Speakers with standard accents are typically judged more favorably than non-standard speakers, but this may shift in response to perceived intergroup conflict with ethnolinguistic outgroups. Three studies were conducted to examine how large-scale social movements may impact language attitudes in Hong Kong. Attitudes toward standard-accented and non-standard-accented Cantonese and Mandarin were collected across four instances in 2013 and 2015 (pre- and post-Umbrella Movement), 2018 and 2019 (pre- and post-Anti-Extradition Bill Movement), respectively. Compared to Study 1 (2013), Hong Kong participants judged standard speakers of Cantonese (the ingroup variety), and ingroup, non-standard speakers of Mandarin (the outgroup variety) significantly more favorably in Study 2 (2015). Study 3 showed that the retrospective endorsement of the Umbrella Movement moderated preferences for standard Cantonese and Mandarin speakers. Comparison of 2018 and 2019 data partially replicated the findings in Studies 1 and 2, though the current endorsement of the Anti-Extradition Bill Movement did not moderate preferences for standard speakers.

Male allies are often described as essential to reducing gender inequity. However, some men may become allies through benevolent sexist beliefs. While some women recognize this as a suboptimal form of allyship, others may interpret it as authentic. We investigated whether the type of allyship (egalitarian vs. benevolent sexist) influences women’s perceptions of authenticity and whether women’s feminist identification moderates this effect. Women (N = 132) undergraduate students completed a pre-screening survey including a measure of feminist identification. They read about and rated the authenticity of a male ally who exhibited egalitarianism or benevolent sexism in his effort to increase women representation in a male-dominated club. Women perceived the egalitarian ally as highly authentic regardless of their feminist identification. However, higher feminist identification was associated with higher perceived authenticity for the benevolent sexist ally. Results are discussed in terms of how feminist identification can influence women’s perceptions of men who help.