Why do we mimic accents sometimes? 🤔

Have you ever caught yourself, or someone else, starting to mimic another person's accent during a conversation? I was talking with a friend who's got a bit of a British lilt, and I suddenly noticed myself slightly mirroring her tone, without thinking about it. It's not like I'm tryin' to make fun or anything.

I wonder if this is one of those social mirroring things, where we subconsciously imitate others to create comfort or connection. Kinda like how we nod when someone's talking to show we're engaged. But does it really help make the interaction smoother? Or could it sometimes make things awkward if the person thinks we're mocking them?

Would love to know if anybody else does this and if there’s some psychological theory behind it. Does it happen more in certain contexts, like when we're more relaxed, or does everyone do it differently?