Foreign accents make speakers seem less truthful to listeners
Monday, July 19, 2010 - 16:35
in Psychology & Sociology
A foreign accent undermines a person's credibility in ways that the speaker and the listener don't consciously realize, new research shows. Because an accent makes a person harder to understand, listeners are less likely to find what the person says as truthful, researchers found. The problem of credibility increases with the severity of the accent.