37.1723, Calls: Journal of Language and Aging Research - "Special Issue: Multimodality, Language, and Aging" (Jrnl)

Tue May 12 09:05:02 UTC 2026

LINGUIST List: Vol-37-1723. Tue May 12 2026. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 37.1723, Calls: Journal of Language and Aging Research - "Special Issue: Multimodality, Language, and Aging" (Jrnl)

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================================================================

Date: 10-May-2026
From: Tongfu Yang [toferyoung at gmail.com]
Subject: Journal of Language and Aging Research - "Special Issue: Multimodality, Language, and Aging" (Jrnl)

Journal: Journal of Language and Aging Research
Issue: Multimodality, Language, and Aging
Call Deadline: 15-Jul-2026

Special Issue Editor
Prof. Dr. Lihe Huang, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
Multimodality, Language, and Aging
Population aging has intensified research interest in how language
changes across the lifespan. While traditional linguistic research has
primarily focused on verbal or textual forms, human communication is
inherently multimodal, involving the coordinated use of speech,
prosody, gesture, facial expression, and body movement (Kendon, 2004;
Norris, 2004; Perniss, 2018). From a multimodal perspective, aging is
associated not only with changes in linguistic abilities but also with
shifts in pragmatic and interactional resources (Petriglia et al.,
2025; Yang & Huang, 2024). In cases of neurocognitive disorders such
as Alzheimer’s disease, individuals may rely on compensatory
mechanisms, drawing on multimodal resources including gestures, facial
expressions, gaze, and intonation to support communication (Perkins,
2007; Zhou & Huang, 2023; Duboisdindien & Bolly, 2024, 2025). A
multimodal approach therefore enables a more comprehensive account of
communicative change and adaptation in aging (Huang et al., 2021),
inspiring the creation and use of new multimodal resources for the
study of language and aging.
Building on this background, this special issue invites submissions of
original research papers on the theme of “Multimodality, Language, and
Aging”. We welcome contributions that adopt a multimodal paradigm to
examine language changes and communicative mechanisms in older adults.
Potential topics include, but are not limited to:
 - Multimodal interaction in aging;
 - Cognitive aging and multimodal compensatory strategies;
 - Multimodal construction of age-related identities in
cross-generational communication;
 - Advances in multimodal corpora and AI-assisted modeling of aging
trajectories;
 - Multimodality in pathological aging and neurocognitive disorders;
 - Cross-linguistic and cross-cultural perspectives on multimodal
communication in aging.
Submission Instructions:
 - Submission Types: Submissions may take the form of full research
papers or brief reports, with lengths ranging from 4,000 to 10,000
words, depending on the submission type.
 - Formatting: Manuscripts must be written in English and adhere to
the journal’s formatting guidelines. Detailed instructions are
available on the journal website:
https://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/hup2/jlar/authorGuidelines.
 - Submission Process: The submission follows a two-stage process:
        Stage 1: Abstract Submission. Authors must first submit an
abstract (300 to 500 words) outlining the research background,
methodology, and key findings. Abstracts should be sent via email to
ageing at tongji.edu.cn. Please use the subject line: [JLAR SI Abstract]
- Your Name - Paper Title.
        Stage 2: Full Paper Submission. Authors of accepted abstracts
will be invited to submit their full manuscripts. Full manuscripts
should be submitted through the journal’s online submission system.
Please indicate that your submission is intended for the special issue
“Multimodality, Language, and Aging” in the abstract during
submission.
 - Peer Review: All submissions will undergo a double-blind peer
review process.
 - Important Dates (UTC+8):
        Abstract Submission Deadline: July 15, 2026
        Notification of Acceptance: August 15, 2026
        Full Paper Submission Deadline: November 15, 2026
Journal Information:
The Journal of Language and Aging Research (JLAR) is a peer-reviewed
open-access journal focusing on the intersection of aging and
language. JLAR has been established in recognition of an emerging
community of scholars that is working to discover what actually is
happening with language during this varied yet universal process of
aging we are all experiencing, and to provide a venue for those
investigating this fertile topic to share their findings with each
other and with the wider scholarly community.
Bibliography:
Duboisdindien, G., & Bolly, C. T. (2024). Videos to study Interactions
in AGEing (VIntAGE): A longitudinal, ecological and multimodal French
corpus. Journal of Language and Aging Research, 2(2), 50–63.
https://doi.org/10.15460/jlar.2024.2.2.1524
Duboisdindien, G., & Bolly, C. T. (2025). Heterogeneity of verbal and
gestural functions in spoken discourse with MCI. Journal of
Neurolinguistics, 73, Article 101227.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneuroling.2024.101227
Huang, L., Yang, J., & Liu, Z. (2021). 认知障碍老年人语用补偿研究 [Pragmatic
compensation for the elders with cognitive impairment: A speech act
perspective]. 语言战略研究 [Chinese Journal of Language Policy and
Planning], 6(6), 33–44.
Kendon, A. (2004). Gesture: Visible action as utterance. Cambridge
University Press.
Norris, S. (2004). Analyzing multimodal interaction: A methodological
framework. Routledge.
Perkins, M. R. (2007). Pragmatic impairment. Cambridge University
Press.
Perniss, P. (2018). Why we should study multimodal language. Frontiers
in Psychology, 9, 1109.
Petriglia, F., Marini, A., Gabbatore, I., & Bosco, F. M. (2025).
Pragmatic and narrative decline in healthy aging: A multilevel
assessment of their interplay. Journal of Communication Disorders,
118, 106593.
Yang, J., & Huang, L. (2024). 正常及阿尔茨海默病老年人受益类语力表达的多模态分析 [Multimodal
analysis of beneficiary illocutionary force expressed by normal
elderly and elderly with Alzheimer’s disease]. 西安外国语大学学报 [Journal of
Xi’an International Studies University], 32(4), 24–29.
Zhou, D., & Huang, L. (2023). 语用障碍多模态补偿的功能与机制 [Performance and
mechanism of multimodal compensation in pragmatic impairment]. 现代外语
[Modern Foreign Languages], 46(1), 15–28.

Linguistic Field(s): Clinical Linguistics
                     Cognitive Science
                     Discourse Analysis
                     Pragmatics

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