Accent and dialect differences reliably trigger ingroup bias independent of the speaker

Evidence

Differences in language, accent, or dialect typically elicit responses associated with prejudice and intergroup hostility. Despite the occasional passing reference (e.g., “Unfamiliar dialects strike us as ludicrous,” p. 177), the effects of language differences did not seem to loom large in Allport’s thinking. A considerable number of studies have employed the “matchedguise” paradigm (Lambert, Hodgson, Gardner, & Fillenbaum, 1960), in which participants listen to and evaluate verbal material spoken in different languages or accents by a single speaker. The rationale for this paradigm is that it can elicit responses to different languages or accents while holding constant the vocal attributes of the single speaker. The basic tendency to exhibit an ingroup bias of preference for one’s ingroup language or accent has been demonstrated repeatedly (e.g., Larimer, 1970; Lambert et al., 1960; Larimer, Beatty, & Broadus, 1988). — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 1291

Categorization

• XREF: The matched-guise paradigm and acoustic-trigger findings bear on the vault’s contact-theory work on minimal-category and perceptual triggers of prejudice. — connects to: Vocal dialects are adaptation’s starting point for acoustic divergence — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology: Principles,…, 807