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Obligations linguistiques et recherche en santé : analyse du rapport des IRSC aux communautés francophones en situation minoritaire

Christelle Pelbois and Louise Bouchard
Canada has two official languages, yet health research conducted by and on Francophone minority communities remains vulnerable to the effects of anglicization. This article examines the social dynamics shaping this research and the tensions between scientific excellence requirements and recognition of its legitimacy. The case of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), subject to an investigation by the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, highlights current institutional shortcomings. The recent modernization of the Official Languages Act, which acknowledges the unequal status of languages and differentiated needs, nonetheless opens new opportunities to rebalance these dynamics.

Experts, néolibéraux et nationalistes : typologie des trois approches dominantes au sein des sciences sociales francophones en situation minoritaire au Canada

Mathieu Wade
This article presents a typology of the three main approaches shaping Francophone social sciences in minority settings in Canada: expert knowledge, neoliberal critique, and nationalist critique. Drawing on an analysis of the debates that animated the 2010s, it highlights the ontological, epistemological, and normative division structuring the field. Expert knowledge is embedded in the linguistic regime and draws on hegemonic concepts such as ethnolinguistic vitality and institutional completeness. The neoliberal critique, advanced notably by the Toronto School, deconstructs nationalist discourses in order to promote a postnational identity rooted with the logics of globalization. Finally, the political sociology of the Ottawa School defends the national aspirations of Francophone minorities against both juridicization and the instrumental forces of neoliberalism. The article concludes by underscoring the need for scholars to recognize the inherent normativity of the concepts they employ and to foster dialogue across these approaches.

La diffusion savante en français au Québec et dans la francophonie canadienne

Sylvain St-Onge, Éric Forgues, Victoria Volkanova and Vincent Larivière
The anglicization of research dissemination activities has been a well-documented phenomenon for several years, both internationally and in Canada. This article presents the results of a study that sought to understand the effects of anglicization on Canadian French-language journals, by analyzing their transition to open access, their financial restrictions, and the perceptions of journal managers. Our research, which examined 245 Canadian journals that publish in French and the findings of 82 of these journals that participated in a survey, reveals a contradiction. Despite a seemingly pessimistic outlook on the future of French-language publishing, these periodicals demonstrated remarkable resilience in a landscape largely dominated by English. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the conditions surrounding the production and publication of scientific literature in French in Canada. It also opens the reflection on what measures could be used to sustain the French research ecosystem.

La langue au coeur de l’expérience des francophones en santé au Nouveau-Brunswick : étude exploratoire des expériences de la discordance linguistique en santé

Shayna-Eve Hébert, Isabelle Violette, Éric Forgues, Atilio Erazo and Krystal Kehoe MacLeod
In this exploratory qualitative study, we examine experiences of language discordance reported by 12 Francophones in New Brunswick (Canada), a province in which French is an official language but remains minoritized. Drawing on semi-structured interviews, we seek to understand patients’ experiences of linguistic discordance within public clinics and hospitals of the Horizon and Vitalité health networks. A thematic content analysis (Paillé & Mucchielli, 2021) of participants’ accounts reveals three types of linguistic discordance, associated with a range of effects and emotions among participants, as well as concerns regarding the linguistic rights of the Francophone minority. We conclude by proposing directions for future research on linguistic discordance and for improving access to French-language health services in this province.