Researchers in anthropology and psychology conducting cross-cultural comparative studies face a range of complex methodological challenges which significantly impact the validity and reliability of their findings. Paramount among these are issues related to the accurate translation of culturally specific concepts across diverse linguistic frameworks, as well as the difficulties associated with what Thomas Hylland Eriksen termed the “translation of non-verbal acts.” The objective of this study is to analyze methodological approaches aimed at optimizing intercultural professional discourse, focusing on the precision of specialized terminology translation and the effective interpretation of non-verbal communication. This article delineates the historical trajectory of these methodological concerns, beginning with contributions from evolutionary anthropologists and progressing through to contemporary large-scale cross-cultural research initiatives. The primary methodological challenges can be categorized into three interrelated areas: (1) the semantically and contextually adequate translation of cultural concepts, which necessitates nuanced interpretative frameworks; (2) the mitigation of ethnocentric biases that may distort data interpretation; and (3) the contextualization of findings within indigenous cultural norms rather than the imposition of universal standards rooted in Western paradigms. Current advancements in cross-cultural psychology and anthropology increasingly emphasize research conducted in nonWestern societies, highlighting cultural variability and establishing new benchmarks for assessing the cross-cultural validity of data. This article draws upon the authors’ ethnographic research and presents specific case studies, including a large-scale international project on COVID-19 involving respondents from 23 countries, to illustrate methodological obstacles and explore potential solutions, such as back-translation techniques. Additionally, the authors examine how globalization influences linguistic and cultural boundaries – often eroding traditional distinctions and resulting in homogenization – while simultaneously fostering a heightened awareness and assertion of local cultural identity. Thus, this synthesis aims to contribute to ongoing scholarly discourse by proposing refined strategies for enhancing cross-cultural research rigor, with particular attention to linguistic translation, interpretative bias mitigation, and culturally sensitive analytical paradigms.

The study addresses the cognitive nature of event construal in multimodal discourse. Adopting a multimodal construction grammar approach, it explores transitive and intransitive discourse events with a view to identifying the cognitive grounds of speech and co-speech gesture recurrent alignment patterns. We hypothesize that these multimodal constructions are mediated by the degree of transitivity, which is manifested in different conceptual structures. The key research question is whether functional gestures serve to demarcate the degree of transitivity (high and low transitive, intransitive, and copular utterances) in first-person perspective Russian expository discourse. The research data are 20 recorded expository monologues detailing personal experiences of creativity in professional communication, containing 725 cases of first-person perspective utterances and 1959 cases of co-speech gesture use. The results show that a) copular utterances are aligned with pragmatic discourse representational, emphatic, and evaluative gestures, b) intransitive clauses co-occur with deictic pointing gestures, c) low transitive clauses employ more contact-establishing gestures, d) high transitive clauses are significantly more frequently aligned with representational gestures, particularly enacting, holding, and molding. Overall, multimodal transitivity is expressed in the higher frequency of representational gestures, which supports prior results, but specifies them in viewing transitivity as a scaled phenomenon. Transitivity then acts as an event construal category in multimodal expository discourse, displaying actionability and objectivity in speech and in gesture; while intransitivity displays prevalence to foregrounding the role of the cognizing and acting agent. The results contribute to developing a multimodal construction grammar framework in exploring universal categories of transitivity, actionality, and perspective in discourse.

This study introduces an integrated model of educational directives (instructions) synthesized from Cognitive Load Theory and Discourse Theory. The proposed model aligns the directive’s cognitive-propositional structure with the learning task and learner proficiency. Specifically, the model distinguishes three levels: the micropropositional structure (text base), which must be concise to minimize extraneous cognitive load; the macropropositional structure, which ensures comprehension of criteria and facilitates intrinsic and germane loads; and the superpropositional structure, which forms cognitive scripts crucial for recurring tasks. The research aimed to identify differences in the perception of single versus repetitive directives and primary versus secondary directives, while also assessing how propositional completeness influences task execution strategies. An eye-tracking experiment was conducted involving university students performing interconnected language tasks, including reading texts, analyzing images, and ordering words. Data were analyzed using fixation counts and duration metrics across specific areas of interest. Results confirmed the research hypotheses with statistically significant effects. First, repetitive directives undergo a full propositional cycle, eventually simplifying cognitive processing to the level of automatic recognition. Second, primary directives command sustained attention, whereas secondary directives are scanned minimally for their semantic core. Third, unambiguous directives successfully trigger intended activity scripts. Conversely, incomplete or unclear directives cause strategy variability and “pragmatic searching” in early cycles, followed by an attentional shift to more comprehensible sub-tasks in later cycles. Finally, when task sequence is unregulated, learners adopt varying execution orders specifically to minimize cognitive load. The study’s novelty lies in operationalizing instructions as systems of controlling propositions and validating this framework through objective oculographic data. The findings offer significant implications for optimizing professional educational communication and designing materials that effectively manage learner attention.

As digital text becomes the dominant medium for education, understanding the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying second language (L2) reading is crucial for minimizing cognitive overload. This research comprises three exploratory studies employing complementary methodology to investigate the complex nature of reading strategies in the digital sphere of education. The paper aims to reveal how instructional design (specifically platform usability, task typology, and metacognitive scaffolding) influences cognitive load, emotional engagement, and strategy selection. The studies used a multimodal approach combining electroencephalography (EEG), galvanic skin response (GSR), eye-tracking, and self-report measures. Study 1 assessed platform usability. Although EEG spectral analysis indicated optimal baseline cognitive load (p > 0.05), eye-tracking and GSR revealed that navigational and visual design flaws were significant sources of extraneous load and user frustration. Study 2 investigated the impact of pre-reading tasks (structural vs. communicative) on Chinese learners of Russian. Eye-tracking metrics showed that communicative tasks promoted active, monitoring-heavy strategies effective for selective processors, whereas structural tasks facilitated thorough, detail-oriented processing that maximized accuracy for non-selective readers. Study 3 compared metacognitive scaffolding against traditional instructions. Results demonstrated that even though scaffolding successfully altered the learning process by inducing a more strategic, planned approach (verified by oculomotor behavior), it came at the cost of significantly increased cognitive load and reduced emotional engagement. These findings provide compelling evidence for a transactional model of digital language learning relevant to professional communication pedagogy. The research concludes that effective outcomes emerge from a dynamic, three-way interaction between the learner’s cognitive profile, pedagogical task design, and the usability of the digital environment. Digital L2 instruction must be cognitively informed, balancing strategic benefits against the mental effort required to deploy them.

The article examines the mechanisms of multimodal text processing as a tool of professional advertising communication and is based on the dual coding theory and principles for reducing cognitive load. The aim of the research is to examine whether the parallel and asynchronous acceleration of verbal and non-verbal components of the text affect the success of its processing and memorization. The stimulus material consists of four videos united by a common theme of “Beauty Care” previously aligned in terms of length and readability of the text. Each video was recorded in four variants: 1) original format – normal speed of video and audio; 2) parallel acceleration of video and audio; 3) acceleration of video while maintaining the original speed of audio; 4) acceleration of audio while maintaining the original speed of video. In the experiment, after watching each video, the participants (N=100, females aged 16 to 35, native Russian speakers, active social media users) were asked to suggest key words for the video and to rate its attractiveness, complexity, memorability, and lengthiness on a scale from -2 to +2. The results demonstrate a complex relationship between the speed of presentation of visual and auditory components and subjective ratings of the videos. Normal speed delivery provides the best results for key word extraction and ease of perception. Synchronous acceleration of audio and video leads to cognitive overload and worsens content memorization. Participants rated the format with accelerated video at the original audio speed as the most attractive and easiest to remember. Significant correlations were found between subjective ratings of attractiveness, memorability, and complexity of multimodal text perception. Regression analysis results confirmed that not only the presentation mode but also the topic of the video influences the perception of multimodal text. The findings allow for optimizing professional communication strategies in the digital environment, taking into account the audience’s cognitive characteristics.