is partly to blame for the decline of “reverence for evidence” and the growth of skepticism about the usefulness of scientific evidence in shaping public policy. In communicating with “non-scientists”, “non-experts” and “laypeople” (already screaming that you are NOT one of us, aren’t we?) academics are all too often unintentionally (well, mostly unintentionally) condescending and exclusionary. Now let me try to explain this to you in a way that you can understand…

But it’s not just with “outsiders”. Academics have made an art out of inventing new terminology and acronyms that brand their expertise, define their disciplines and ultimately ensure that “the others” can’t have access to their knowledge and expertise without either their direct involvement or a special decoder ring. No wonder we are still talking about successful interdisciplinary teams like rare species from another planet.

And within our institutions it’s a strange thing to realize that the relationship between “the academy” and “the administration” is so rarely referred to in terms of teamwork, partnership, or collaboration. Indeed, depending on where one stands, both “academic” and “bureaucrat / administrator” can be thoughtlessly invoked as swear words. (Check out Prestige in Academic Life: Excellence and Exclusion by Paul Blackmore for an interesting read).

What could be achieved if we changed things up and cultivated a new habit of deliberately shaping our language choices and our actions to promote inclusion and connection?

What would happen if we launched a successful vaccination campaign against SAOD (Severe Acronym Overload Disorder)?

What is possible if more of us embraced the premise that good communication starts with including your audience and inviting them to share in your world?

Are you ready to do what it takes to invite others along for an eye-opening ride? Or are you content to drop off your knowledge and expertise like a standard delivery FedEx package – one that few may ever open?

Choose your words carefully.