The psycholinguist Pascal Gygax receives the Marcel Benoist Swiss Science Prize for his excellent work on the influence of language on the perception of reality. He is the fourth researcher in the history of the University of Fribourg to win this “Swiss Nobel Prize”, which is endowed with 250,000 francs.

This year's prizewinner is Pascal Gygax, scientist for experimental psycholinguistics and cognitive psychology at the University of Fribourg, whose outstanding contribution to research into the relationship between language and gender-specific prejudice is being recognised through this award. “I am extremely pleased that this prestigious prize is returning to the University of Fribourg after some 20 years,” says Rector Katharina Fromm. “It underlines the exemplary quality of cutting-edge research here and goes to a researcher who shares his findings with the general public.”

Male is equal to man – and unequal to woman
His investigations into the influence of a masculinised language on our perception of the world are particularly relevant. His experiments show that the use of the generic masculine (meaning the sole use of male word forms for all gender identities) is not interpreted generically by the brain, due to its functionality. If we read a word in the male form, for example baker, we interpret it as "male equals men", meaning there is no automatic association with women or non-binary persons. This has far-reaching social consequences, examples being the choice of a profession or in the case of job vacancy advertisements. Professions perceived as typically male, such as surgeon (German: Chirurg), generate greater interest among girls and young women if they are also described in the female form (German: Chirurgin).

Research conducted by Pascal Gygax also addresses other questions, including, for example, the cognitive processing by adolescents of warning information on packets of cigarettes in order to develop more effective approaches to prevention. He has also been able to demonstrate how our perception of time is influenced by language.

Making science comprehensible
The communication of complex scientific findings in a generally understandable manner is a major concern of Pascal Gygax. Radio contributions and workshops addressing the subject of inclusive language are as much part of his commitment as working with children. He was a co-author in 2021 of the book Le cerveau pense-t-il au masculin? Cerveau, langage et représentations sexistes ("Does the brain think in the masculine? Brain, language and sexist representations"), a plea for inclusive language, based on scientific data from the last fifty years.

The researcher emphasises: “Receiving this award is not only a great honour but also a very important sign of recognition for the entire team. It rewards twenty years of research into the complex but exciting links between language and thinking, and more specifically, the links between language and male privilege. In today's world, this award also sends a strong message to anyone researching and highlighting gender inequalities: Your work is vital to research and teaching!”

Joint award ceremony in the Federal Palace
The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) was responsible for the scientific selection of the award winner on behalf of the Marcel Benoist Foundation. The award ceremony will be held on 7 November 2024 in the National Council Chamber of the Federal Parliament Building in Bern and will honour not only Pascal Gygax but also the winner of the Latsis Swiss Science Prize, Mackenzie Mathis. The presidents of the respective foundations will present the prizes in the presence of the Swiss federal councillor Guy Parmelin and the president of the National Council, Eric Nussbaumer.

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Photo: Daniel Rihs