ATTITUDES OF THE STUDENT POPULATION REGARDING GENDER-SENSITIVE LANGUAGE BEFORE AND AFTER LAW ON GENDER EQUALITY

The aim of this paper is to analyze the use of gender-sensitive language (GSL) in selected institutional guidelines for the technical preparation of manuscripts for domestic scholarly journals in the social sciences and humanities (a total of 8) and in peer review forms (2). This analysis aligns with the demand for the affirmation and greater visibility of female scholars in Serbia today. Subsequently, I offer recommendations with the intention of contributing to the assessment of the extent of practical application of legal regulations within scholar institutions in Serbia in 2024. The theoretical framework is based on the theory of linguistic performance, as presented by Savić (1993; 2010). The methodological framework consists of discourse analysis (Savić 1993, Buchholtz 2003, Lazar 2007, Wedl 2014) and feminist content analysis (Reinharz & Davidman 1996: 145‒163). I analyze discursive practices in: 1. naming and referring to authors, reviewers, and editors; 2. citing literature and sources within the text and at the end of the text. The results indicate that: the naming of female authors and reviewers is either completely absent or there are significant inconsistencies; there is generally requirement to include the full name along with the surname of the authors in the references. I conclude that the analyzed guidelines are not aligned with the requirements of the adopted GE Law (2024). Specifically, there is no clear requirement for the use of GSL in scholarly texts. This implies that the scholarly writing in Serbia today does not promote the application of the GE Law. On the contrary, it perpetuates the invisibility of female scholars as key contributors to the development of humanities and science in Serbia. I provide recommendations with the belief that they can help overcome current practices.