Accent neutralization or accent reduction has been propagated because of the continuous globalization of the marketplace, and as such, this trend aims to fulfill the demand created by outsourcing, an example of which is companies preferring to hire foreign call centers for their customer service. Nevertheless, the main purpose of these two is to give assistance to those who speak proficient English to have an accent that's more or less North American or British.

Still in order to gain full understanding of the demands of accent neutralization or reduction, we must first understand what outsourcing means. Basically, it is defined as a means of transferring components of a company's internal infrastructure, staff, processes or applications to a third party provider. The main driving force of this trend is outsourcing to countries where the cost of labor will be much lower for the company. An example of a country leading in outsourcing is India because of the abundance of its highly proficient English speakers. As such, accent neutralization or reduction is utilized when such foreign workers interact with North Americans, who will most certainly have trouble trying to comprehend through any other accent. As such, this program aims to improve customer satisfaction by eliminating the disadvantages presented by accents. So with that, such therapy should only be used if the extremely prominent accent gets in the way of effective speech and interaction. Simply put, reducing the accent will open a whole new world for more interaction and understanding.

While most people would see accent reduction therapy as a process that aims to lose your accent, the truth is that its goal is centered primarily to having the accent modified or reduced so that communication will be much easier among people. Some people would find themselves opting for this kind of therapy because a lot are having a hard time understanding them, wearing themselves out due to repetition. They might also be tired of people getting distracted with their accents, and from an outsourcing company's point of view, the €standard€ North American English accent becomes more and more advantageous because of modern telecommunications and broadband access worldwide.

Still, regardless of reason, if a person chooses to have the treatment, the process isn't really that complicated. Speech Pathologists will help facilitate the therapy, and they'll start by evaluating the person's current sound pronunciations, inflections and intonations by having them speak to them. Once the information has been gathered, the speech pathologist will then determine the specific areas they should polish for the person's improvement in terms of overall verbal communication with native English speakers. After the assessment is done, the therapist will then be able to formulate a set of goals with the patient and plan on what should be done in order to help achieve an easier to understand, universal speaking capability.

Still, if a person wants to reduce their accent on their own, there are still tips on how to do so. It would require much practice and repetition, along with large amounts of efforts and willpower. Without further ado, here are some:

Devoicing - Commonly, foreigners speaking the English Language exhibit a trait that makes a big difference in how well others understand them. As such, it's important to know the difference between the voiced and unvoiced consonants. In order to do so, place the index and middle finger at the neck's hollow with only a little distance from its base. Voiced consonants will produce a slight vibration if their sounds are made; otherwise it won't. As such, a person will know if they're speaking right by practicing speaking words that contain both voiced and unvoiced consonants€"if they utter a word with a voiced consonant, they should be able to feel the vibration in the vocal cords.

Recording yourself - If possible, read a speech with as normal a voice as possible. Once it's done, listen to it and write it down exactly as the way you hear it€"not what you meant to say, but the words you actually said. Once everything has been transcribed, look for the errors. This tip will allow you to identify the sounds that need polishing.

For most foreign workers€"either in-sourced or outsourced€"communication difficulties can and will affect job performance negatively, hindering career advancement, educational achievement and even everyday interaction. Because of this, going for an accent neutralization or reduction is the best way of improving English fluency and proficiency.

So with that, if the accent hinders daily communication, speech pathologists are more than enough to do the task of administering the therapy. Their assessment of current speech patterns will allow them to tailor a treatment plan offered in a person to person basis. Most therapy sessions are weekly, and it often consists of lectures and feedbacks, pointing out the things that need to be straightened out in order to improve English pronunciation.