One hundred thirty African American subjects listened to audiotapes of vernacular speech patterns. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups. Group I heard a Black English (BE) speaking person, Group 2 heard a codeswitching (CS) speaker, and Group 3 heard a Standard English (SE) speaking person. The content was the same in BE, SE, and CS scenarios, varying only in speech patterns. Subjects were then asked to complete an Interpersonal Evaluation Inventory (IEI) for the respective speaker Two additional items assessed how much the subject would want to get to know the model and how much the subject would want to work with that model on a committee. The results indicated that the SE model was rated as more likable than either the BE or CS model, that no significant difference existed in ratings of BE and CS speakers, and that male subjects rated models as more likable than did female subjects regardless of vernacular In addition, subjects also expressed a greater desire to work with the SE model than with either the BE or CS model. It was also found that male subjects expressed a greater desire than female subjects to get to know the speakers and to work with them on a committee. The implications of thefindings were discussed.
This study hypothesized that as middle-class African Americans integrate more towards the mainstream of American culture, their perceptions of those African Americans who use Black English (BE) will be more negative than previously believed. A random sample of 38 Black undergraduate students from a predominantly White university served as subjects for the purpose of exploring intraracial perceptions among African American college students toward individuals who spoke BE versus those who spoke Standard English (SE). It was found that African Americans perceived same race SE speakers as more competent and more likeable than same race BE speakers in similar situations. These results raise questions conceming the role of BE among upwardly mobile African American college students.
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