However, if you listen to Standard English in Britain or the US, there are no problems of understanding at all. The problems are with the different kinds of American and British English. These different dialects and accents depend on people's social class and the geographical area where they live. It is possible, for example, that a middle-class speaker from the south of England will find it difficult to understand a working-class speaker from the north. In the same way, a wealthy Californian may not understand a working-class New Yorker. All of these people have accents, but the middle-class accents are usually closer to Standard English.