Accent Bias and Fair Access in Britain | SOAS University of London
Channel: SOAS University of London
Date: 2021-04-28

Note: This talk has not gone through a process of peer review, and findings should therefore be treated as preliminary and subject to change.

How to cite: Levon, Erez. 2021. Accent Bias and Fair Access in Britain. Talk presented at SOAS Linguistics Webinars 2021-04-28.

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4726116 

SOAS Linguistics Webinars:  Accent Bias and Fair Access in Britain
Erez Levon
Professor of Sociolinguistics, University of Bern
April 28, 2021

Abstract: Accent is one of the most salient signals of social background in Britain, yet its role in unequal professional outcomes remains under-examined. In this talk, I present results from a set of recent studies conducted to examine accent bias in Britain: 1) a nationwide survey of attitudes to accent concepts (labels), 2) a nationwide survey of attitudes to accent variation in speech, and 3) a specialist survey of accent attitudes among legal professionals. Together the studies show continuing bias in Britain, particularly against working-class accents, but also incremental attenuation of bias by context. I discuss the implications of these findings for the role that accent bias might play in impeding social mobility and professional advancement in the UK, and I mention possible interventions and policy initiatives that could help in overcoming the negative effects of accent bias.