Stereotypes of Cantonese English, apparent native/non-native status, and their effect on non-native English speakers’ perception

Abstract

This study examined the effect of information about native/non-native speaker status on non-native listeners’ perception of English words with word-final stops. A survey study conducted with 38 Chinese learners of English in Guangzhou, China examined their stereotypes about Cantonese English. They described it negatively and named features including flat intonation and deleted/incomplete word-final sounds. Fifty-two learners from the same university participated in the listening study. These participants listened to recordings by a native American-English speaker. Half of the participants were told that the speaker was American, whereas the other half were told that she was Cantonese. When the speaker was said to be American, listeners tended to hear words as produced with a fully released stop, including aspiration and/or an epenthetic vowel, although aspiration/an epenthetic vowel was often not present. When the speaker was said to be Cantonese, listeners tended to hear stops as actually produced, whether fully released or not. The results reveal that non-native listeners do not necessarily judge the pronunciation of non-native speakers according to stereotypes, such as the stereotype that Cantonese-accented English does not release word-final stops. However, their idealised perception of native English results in more negative perception of the same features in non-native speech.