Feminine-specific job titles: a research on sexism in the Italian language

Paolo Nitti

doi:10.1017/mit.2020.31

Abstract

This article analyses the instruction on non-sexist use of the Italian language given by Italian language teachers at different levels of education (Nitti 2018). The objective of the research is to evaluate, via language models presented in class, the preparation of materials, and attitudes to correction, the level of engagement in the use of non-sexist language by teachers who transfer their personal orientation into their teaching practice. The survey was conceived as a follow-up to the Conference on Italian Language and Sexism, held at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia on 30 March 2017. Questions were formulated following Raccomandazioni per gli usi non sessisti della lingua by Alma Sabatini (1986) and proposals by academic institutions and territorial and legislative bodies. The research falls within the study of educational linguistics, and its aim is to approach contemporary linguistic phenomena through specific theoretical-applicative tools and paradigms of sociolinguistics (Fusco 2012).

Highlights

After a gap of a few years, starting from the end of the 1980s, problems related to sexism in linguistic use returned to the centre of the political and social debate, given the increasingly significant presence of professional women occupying top management positions in companies and in society
The second question concerned the awareness of existing research regarding the opposition to sexism in the Italian language: 53 per cent of the sample had no knowledge of this, fewer than 8 per cent did not answer, and the remaining responders were aware of the studies of the Accademia della Crusca (29 per cent) and declared some knowledge of the guidelines for public communication (8 per cent), while the lowest percentages knew the Recommendations of Alma Sabatini (1 per cent) and the studies of Italian and foreign academic experts (1 per cent)
The analysis of the data has helped to reach some conclusions on the sexist dimension in the language with regard to the teaching staff engaged in Italian language courses

Summary

Introduction

After a gap of a few years, starting from the end of the 1980s, problems related to sexism in linguistic use returned to the centre of the political and social debate, given the increasingly significant presence of professional women occupying top management positions in companies and in society. Data collected by ISTAT (the Italian National Statistics Institute) show that the gap between male and female employment has tended to decrease with time, thanks to the increasing level of education and educational qualifications for women.. According to ISTAT, women tend to marry less and divorce more than in the past, as longevity increases; at work, the managerial positions held by women are growing and their presence is increasing in ‘new professions’, especially those connected with technology and medicine

Objectives

Findings

Conclusion