Accent Preferences Within the EFL Context: The Impact of Cultural Affiliations on Learners of English in the Netherlands

Abstract

This bachelor’s thesis considered the importance of affiliations to cultures within the English-speaking world for Dutch learners of English in a high school as well as a university context, and the role these affiliations may play in accent preferences of English. Previously conducted research has shown that knowledge of the English language is considered extremely important in the Netherlands (Admiraal, 2006; Edwards, 2014, p. 175), and that approximation of native speaker varieties is deemed most desirable (Van den Doel & Quené, 2013, p. 87; Gerritsen, van Meurs, Planken & Korzilius, 2016, p. 469). Leung, Harris and Rampton (1997) discussed the three concepts of language affiliation, expertise and inheritance (p. 555-56); this study attempted to employ these concepts in an EFL context. Furthermore, the growing popularity of American music and television in Europe, as studied by Gerritsen, van Meurs, Planken and Korzilius (2016, p. 468), McKay (1997), De Bens and Smaele (2001), as well as Modiano (1996), has led to the belief that the American accent may be the most popular accent preference for learners of English in Europe today. This study, however, has shown that despite the acknowledged influence of American English through television and broadcasting company Netflix, it does not seem as popular as has been claimed. By comparing a demographic forced to learn English and a demographic that has chosen to pursue a study in English, this study hypothesized that there may be a stronger attachment to English cultures amongst those who chose to study English. However, the other demographic, too, has shown a considerable degree of affiliations and experiences outside of school that have influenced them. These results show that concepts such as language affiliation and inheritance may be important to consider for non-native learners of English as much as for native learners of English. It also shows that it may not be as desirable as previously thought by researchers such as Modiano (1996) to implement American English as the new standard in the Netherlands.