Researching Multilingually (network)

Researching Multilingually

AHRC Research Network Project (AH/J005037/1)

2011-2012 — involving Richard Fay, Jane Andrews and Mariam as investigators


This project ran from December 2011 to November 2012 and informed the large Researching Multilingually at the Borders of Language, Law, the Body, and the State project (2014-2017) led by Professor Alison Phipps at Glasgow University.. Publications after 2014 on this theme have their origins in this network project but are listed under the large project.

Researching Multilingually was an AHRC-funded network project (December 2011 – November 2012) which explored processes and practices of researching in contexts where more than one language is involved.

Nowadays, research is often a multilingual endeavour. Researchers are required to work in more than one language: in interviewing; interpreting dialogues; translating documents; making ethical choices around language possibilities concerning consent forms; conducting member checks; presenting data; and reporting/publishing. Yet, little information about these multilingual research processes is available, either in the literature, through research methods training programmes, or in policy documents.

Our project, and our researcher network, enabled us to showcase examples of good researching mutlilingually praxis, addressing theoretical and methodological choices in research planning, consent, ethical researcher language practices, processes of data generation and collection, analysis, representation, and reporting. The project generated numerous conference presentations, workshops, seminars, a researcher network, and publications, including a special issue of six articles illustrating “researching mutlilingually” praxis in the International Journal of Applied Linguistics, published in November 2013.


(Some of the) Publications/Papers associated with this project:

Andrews, J., Fay, R., Holmes, P., & Attia, M. (2014). “Coming clean” about researching multilingually – learning from different disciplines. Paper presented at the 2nd AHRC Researching Multilingually at the Borders of Language, the Body, Law and the State symposium, Durham University, October 2014.

Holmes, P., Fay, R., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2014). Competence or purposefulness: How researchers harness their multilingual and intercultural resources when researching multilingually. Paper presented at the IALIC Conference Linguistic resources and intercultural (communicative) competence: bridging a theoretical and empirical gap, hosted by the University of Aveiro, Portugal, 28th-30th November, 2014.


Andrews, J., Holmes, P., & Fay, R. (2013). Introduction. International Journal of Applied Linguistics 23(3): 283–284.

Andrews, J., & Fay, R. (2013). Researching multilingually: Some challenges and complexities from different disciplines. Paper presented at the Translation Studies Seminar Series 2012/13, The Centre for Translation & Intercultural Studies, School of Arts, Languages and Cultures, The University of Manchester, UK, 7th March, 2014.

Holmes, P., Fay, R., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2013). Researching multilingually: New theoretical and methodological directions. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(3), pp.285–299. DOI: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijal.12038/abstract

Holmes, P.M., Fay, R., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2013). Researching multilingually: New theoretical and methodological directions. Keynote paper presented at the joint BERA Special Interest Groups (Comparative and International Education; Research Methodology in Education) conference on Methodological issues in intercultural, international and comparative research: Opportunities, challenges, approaches and future trends, hosted by Durham University, School of Education, 22nd April, 2013.

Holmes, P.M., Fay, R., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2013). Establishing methodologies for researching multilingually. Paper presented at the Responding to contemporary multilingual realities, recasting research methodologies conference, hosted by MOSAIC Centre for Research on Multilingualism School of Education, University of Birmingham, 25th-26th March, 2013.

Stelma, J., Fay, R., & Zhou, X. (2013). Developing intentionality and researching multilingually: An ecological and methodological perspective. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(3), pp. 300-315. DOI: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ijal.12040/abstract


Attia, M., & Fay, R. (2012). An exploration of doctoral students’ reflections on researching multilingually. Paper presented at the 1st AHRC Researching Multilingually seminar, hosted by Durham University, 28th – 29th March 2012.

Attia, M., & Fay, R. (2012). Tracing researcher trajectories: The view from the AHRC research network, Researching Multilingually. Presented as Paper 3 of the ‘Mapping multilingualism in research practice: The view from two networks’ Colloquium at the 45th Annual Meeting of the British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL) “Multilingual Theory and Practice in Applied Linguistics”, hosted by The University of Southampton, 6th -8th September, 2012.

Davcheva, L., & R. Fay (2012). An examination of the research and researcher aspects of multilingually researching one language (Ladino) through fieldwork in another (Bulgarian) and analysis and presentation in a third (English). Paper presented at the 1st AHRC Researching Multilingually seminar, hosted by Durham University, 28th–29th March 2012.

Fay, R., & Holmes, P. (2012). Acknowledging and making space for multilingual research design and practice: Towards a policy statement. Presented as Paper 4 of the ‘Mapping multilingualism in research practice: The view from two networks’ Colloquium at the 45th Annual Meeting of the British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL) “Multilingual Theory and Practice in Applied Linguistics”, hosted by The University of Southampton, 6th -8th September 2012.

Fay, R., Holmes, P., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2012). Researching interculturally, researching multilingually. Paper presented at the 11th IALIC International Conference “Intercultural Dialogue: Current Challenges/Future Directions”, hosted by Durham University, 30th November – 2nd December, 2012.

Goméz Parra, M. E., & Fay, R. (2012). English-medium researcher collaboration in a Spanish-medium narrative study: unhelpful complexity or enriched research thinking? Paper presented at the 2nd  AHRC Researching Multilingually seminar, hosted by the University of the West of England, 25th–26th April 2012.

Holmes, P., Fay, R., Andrews, J., & Attia, M. (2012). Researching multilingually: An AHRC network project. Paper presented at Cultnet, hosted by Durham University, UK, 27th-29th April 2012.

Holmes, P., Fay, R., & Andrews, J. (2012). Researching multilingually: Methodological complexities and possibilities. Paper presented at the Insights into Applied Linguistics: Languaging, Agency and Ecologies, hosted by the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, 4th-7th June 2012.


Fay, R., & Davcheva, L. (2011). Ladino and Sephardic Jews in Bulgaria:  Focus on one language (Ladino), fieldwork in another (Bulgarian), and analysis and presentation in a third (English).  Paper 4 of colloquium Doing Research Multilingually: Diverse Approaches and Representational Choices as presented at the BAAL 2011 annual conference, 1st–3rd September 2011, hosted by the University of the West of England, Bristol, UK.

Zhou, X., & Fay, R. (2011). A Case of Chinese Whispers: Some researcher-supervisor dynamics when working between Chinese and English Paper 1 of colloquium Doing Research Multilingually: Diverse Approaches and Representational Choices as presented at the BAAL 2011 annual conference, 1st–3rd September 2011, hosted by the University of the West of England, Bristol, UK.


Fay, R., Zhou, X., & Liu, T-H. (May, 2010). Undertaking narrative inquiry bilingually against a monolingual backdrop. Paper presented at Narrative Matters 2010 – Exploring the narrative landscape: Issues, investigations, and interventions hosted by the CIRN in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, May 20th – 22nd 2010.