On any given day, you’ll read or hear a story about discrimination related to gender, race, age, religion, and more. What isn’t much in the news is accent bias — a form of discrimination against those who speak with an accent that differs from the dominant culture. It’s why solutions such as an AI accent changer are increasingly popular.
Here’s what you should know about accent bias and its genesis.
What is Accent Bias?
An accent is how we pronounce a language, the emphasis one puts on word syllables, for example. It can tell you a lot about a person, including where they’re from and their social or economic standing.
Everyone has an accent, even if you don’t think you do. It’s all about how you sound to those outside the population you’re primarily around.
Problems arise when accents are considered through the prism of stereotypes, which can lead to accent bias — the tendency to draw conclusions about an individual’s competence, intelligence, or trustworthiness based solely on their accent. In turn, this bias can lead to unfair and unwarranted treatment that can affect the speaker’s employment, housing, education, and more, including their mental state.
A prime example of accent bias occurs in off-shore centers, where agents are frequently treated rudely by callers who, subconsciously or not, find their accent unappealing and indicative of less intelligence, competence, or trustworthiness.
This discrimination can cause non-native speakers who encounter it to feel shame or frustration. They often experience stress and self-esteem problems that can have far-reaching effects on the speakers’ lives, including professionally and socially.
Rather than subject themselves to mocking or other ridicule, for instance, some people stick to those who speak like they do, potentially missing out on career or social opportunities. And, at length, companies lose out, as those with second-language accents often avoid verbally sharing ideas and may quit altogether.
The Roots of Accent Bias
Accent bias is pervasive in the U.S., where native English is implicitly deemed the universal language and is subconsciously conflated with cognitive excellence. Hearing someone speak with an accent originating from a non-European nation can prompt unwarranted assumptions, including about their cognitive function.
Some historians track this phenomenon back to British colonialism and white supremacy, both in the U.S. and globally. They contend that, in addition to other dubious activities, colonizers imposed their language and culture on Indigenous peoples. As a result, English came to represent superior intelligence, etiquette, class, and success.
Those who do not pronounce words in accordance with American conventions are often thought of as being unworthy of certain employment, housing, etc., and are less competent and trustworthy.
Note that accent discrimination not only occurs across languages, but within them. It intersects with existing racial prejudices to produce an even deeper experience of inequality. For example, there’s a protracted history of vilifying speech patterns commonly used by black U.S. residents that continues to exist, even though the dialect is recognized and has its own grammar rules.
It’s been true for a long time: those who speak with a non-native accent are often subject to an accent bias that can have wide-ranging implications in speakers’ lives … and potentially on companies’ bottom line. Those who run off-shore call centers may want to consider an AI accent changer, which can benefit agents and improve the caller experience.
