"Benevolent sexism,” disguised as warmth bias, limits career advancement for Asian women with accents in Canadian workplaces, a new study reveals. Understanding the accent bias: A recent study led by Ivona Hideg, Samantha Hancock and Winny Shen from York University and Western University in Canada sheds light on the often-overlooked phenomenon of accent bias against women in the workplace. Benevolent sexism unmasked: The study found that Asian women with a Mandarin accent were often perceived as more friendly, trustworthy and sincere than their counterparts without accents.