Accents are a natural feature of speakers of English as a second or foreign language as well as of speakers with English as their first language. They influence the perception of both the speaker and of what they say. Research shows that especially speakers with foreign accents are often perceived as less knowledgeable and convincing. In addition, different values are attributed to different non-standard accents. Such linguistic stereotyping means that speakers with certain accents are often discriminated against. Racialised accents in particular can reproduce colonial relationships in the workplace.
Short podcasts will be produced from discussions with researchers in the field, addressing the following questions:
- What is an accent?
- What are linguistic prejudice, discrimination and accent bias?
- What is ‘accent racism’?
- What is linguistic discrimination in HE, in the workplace and in education?
The project is funded by the Equality Project Kick Start Fund by the University of Liverpool.
Programme leaders: Dr Ulrike Bavendiek (LCF), Wil Hardman (ELC) and Lisa Brennan (ELC).
Back to: Centre for Teaching Excellence in Language Learning
