Actitudes Lingüísticas Hacia el Español en los Entornos Médicos del Estado de Nueva York

In sociolinguistics, language attitudes refer to perceptions, opinions, or beliefs about a language or language variety and its speakers. These attitudes often reflect and reinforce ideologies that favor a dominant or standard language while stigmatizing minority or non-standard languages. New York State is a uniquely multilingual region encompassing both highly urban and rural areas. Its cultural and linguistic composition has been changing rapidly, including a growing Spanish-speaking population. Despite this shift, a gap exists in research on language attitudes toward Spanish-speaking individuals in New York’s healthcare settings. Healthcare is not a universal experience, and previous studies have shown that unaddressed linguistic and cultural barriers can lead to poorer patient outcomes. To assess the current landscape of linguistic attitudes in New York’s medical environments, an anonymous survey was distributed to individuals who have received healthcare in the state while using Spanish. The survey, offered in both English and Spanish, was disseminated on the social media platform Reddit. Demographic information such as age, gender, language proficiency, and geographic area was collected. Language attitude data was gathered using a Likert scale to evaluate positive and negative statements, while significant experiences were recorded through open-ended responses. Results show that age, gender, and area of residence significantly affected language attitudes, while birth nation and area of residence influenced statement negativity. Both perceived and internal language attitudes trended negative in these populations. This study aims to prompt further investigation into the real experiences of patients and encourage the development of measures to address identified issue.