Consecuencias imprevistas de la dominación anglófona en las ciencias sociales y jurídicas [Unanticipated consequences of the anglophone dominance in law and social sciences]

Two seemingly independent facts in the development of socio-legal research are linked, without being the result of a plan: the extension of the English language and bibliometric assessments. The explanation lies in the effort of “translation” which involves converting socio-legal theories and research to a non-native language. The term does not only refer to the effort of expressing oneself in another language, it also refers to a way of writing and arguing related to the scientific community that usually communicates, with regards the same subject, in the same language, as well as referring to the differences concerning the publishing means considered appropriate. Native researchers do not have to face these challenges. They work in a context of affinity between their publication system and the bibliometric methods of evaluation, an affinity that pivots around the same language and is a reflection of a shared academic tradition that goes beyond linguistic expression.