4 The importance of inclusive language
The use of inclusive language is really important for fostering a respectful and fair working environment. Inclusive language shows a commitment to avoiding discrimination and (un)intentional biases and ensuring people don’t feel excluded or marginalised in any way. It also promotes an inclusive culture, shaping what is acceptable within the meeting and also within the organisation.
It’s the responsibility of the chair to use inclusive language and to call out inappropriate language. It is recommended that you look to your organisation’s guidance on inclusive language.
The example in Activity 5 focuses on gender to exemplify the importance of inclusive language in meetings.
Activity 5 Language and gender
With regards to gender, most EDI policies/frameworks refer to concepts such as gender-discriminatory, gender-neutral and gender-sensitive language. Read the following definitions, then complete the multiple choice activity underneath.
- Gender-discriminatory language includes language that promotes stereotypes or demeans or ignores any person based on their gender.
- Gender-neutral language is a way of talking about people without assuming or specifying their gender. For example, avoiding language which can be interpreted as biased, discriminatory or demeaning by implying that one gender is the norm – e.g. using ‘people’ instead of ‘men’ as the default.
- Gender-sensitive language respects the diversity of gender identities. It promotes gender equality by addressing all people as individuals of equal value, dignity, integrity, and respect. In some contexts, however, it is important to identify gender, for example, when describing relative (dis)advantage.
Choose the correct term to identify what the following sentences are examples of:
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is b.
b.
Gender-neutral language as it used the term ‘people’ which is inclusive.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is b.
b.
Some people assume that an engineer is a man. It is important to avoid indicating that bias in language by using the neutral pronoun ‘they’.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is a.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language as it excludes non-binary people.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is c.
c.
In some contexts, it’s important to acknowledge the relevance of gender, especially regarding issues of relative disadvantage.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is a.
a.
The stereotype assumption here is that a secretary is a woman.
a.
Gender-discriminatory language
b.
Gender-neutral language
c.
Gender-sensitive language
The correct answer is a.
a.
It is important to refer to women in their own right and not in relation to men. Better to say ‘Psychology researchers, John and Sarah contributed an interesting article to the journal’.
Gender-neutral and gender-sensitive language are sometimes used interchangeably (with gender-neutral language being considered an example of gender-sensitive language). They have been separated here to illustrate that sometimes it is necessary to identify a particular gender.
3.2 Inclusion and participation in meetings