MATCHED GUISE

• Howard Giles Matched Guise experiments (1975)


  identify attitudes and prejudices towards accents. an actor spoke in RP and then other accents and people rated them for different aspects
• Which accents were thought to be the most friendly?

  Devon 65%

  Newcastle 56%

  Edinburgh 51%
• which accents were thought to be the least friendly?

  Liverpool 26%

  Belfast 24%

  RP 23%

  Birmingham 21%
• which accents were thought to be the most trustworthy?

  RP 51%

  Devon 51%

  Edinburgh 44%
• which accents were thought to be the least trustworthy?

  Liverpool 29%

  Cockney London 24%
• Which accents were thought to be the most intelligent?

  RP 62%

  Edinburgh 38%
• which accents were thought to be the most unintelligent?

  Liverpool 37%

  Birmingham 33%

  Cockney 32%