Opening up a discussion on the native speaker myth in science

ABSTRACT

The commentary touches upon the topic which is relevant to hundreds of thousands of researchers in the world. When trying to publish in English, they are often advised to ask the native speakers of the language for their opinion. However, as English has become the international, cross-border language of science, it may have ceased to be the property of the native speaker researchers, who constitute a small minority in the community. In addition, when English is used as a lingua franca, it is the message which counts, not the particular style or spelling. The commentary finishes with an appeal not to hinder the development of science by slowing down the editing process, and thus not to close the door for diversity and new perspectives.

KEYWORDS:

• Peer review
• publication
• science communication

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.