An experimental study on how accents affect public perceptions of the police

Abstract

Public perceptions of the police have profound impact on public–police relations and the effectiveness of policing practices. Previous research on public perceptions of the police has focussed on citizens’ socio-demographic profile (e.g. age, race) and police officers’ visual characteristics (e.g. attire), but scant attention has been paid to the impact of accent. The purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of accent on perceptions of the police. In a matched-guise experiment, 160 participants rated officers on their police professional and aesthetic traits after listening to their speeches performed in standard Chinese versus Chinese with a regional accent. The results showed that police officers were rated higher on all the traits when they spoke standard Chinese than accented Chinese, and gender may play a moderating role. The present study revealed that accent can be powerful in affecting the public image of the police.