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Language is Flexible

Although all languages have constitutive and regulative rules, people often bend those rules. Partners in close relationships, for example, often create personal idioms—words and phrases that have unique meanings to them (Bell, Buerkel-Rothfuss, & Gore, 1987). One study found that the average romantic couple had created more than a half dozen idioms, the most common being nicknames such as “Honey-bear” or “Pookie.” When large groups of people share creative variations on language rules, those variations are called dialects (Gleason, 1989). A dialect may include unique phrases, words, and pronunciations (what we call “accents”). Dialects can be shared by people living in a certain region (mid-western, southern, or northeastern United States), people with a common socioeconomic status (upper-middle-class suburban, working class urban), or people of similar ethnic or religious ancestry (Yiddish English, Irish English, Amish English) (Chen & Starosta, 2005).

Most people prefer their own dialect. Communication scholar Jesse Delia (1972) conducted a study that asked people to form impressions of others based solely on voice recordings of dialects. Listeners formed positive impressions of persons who used dialects similar to their own, and more negative impressions of those with dissimilar dialects. Since dialects powerfully influence our perceptions of others, you should be aware of how they may affect your own communication. Resist making negative or stereotypical judgments about others who speak with dialects different from your own.