“Just because I don’t speak English with an accent anymore doesn’t mean that I’m better than the people who do.”
Jimmy O. Yang
The way we speak often shapes how we are perceived in both social and professional contexts. For immigrants, accent can become a barrier that influences how others evaluate their credibility, competence, and overall identity. These judgments are not based solely on communication, but are deeply rooted in broader systems of bias and social expectations. Linguistic discrimination, particularly through accent, reflects how language is tied to power and inequality. This project explores how accent shapes perception, reinforces prejudice, and affects real-world opportunities in areas such as employment and housing.
Positionality: As an immigrant whose native language is not English, I carry a Vietnamese accent in my speech. On that account, this foundation allows me to approach this topic from both a personal and academic perspective. I have always been aware of my accent ever since I arrived in Chicago. That awareness gradually grows from moments of miscommunication, through the questions of clarification someone gave me after I speak, through their facial expression such as furrowed eyebrows, through polite response such as “I’m sorry I don’t really understand,” and through everyday microaggressions like when people made a guess of my nationality based on my accent. Over time, I become anxious about it. At the same time, my training in linguistics provides me with an analytical tool to understand linguistic discrimination beyond a personal level. Drawing from the work of John Baugh, I view language through the lens of power, ideology and social hierarchy rather than just simply a communication tool. My positionality allows me to bridge lived experience with theoretical frameworks, while also acknowledging that my perspective is shaped by my personal linguistic background and access to higher education.
To better illustrate how linguistic discrimination operates in everyday contexts, the following infographic provides a visual overview of its key concepts and impacts. It summarizes how accent influences perception, opportunity, and inequality, and is presented in three languages: English, Vietnamese, and Mandarin, in order to increase accessibility across different communities.
While the infographic provides a brief overview of linguistic discrimination, the issue is more complex than it may initially appear. The following sections draw on scholarly research to explore how accent-based discrimination is shaped by language ideology, perception, and real-world practices. Together, these perspectives explain why accent continues to influence opportunity in meaningful ways.
Standard Language Ideology:
According to Lippi-Green (2012), this refers to the belief that there is a “correct” or “ideal” accent which is often associated with dominant social groups. In reality, all language varieties are linguistically equal, but our society began to assign different values and rankings to them. As a result, some certain accents are perceived as more professional or credible than the others. These perceptions are not neutral, instead, they are shaped by systems of power, class, and social hierarchy across the course of history.
Accent and Perception:
Beyond just linguistic differences, accent carries social meaning as listeners tend to associate it with the intelligence, competence, and trustworthiness of the speakers. A research which was conducted by Freynet and Clément in 2019 shows that listeners rely heavily on their own biases rather than the speaker’s ability, despite the fact that the speech is fully understandable. For many immigrants, this creates a situation where their identity and credibility are constantly being evaluated through their accent.
Accent as a Justification for Discrimination:
Importantly, accent itself is not the root cause of discrimination. A research by de Souza and her colleagues (2016) find that only prejudiced individuals use accents to discriminate against immigrants. They argue that accents do not directly cause discrimination, instead, it legitimizes existing prejudice against them. As a result, accents become a justification mechanism to make the discrimination appear rational and acceptable.
Real-World Impact:
According to Hideg and her colleagues (2024), discriminatory behaviors are systematic and institutional, especially in workplaces, affecting hiring, evaluation, and career advancement. Accents can affect an employee’s credibility and professional image, since institutions may regard “non-standard” accents as indicators of lower competence even when the employees possess equal qualifications.
Linguistic Profiling:
In 2003, John Baugh described linguistic profiling as a phenomenon that happens when individuals are identified, discriminated, and rejected solely based on their accent, particularly in housing or employment. In these cases, discrimination happens even without face-to-face interaction, which implies how powerful language perception can be.
Linguistic discrimination is not simply about how clearly someone speaks, but about how language is interpreted through bias and social expectations. Accents, while it’s a natural part of our identity, often become a basis for judgment that limits opportunities and reinforces inequality. By recognizing how these perceptions operate, we can begin to challenge the assumptions that shape them. Ultimately, we as a collective society need to value linguistic diversity by moving beyond the idea of a “standard” way of speaking and creating spaces where different voices are accepted and respected.
References:
Ball, A., Makoni, S., Smitherman, G., Wa Thiong’o, F. by N., & Spears, A. A. K. (2003). Linguistic Profiling. In Black linguistics: Language, Society and Politics in Africa and the Americas (pp. 155–168). essay, Taylor and Francis.
de Souza, L. E., Pereira, C. R., Camino, L., de Lima, T. J., & Torres, A. R. (2016). The legitimizing role of accent on discrimination against immigrants. European Journal of Social Psychology, 46(5), 609–620. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2216
Freynet, N., & Clément, R. (2019). Perceived accent discrimination: Psychosocial consequences and perceived legitimacy. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 38(4), 496–513. https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927×19865775
Hideg, I., Shen, W., & Zhou Koval, C. (2024). Hear, hear! A review of accent discrimination at work. Current Opinion in Psychology, 60, 101906. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2024.101906
Lippi-Green, R. (2012). Language ideology and language prejudice. In English with an Accent Language, Ideology and Discrimination in the United States (pp. 289–304). essay, Routledge.
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