Echoes of Implicit Bias - Exploring Aesthetics and Social Meanings of Swiss German Dialect Features

This study investigates the phonaesthetics and perceptual dynamics of Swiss German dialects, focusing on how particular sound features influence subjective assessments and, in doing so, contribute to dialect stereotypes. By examining 24 linguistic features of Bern and Zurich German, including nine vowels and15 consonants in single-word utterances, we aim to fill a research gap that has been previously overlooked, despite suggestions of importance. In an online perception study, we gathered evaluations from three distinct groups of raters (N = 46) from Bern, Zurich, and Hessen, Germany, across six categories from aesthetic dimensions to stereotypical dialect attributions. The findings reveal that rater origin determines the levels of importance on evaluation categories and that certain linguistic features can be identified that are closely linked with specific perceptions (e.g., stupid or arrogant), which may foster negative biases against dialect speakers.