Could You Mind Your Language? An Investigation of Communicators' Ability to Inhibit Linguistic Bias    

Three experiments that examine communicators' ability to inhibit linguistic bias are reported. Research has shown that communicators use more abstract language (e.g., "Jamie is affectionate" vs. "Jamie kisses Rose") to describe more expected behavior. Recent research has shown that this bias may be overwhelmed by goals to put a "spin" on actions or to manipulate audiences' impressions of actors. Similarly, the present experiments show that people who wish to communicate without bias may often be able to do so. Inhibition occurred when participants selected descriptions from a list of alternatives and when they freely described both expected and unexpected behaviors. However, inhibition failed when participants were asked to freely describe either expected or unexpected behaviors alone.

Douglas, Karen M., Robbie M. Sutton and Katie Wilkin. Journal of Language and Social Psychology (2008). Articles>Language>Professionalism>Rhetoric

Considering Culture-Bound Terminology

It is clear that the term blacklist, and the newer term whitelist, and yes, graylist, are not racist in origin. Nor are they used today with any connotation about race. But these terms are culture-bound and might present globalization issues. That is, the colors black and white are not globally perceived as negative and positive, respectively. In some cultures, the meaning is the opposite.

Kocher, Sue. Carolina Communique (2009). Articles>Language>Diction>Professionalism