26 Jan 2011 12:08 Africa/Lagos
Americans Like People Who Speak Like They Do
Half of adults think speakers with Southern accents are nice, British accents are sophisticated and New York City accents are rude
PR Newswire
NEW YORK, Jan. 26, 2011
NEW YORK, Jan. 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Accents are a funny thing. Certain ones prompt stereotypical thought, which might be why people often deny having an accent. Yet, when asked about various attributes, Americans living in the East, Midwest and South all give more flattering responses about the accents from their areas than do adults from elsewhere.
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These are some of the results of The Harris Poll ® of 2,331 adults surveyed online between December 6 and 13, 2010 by Harris Interactive®.
When asked to think about hearing various accents half of adults say they think speakers with a Southern accent are nice (49%), two in five say the same for speakers with a Midwest accent (40%), one in five say those with a British accent or New England accent are nice (19% and 18%, respectively) while less than one in ten say so for speakers with a New York City accent (7%).
Half of adults also think those with a British accent are sophisticated (47%)—far more than adults say so for any other accent (between 20% for New England accents, down to 6% for Southern accents). And, while half of adults think that speakers with New York City accents are rude (51%), very few adults say the same for any other accent listed (between 14% and 4%).
Regional Differences
Despite speakers sometimes denying their regional accent, adults award accents from their own area more positive descriptions and fewer negative ones, than adults from other areas do. For example:
* Southerners think that speakers with Southern accents are nice (59%) and honest (45%) more often than those from the West (42% and 28%), East (44% and 29%) and Midwest (45% and 31%) do;
* While just over one in ten adults think that speakers with a New York City accent are intelligent (12%), a higher percentage—18%—of those in the East say this, compared to fewer in the Midwest (12%), West (11%) and South (10%) who say the same;
* Similarly, one in six Easterners say those with a New York City accent are honest (16%), compared to very few in other regions who agree (between 4% and 6%); and,
* On the opposite end of the spectrum, although most adults think speakers with New York City accents are rude (51%), only 46% of Easterners agree, compared to more Midwesterners (54%), Southerners (54%) and Westerners (48%) who say this.
This pattern continues as Midwesterners say that speakers with a Midwest accent are well-educated, intelligent, nice and honest more frequently than adults from other regions say the same. In fact, over half of Midwesterners (55%) say someone with a Midwestern accent is nice compared to 42% of Westerners, 36% of Easterners and just 31% of Southerners who say this.
Does this matter?
Americans cheerleading for their own regional accents is not limited to complimentary adjectives—U.S. adults think that their accents would actually beat out the others in a competitive job market. When asked if four equally qualified applicants for a certain job were only differentiated by their accent, two in five adults (39%) say that the applicant with the Midwestern accent would get the job. However, 63% of Midwesterners say this compared to between 41% and 21% of adults from the other regions who do.
With regard to other regions, a quarter of Easterners say the job would go to the person with the New England accent (26%) compared to fewer adults from elsewhere who agree (between 17% and 9%). One in five Easterners (19%) also say it would go to the New Yorker (compared to between 14% and 7% of those from other areas), and one in five Southerners (18%) say it would go to their applicant, compared to very few adults from elsewhere who agree (between 7% and 3%). Easterners are also more likely than other regions to say the job would go to the person with the British accent (27%).
So What?
Although TV news and other media personalities often work to overcome distinctive regional accents, it doesn't seem that local inflections are bothersome, at least not to an audience from that area. However, it might be interesting if speakers are skilled enough to play up their accent, or not, depending on their situation – it appears there may be circumstances where a different style of pronunciation could work well to one's advantage.
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