Employee perceptions of language in a multilingual workplace: “I am there listening, pretending to understand something”
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School of Business |
Master's thesis
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Authors
Date
2025
Department
Major/Subject
Mcode
Degree programme
People Management and Organizational Development
Language
en
Pages
75 + 6
Series
Abstract
The international working life and globalization have affected companies by making them more multilingual. In other words, more and more individuals are finding themselves in a multilingual working environment. Thus, also the discussions on multilingual working environments are frequent both in the interna-tional business literature as well as in the wider societal discourse. Studies has been conducted on language within international business examining language from various perspectives and integrating it to multinational corporations. However, recent research on individuals’ perceptions, attitudes and feelings regarding multilingualism at work is scarce. Additionally, prior research has voiced a demand for further studies on language and multinational organizations within the international business research domain. Therefore, this study is conducted on language in a multinational organization with the focus on individual employees’ perceptions and feelings towards their multilingual working environment at a multinational corporation. Thus, in this study I have examined how the employees of a multilingual and multinational organization perceive the company’s multilingualism as well as their common corporate language. In this ethnographic case study language is viewed as a social practice being born in interaction situations which further generate attitudes, experiences and feelings among individuals. The research is situated in a multilingual multinational organization in which I as a researcher work myself. I combine both interview data and my ethnographical notes to answer my research questions. The study’s findings demonstrate that language is indeed not a mere superficial concept, but a social and in-depth, embedded idea of unison, persona and inclusion to others. The results indicate that multilingualism as such is generally perceived positively. However, by examining language and language use within the social context the study shows that individuals are experiencing more problematic feelings and attitudes towards multilingualism beneath the surface. Indeed, the findings of the study reveal that individuals are often feeling left out, out of place and awkward at work in terms of formal or informal social gatherings where they do not understand the spoken language. Thus, in these situations multilingualism at work is not perceived as positive but rather as a limiting factor causing feelings of exclusion, frustration and awkwardness among other feelings. Moreover, the findings demonstrate that a multilingual working environment without a clearly defined common language and language practices can generate confusion and contribute to more people being excluded due to language at work.Description
Thesis advisor
Piekkari, RebeccaKeywords
language, social concept of language, multilingualism, MNC, IB