Abstract
The perception of non-native speakers of American English was assessed through an online survey. Native speaker respondents heard voices from non-native speakers representing seven different countries (Australia, Korea, Finland, Portugal, Turkey, Mexico, and Palestine) and were asked to identify the speakers' countries of origin. Respondents on the whole were unable to accurately recognize the speakers' countries, and the rate of correct identification was a meager 11%. Even when the data was reanalyzed by regions of the world or languages, the overall correct identification was only 39% at best. Furthermore, the amount of interaction respondents claimed to have with other non-native speakers did not improve respondents' accuracy in accent perception. Forensic implications of these results are discussed and a warning is issued against earwitness reliability in the description of non-native perpetrators' speech.