Academic Structures and the Injustice of Language and Culture: A Chinese Student’s Auto-Ethnography in UK Higher Education

Wang Yi
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Wang Yi: 1 School of International Relations and Public Affairs & Institute of Silk Road Strategy Studies, Shanghai International Studies University, China 2 School of International Relations, University of St Andrews, UK

Politics and Security Governance, 2025, vol. 1, issue 2, 87-115

Abstract: Using the case of Chinese international students studying in the UK, this article explores the language dilemma, cultural conflicts, gender discrimination, and cognitive barriers they face within Western academic and social contexts. Employing the concept of “Epistemic Injustice (Fricker, 2007)” as its analytical framework, this article provides a personal account of how structures of language power, cultural hegemony, and gender inequality intersect in intercultural communication and knowledge production. Through auto-ethnography, this paper reveals how the dominance of the English language and systemic centrism perpetuate epistemic exclusion and the marginalization of non-native English speakers—both institutionally and in everyday interactions—manifesting in testimonial and hermeneutical injustices. This auto-ethnography further highlights that existing uniformity and exclusivity in the global knowledge system not only suppress diverse voices but also reinforce entrenched power hierarchies.

Keywords: Academic Structure; Epistemic Injustice; Language and Culture; Auto-ethnography; Chinese International Students (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ris:ppipsg:022141

DOI: 10.47297/ppipsg2025010205

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