Navigating Language Attitudes

Abstract

The verbal guise test, also known as the verbal guise technique, comprises a longstanding history in linguistic research, particularly within the realms of language attitudes and language variations. This method is considered a modified iteration of the classical matched guise test (or matched guise technique). Over the years, the verbal guise test has found application in a spectrum of studies concerning language attitudes toward different accents and varieties, encompassing both inner circle Englishes and outer circle Englishes. Despite its widespread use in language attitude research, the verbal guise test is not without inherent challenges, such as the quality of audio clips and participant sampling techniques. These limitations have been acknowledged by researchers as commonplace, but thorough discussions and practical solutions to address these limitations have been relatively scarce, with Chan being a notable exception. This chapter endeavors to offer valuable recommendations to researchers who employ the verbal guise technique in their studies by examining recent research endeavors that have incorporated the verbal guise test and by providing a comprehensive overview of the test's historical evolution. The chapter aims to reintroduce this classical tool to contemporary language attitude researchers while engaging in a modern discourse about effective approaches to mitigate its limitations.