17

of their speakers. The loss of any indigenous language brings with it a loss of

culture, of a whole way of perceiving and representing the world. Linguistic

diversity, perhaps particularly in the case of indigenous languages, needs to be

protected as part of humanity’s global cultural heritage.

In addition, Thorn (2011) in the article entitled “Interpreting and Translating

Indigenous Language” stated that: Interpreting services (which are currently used

very inefficiently in the public health system) are vital to beginning to establish

some common understanding between a “white” medical system and its

Indigenous patients, but words and word use alone do not equate to

understanding, especially where those providing the information (i.e. health care

professionals and interpreters) may not fully comprehend the information

themselves or the implications of that information. Dr. Jane Thorn added that the

only way to connect is to come in some way of not just communicating in words

but communicating in a framework where can negotiate and do everything.

According to Commonwealth Ombudsman (2011) in the article entitled

“Interpreting and Translating Indigenous Language” he states that in his

experience, without interpreters and proper regard to the language barriers that

Indigenous Australians face, service delivery can be misdirected and damaging

and people can be excluded from, and alienated by, the very programs designed

to assist them. Further, if Indigenous languages are not preserved and then

taken into account in service delivery to Indigenous Australians, many closing the

gap initiatives will be undermined.

 18

Additionally, Feely and Harzing (2010) shows in their article entitled “The

Language Barrier and its Implications to the Social Interaction” that language

barriers are therefore likely to play a key role in any multilingual group

relationship.

However, perhaps the most pronounced manifestation of the language

barrier at society can be found in the relationship between a multilingual people

and its society, a relationship characterized by several distinguishing features:

Often, and especially in relationships born out of acquisitions, the language

competence of the second language users is at neither extreme of the language

barrier. Typically, the second language users will have some proficiency, but not

enough to be totally relaxed and effective in the communication.

Generally, the communications are not interpersonal in nature, but more

typically are encounters between language groups.

Each of these factors contributes to the difficulty of achieving and sustaining

effective communications, and a productive, collaborative relationship. In the

section below, the causes and nature of the problems are outlined in more detail.

While the article “The Perilous State of Indigenous Languages in Australia”

(2009) states that there is now a significant body of evidence which

demonstrates a range of benefits for Indigenous peoples and minority groups

when they maintain strong connections with their languages and culture. Having

one’s mother tongue bestows various social, emotional, employment, cognitive

and health advantages. Bilingualism provides yet another layer of advantage for

minority language speakers. Keeping the mother tongue and then mastering
 19

English for example, provides minority language speakers with the advantage of

being able to operate in different contexts.

Additionally, “The Perilous State of Indigenous Languages in Australia”

(2009) states also that creating a language program where young language

learners have an opportunity to learn to read and write in their first language. A

resource such as this one has the potential to transform literacy education in

Indigenous communities and to assist in the preservation and revitalization of

Indigenous languages.

Furthermore, Pettigrew and Troop (2009) found that bringing different racial

and cultural groups into contact may generate more heat than light. When people

who have different cultural and language backgrounds come together, issues

could lead to conflict. Most public institutions in America are inadequately

prepared to deal with diversity issues, which in turn can create huge cultural and

language barriers for non-English speakers.

According to Henderson (2009), each speech community considers certain

forms of speech behavior as appropriate, with speakers frequently considering

these norms as universal. If their expectations are not met in communication

across language barriers, they may erroneously attribute language-based friction

to their colleagues’ personalities and consequently form negative attitudes about

members of other speech communities. Once these negative attributions take on

a leading role, the relationship between employees from different speech

communities can quickly deteriorate.

 20

Bowen (2009) shows in her article entitled “Language Barriers in

Communication”, that the evidence and implications provision of language

access services should be viewed not as a separate “add-on” program, but as an

essential component of a strategy to meet organizational goals – to manage risk,

improve quality, reduce communication disparities, and establish partnership with

vulnerable communities. Addressing language barriers is the one strategy for

improving organizational cultural responsiveness that has the greatest evidence

of effectiveness. Challenges to addressing these barriers include: low provider

awareness of the risks of using inappropriate interpreters; marginalization of

minority language communities from organizational planning; and the invisibility

of the effects of language barriers to decision-makers in a climate where other

issues appear more urgent. An additional barrier is the common view that

interpretation services are too costly – and failure to consider the costs of failing

to provide adequate language access.

According to Feely and Harzing (2008) the true cost of the impact of

language barriers has to be seen in terms of the way language barriers distort

and damage the relationship. This leads towards pressure and constraints on the

strategies followed by the organization. Language barriers affect the level of

suspicion, mistrust and conflict between HQ and subsidiaries.

Furthermore, U.S. Census Bureau (2000), states that more than 46 million

people in the United States do not speak English as their primary language, and

more than 21 million speak English less than very well. Confronting this language

barrier is one of the major challenges for Vietnamese adult immigrants.

 21

Foreign Study

Christian Phuoc-Lanh and Phan June, (2012)conducted a study entitled

“Recognizing the Effects of Comprehension Language Barriers and Adaptability

Cultural Barriers on Selected First Generation Undergraduate Vietnamese

Students”, they found out that the first-generation Vietnamese undergraduate

students often feel frustrated, sad, angry, confused, and anxious about many

areas of their new lives. As non-native English speaking individuals, having to

constantly listen, speak, and write in English often becomes overwhelming for

them. Although their written English language proficiency is quite good, many

find it difficult to understand conversations because people speak in slang, or

speak too quickly, or use idioms that they do not understand.

In addition to that, Tassilo Schuster and Helene Tenzer (2010) found out in

their study entitled “Language Barriers in Different Forms of International

Activities” that language effects on emotions and power relations are crucial

when expatriates have extensive interactions with people in the host country. In

case of high interactions with people in the host country language effects on

social identity formation have to be considered as well. On the contrary,

language effects on trust come to the fore when expatriates have only limited

interactions with people in the host country, no matter how intensely they interact

with people.

Mancini-cross, Backman, and Baldwin (2010) conducted the study entitled

“The Effect of the Language Barrier on Intercultural Communication”, states that

language is perceived as a barrier in study abroad programs as it may limit

 22

students’ opportunities to interact with the local culture. It also revealed that the

understanding of what appeared to a counterintuitive phenomenon in which the

language inadequacy and the international inexperience of the students and the

hosts should have acted as a barrier for an authentic intercultural experience.

While Hones (2009) research drew on stories of many immigrant and refugee

students arriving from Australia to the United States regarding how they daily

faced the contradiction of their languages and cultures in a new society. Hones

argued that teachers should offer a pathway to engage these students, honoring

their linguistic and cultural abilities, acknowledging their many struggles, and

encouraging their academic and social progress through a transformative

educational process. However, one of the greatest challenges facing immigrant

language learners in colleges is how to learn academic subject areas while

learning a new culture and language at the same time. In actuality, some

bilingual students have limited formal education experiences in their countries of

origin, and low (or non-existent) literacy in their first language. Hones concluded

that these factors can contribute to a lack of academic success in high school,

and sometimes a failure to graduate.

Moreover, Xu (2009) in his research about Chinese students entitled ‟

Adjustment to Learning in an American University”, says that they had difficulties

caused by the language deficiency and not enough awareness of the differences

in teaching and learning between China and USA.

Furthermore, Parker, Rubalcava and Teruel (2009) conducted the study

entitled “Schooling Inequality among the Indigenous: A Problem of Resources or

 23

Language Barriers” and they states that instrumental variable procedures and

evidence on schooling outcomes in bilingual educational programs, suggest that

the language barrier for children who do not speak Spanish is an important factor

that greatly reduces their educational achievement. Language barriers can thus

be taken as an important factor behind the continued social exclusion of the

monolingual indigenous.

Jurij Zalokar (2008) conducted his study entitled, “Language Barrier -

Immigrants and Cultural Change”, and he concluded that both language barrier

and the pressure of assimilation contribute in varying degrees to regressive

emotional and pathological development. A monolingual culture instills

xenophobic trends which stifle the positive potential of a multicultural society.

Mainstreaming - merely a euphemism for forced acculturation - has increasingly

become the final aim for multiculturalism in monolingual countries.

In short, the discouragement and resulting dissolution of native language

has been shown to play a primary role in the genesis of psychological and

sociological pathologies. To amend these detrimental trends, ethnic minorities,

cultures and language must be met with positive discrimination. To inspire a

peaceful, culturally symbiotic existence, immigrants must be allowed to adapt

without being forced to give up their previous identity, and encouraged to

institutionalize valuable traditions within the structure of a multicultural society.

 24

Local Literature

Ma. Suzette Palao (2018) in her article “Barriers to Effective Communication”

states that language is the means which is said to be the most effective means of

communication with others. The language provides understanding of the content

that an individual is willing to express or communicate with the others. When two

persons or groups of people are involved in communicating with each other and if

a common language is used that is understandable to all individuals then their

objectives will be fulfilled and the process of communication will be made

effective.

In addition, Susan Lopez (2017) conducted the study entitled “Beyond the

Language Barrier”, this study has provided information about the need to identify

the strategies to overcome the language barrier and it highlights the need for the

toolkit to improve the language barriers. Most of the respondents of the study

have suggested Filipino classes, access to electronic devices and need for

interpreters to overcome the language barrier. The toolkit is important and is to

be made available in all areas of the organization.

According to Jessica David (2015) in her article entitled “Language Barriers

in Education”, she found out that language barrier in education has become a

major problem due to the growing number of minority students who do not speak

English. For that reason, it is clear that a language barrier has the great

implications in social interaction especially in education. Therefore, it would be

very difficult for the students to meet their potential, learn new things and

succeed in their school.

 25

Based to Raissa M. Ponce (2011), in her article entitled “Communication

Problems in Second Language Learning of Indigenous People” language barriers

can cause intense frustration for all parties involved. A person may feel

inadequate, shameful and sad for not being able to understand and share simple

ideas. People who are not able to speak the native language may grow frustrated

at the missed opportunities, embarrassing mistakes, serious consequences and

negative attitudes from others. A person that knows the native language may be

frustrated at someone else for not knowing the language. This frustration can

manifest in the form of hostility, avoidance or resentment.

According to Jocelyn B. Balili (2009) in her article entitled “Problems

Encountered in Social interaction By Indigenous People in Cagayan De Oro

City”, the inability to speak in the native language prevents individuals from being

able to fully express their personality and form bonds with others. The individual

may feel isolated from the rest of the population. Language barriers can foment

discrimination and separation of groups. Groups that share the same language

may avoid other language groups. Professional growth is also hindered if the

individual is not able to communicate with co-workers on a deeper level.

Clemencia C. Espiritu (2009) states in her article entitled “Indigenous

Languages and its implication to Community Development in Asia” that language

barriers prevent the free flow of information. Two groups that speak different

languages may have a valuable perspective on solving the same issue. However

without the capability to communicate the differing ideas, the two groups miss out

on new knowledge. It can be difficult for people who speak different languages to
 26

learn from each other. During travel it can also weaken the cultural experience.

Tourists may not understand the full cultural implications of events, sites and

tradition.

Local Study

Wilbert Auner Namoc (2018), conducted the study entitled “The impact of

language barrier and communication style in community” and he states that

language barriers often go hand-in hand with cultural differences, posing

additional problems and misunderstandings in the community. Thus, language

barriers can easily give impact in the communication because messages can

easily be misconstrued. This study showed the impact of these barriers may be

significant in communication. Language barriers cause difficulties of people to

communicate with others, lack of communication could lead to low trust

formation.

In 2016, John Bryan L. Alamillo’s study entitled “Language Pattern and

Attitudes Of Kinamiging Manobo Speaker” states that language diversity reflects

a society’s richness in culture. Kinamiging Manobo, a language spoken in the

southern Philippines, faces a threat of extinction posed by a more dominant

language. The study aimed to determine the language patterns and the attitude

of the speakers towards their language and the survival probability of the

language.
 27

Violeta B. Lopez (2013) conducted the study “The Effect of Language

Differences on Social Interaction Behavior”, this study sates that language

differences in language styles, along with the underlying differences in cultural

values and thinking styles, become a major source of misunderstanding, distrust,

and conflict in intercultural communication, as they often evoke group-based

identity perceptions, as well as corresponding stereotypes and prejudices toward

language and culturally different “out group” members. A case in point is how the

long standing interethnic conflict between people with different languages may be

attributable, in part, to differences in language styles that reflect deep-rooted

differences in cultural values and thinking styles.

According to the study entitled “The Magbukon Literary Arts Among The

Aeta’s Of Bataan Philippines” (2012) found out that Magbukon is the indigenous

dialect of an Aeta tribe in Bataan which is potentially extinct due to cultural

erosion as a result of tribe’s assimilation with the lowlanders. Using ethnographic

approach, this study focused on the preservation of Aeta Magbukon oral tradition

as a means of preserving their language. Their literary arts are preserved only by

oral tradition and being transferred by the elders to the younger generation.

Synthesis and Relevance of the Reviewed Literature and Studies

The foreign article supported the present study because they show how

language barrier distort and damage the relationship of people. They show that

addressing language barriers is the one strategy for improving organizational

cultural responsiveness that has the greatest evidence of effectiveness.

 28

Furthermore, articles supported the present study because they show that

creating a language program where young language learners have an

opportunity to learn to read and write in their first language will be a good thing to

preserve and revitalize indigenous languages and that there is a significant body

of evidence which demonstrates a range of benefits for Indigenous peoples and

minority groups when they maintain strong connections with their languages and

culture. It also states that when there is a program for maintaining language

connections with the indigenous communities it will help to have a better social

interaction experience for them. The language barriers can bring people a bad

experience in service delivery. It is related to the present study because it shows

how language barrier affect social services delivery to the Indigenous people.

Those article supports the present study because it states that language barriers

limit the capacity of individuals to learn from their environment due to the lack of

comprehension and ability to communicate. It is related to the present study

because it focuses on how the language barrier affects the social interaction

activities of people in terms of education and learning.

The foreign study supports the present study because it concluded that

language barriers contribute in varying degrees to regressive emotional and

pathological development because the study is focus on how language barrier

affect the indigenous people behavior not only in their social interaction activities.

The language barrier is an important factor behind the continued social exclusion

of the monolingual indigenous because the study is focus on how language

barrier affect the social interaction of the indigenous people. This study supports
 29

the present study because it states that language barrier is an important factor

behind the continued social exclusion of the monolingual indigenous. The study

focused on how language barrier affect the social interaction activities of the

indigenous people in terms of learning and education. The language barrier was

an important factor that can contribute to a lack of academic success in high

school, and sometimes a failure to graduate. Thus, the study focused on how

language barrier affect the social interaction of the indigenous people and one of

this was in education activities especially in language learning.

Those articles in local literature supported the present study because they

state that to overcome language barriers it need a toolkit and it must be available

in all areas of the organization. They were also related to the present study

because they focused on strategies on how to overcome language barrier and

that is to have a translator through the use of electronic devices. In addition,

articles supported the present study because they stated that language barriers

prevented the free flow of information and the difficulty to learn other languages.

They were also related to the present study because they focused what were the

problems encountered of people with different languages when they are

communicating with each other. The language barriers can foment discrimination

and separation of groups because thy focused on how the language barriers

affect the social interaction of people and what were the problems they

encountered in terms of discrimination and separation of groups.

The local studies supported the present study because they stated that

difference in languages was one of the reasons of having mistrust, distrust and
 30

conflict in intercultural communication. They were related to the present study

because the study was focused on what were the factors that affect the

communication. As this study gains acceptance and credence from both the

simple and the prudent, the education and wisdom encompassed in the language

under study would have an explicit possibility of incessant transfer to the younger

age group, thus, an extensive and positive reception of the culture and its people

as a whole.