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Sometimes, linguistic stereotypes trump experience
People start adopting each other's accents when they carry out tasks together, a study from three universities in Pennsylvania, US, has found.
People imitate accent features they believe they'll hear, even before the person they're speaking to has said a word, research confirms.
Certain accents in the United States are unmistakable: the twang of someone from the South, the dropped “r” by a Bostonian. Without realizing it, people often copy this kind of accent when talking with someone who uses it, a concept in linguistics known as convergence. “There’s a lot of work looking at convergence toward observedCertain accents in the United States are unmistakable: the twang of someone from the South, the dropped “r” by a Bostonian. Without realizing it, people often copy this kind of accent when talking with someone who uses it, a concept in linguistics known as ...