*Do we trust people who speak with an accent?*

[Kraut]

*Do we trust people who speak with an accent?*
September 18, 2018 in Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-09- ... ccent.html

You are in a strange neighbourhood, your cell phone's dead, and you
desperately need to find the closest garage. A couple of people on the
street chime in, each sending you in opposite directions. One person sounds
like a local and speaks in a nonchalant manner, while the other uses a
loud, confident voice but speaks with a strong accent. Who are you going to
trust? A recently published study shows that unless they speak in a
confident tone of voice, you're less likely to believe someone who speaks
with an accent. And, interestingly, as you make this decision different
parts of your brain are activated, depending on whether you perceive the
speaker to be from your own "in-group" or from some type of "out-group"
(e.g., someone with a different linguistic or cultural background).

Linguistic profiling?

[Speakeasy]

Kraut, thank you for sharing this with us.

Still, I would be disappointed if anyone were to find this observation truly novel or illuminating; "distrust of the other” is simply part of our nature, so much so that there exists an increasingly-popular notion that our species is “hard-wired” to be distrustful as a simple measure of self-preservation.

Throughout our lives, and this starts in childhood, we become members of groups based on a variety of shared characteristics, beliefs, and so forth. Once integrated into any particular group, we are accepted as authenticated members of “us” from whom our fellow members expect loyalty, sincerity, goodwill, good faith, and our having no intention, whatsoever, either to deceive or to deviate. The corollary is that those who are not members of the group are automatically “them” and “they” are always suspect, even in face of evidence to the contrary. To my mind, it is this fundamental tension between those whom we assume to be worthy of our trust and those we assume to represent a potential threat that explains our absolute horror when one of “us” joins one of “them”, an act which is qualified as betrayal, perfidy, treachery, or infidelity, and which is to be condemned and punished in the harshest of terms.

Coming back to “accents”, while both positive and negative stereotypes prevail, my experience suggests that “some of us” will not only treat people having pronounced accents with suspicion, but “some of us” will also automatically assume that the “other” is also significantly less intelligent than we are, that they have less intrinsic value, and that they possess fewer rights, et cetera. It takes quite a bit of introspection to recognise one’s own prejudices and even greater self-awareness and courage to overcome them. Granted, the vast majority of the members of this forum will likely adhere to “positive stereotypes” should a stranger speak with an accent; but, as we’re all humans, I’d bet my pension that we all harbour our own “negative stereotypes” and that we are quite comfortable with our rationalisation of these.

So says Speakeasy; you can count on me to highlight the ominously dark cloud occulted by the silver lining.

EDITED:
Typos!
And even more typos!

[zenmonkey]

Yep, some accents are culturally, socioeconomically or even ability-suspect. The evaluation of what is the 'out-group' varies from place to place. There is a reason that James Joyce's greatest success was outside his own country.

[rdearman]

I was just reading a psychology book and the author was saying a number of studies which show bearded men are considered untrustworthy.

[Brun Ugle]

I was just reading a psychology book and the author was saying a number of studies which show bearded men are considered untrustworthy.

What about bearded women? Because ever since I passed about 35....

[Stefan]

I was just reading a psychology book and the author was saying a number of studies which show bearded men are considered untrustworthy.

[Cavesa]

I can't see anything surprising here. I even suspect we have already discussed this some time ago. But it is great to hear about a research using fMRI, thanks for bringing it here.

It depends on the accent a lot, which is something the researchers never seem to take into account. Some accents can even make you appear much more trustworthy, intelligent, and experienced. Basically any accent of a language belonging to a more respected, richer, and more valued country. The accent of the worse ones does the opposite. I think all the articles about this don't reflect the existence of the better accents much, as they are done in the countries on the top of the privilege pyramid.

Should you speak Czech with a strong English accent, you'd probably be the most likeable and respectable person in the room immediately. You'll have a much easier time trying to convince people about anything, even if your vocabulary, grammar, or other qualifications are far from perfect. With a Ukrainian or Vietnamese accent: good luck making a great impression.

It is really sad sometimes. And of course I know I will always be in the "worse" category , unless I make my accent in all my foreign languages mild and neutral enough (or I have an accent taken from one of my foreign languages). When I am identified as a central european (which the foreigners usually call eastern), either by the accent or by other things (other people with me talking in Czech, or just being presented as one), it definitely carries prejudices concerning my knowledge, education, intelligence, cultural tastes, and moral values. And it definitely comes with distrust towards the information I am communicating. I don't even dare to imagine what it must be like to have a clear Indian or Arabic accent in many countries.

The authors have pointed out the importance of confidence, which is interesting and definitely plausible (even though the levels of confidence are even harder to assess than the language ones. My confidence is usually B2ish ). It is the good and the bad news. And it confirms that language learning on its own may not have the desired impact on one's life, if some other skills are not being developed enough.

Interestingly, what the researchers discovered was that when speakers with a regional or foreign accent use a very confident voice, their statements are judged to be equally believable to native speakers of the language.

So the real question is: Which is harder? Improving the accent or one's confidence?

[tarvos]

One's confidence. Anything mechanical is easier to fix

[tastyonions]

I find many Indian accents in English rather pleasant, but I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority among Americans.

Interesting study.

[Skynet]

Hmmm, the dictionary definition of "accent" was clearly flouted. Some of the "interpretations" are actually comical!

Let me share my experiences with accents:

I received an education via the British system - complete with schoolmasters who were descendants of British aristocracy. Naturally, they spoke with (at best) a mild conservative RP accent which we all picked up in some form or another. I was always the best student in all of my classes and received the most attention (isn't that a paradox????), and consequently developed a much stronger accent.

As I grew, I began to notice that people were intimidated by the way I spoke and were always defensive. A few of the people who would later become my friends would tell me, "You know, the first couple of times that we met, I disliked you because you seemed conceited and snobbish because of your accent." This perception of me was compounded by the fact that I was an avid lover of Shakespeare, Blake, Eliot, Coleridge, Dickens, Chaucer and the Brontes (Charlotte, Emily and Anne) and would use anachronistic words/phrases in my speech.


On the diametrically opposite-end of the scale...

I had an incredible experience at the 2008 and 2012 Mind Olympics where my European, Middle Eastern, Latin American and Asian opponents found the way I spoke to be endearing. Was I mistaken for a Brit? Yes, 100% of the time. Did anyone say something vapid? Of course not - they were all bridge players.

Initially, my accent used to bother me to the point where I developed a second one just to sound more contemporary and less like a Plantagenet. My true accent always gave me away when I was excited/irked, read aloud or was tired/sleepy.

I would like to believe that people are suspicious of accents because of the way they were raised (never an excuse once someone gains sentience!!!), media, social influence and - the biggest factor - one's own insecurities. Insecure people are simply unentreatable because one (and your accent) will never be good enough because their self-worth would have been eroded.

I never make an assessment at face value, so I maintain that one cannot and should not base one's trustworthiness on one's speech patterns.