It has been revealed that Londoners are most likely to judge people on how they speak, a recent survey finds.

Just over four out of five or 81% of Londoners admitted to having previously judged someone based on their dialect. This was the highest of any of the UK cities surveyed. A close second was judging someone by what they wear, with only 3% less admitting to having judged someone by their outfit.

blu, who conducted the research, ran a poll to find out which of the following we are most judged on by other Londoners:

Dialect and how they talk – 81%
Clothes and how they dress –78%
Hair and make-up – 72%
Music taste – 65%
Through their hobbies –60%
Through their décor – 57%
Through the types of foods and flavours they enjoy – 40%
Sadly, just 39% of those surveyed admit that they feel like they can be themselves in their own friendship group.

However, people felt almost as comfortable around their work colleagues as their partner’s friends. Close to a quarter or 24% of poll takers admit to being themselves around their partner’s friends, while 23% of people admit to being more themselves when around work colleagues.

Worryingly, just over half 57% admit to being their complete selves in the comfort of their own homes.

Colette Flowerdew-Kincaid, Digital Content Manager at blu says:

“The main findings from this research are interesting as it highlights a distinct lack of confidence to be ourselves in front of others. While it’s fairly commonplace for us to feel more comfortable in our own skin when in the comfort of our homes, knowing that so many of us rely on this environment to be ourselves is an area of concern.

The pandemic would’ve no doubt played a part in this, as more and more of us became accustomed to being at home all the time with little or no time spent socialising. For this reason, it’s important for us as we come out the other end of the pandemic to try to build back up our socialising and interactions with others. Hopefully then we will see a shift in our willingness to express ourselves more freely.