Voice Cues: Intersexual Selection

Pisanski, Katarzyna; Puts, David A.

doi:10.1007/978-3-031-08956-5_186-1

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…The knowledge gained from such research has far reaching theoretical implications, including uncovering the evolutionary origins of acoustic communication and its adaptive social functions 6 . Indeed, vocal cues to sex, age and body size are important in the social and sexual communication systems of many animals 7 , including humans 8 , with ample evidence that selection has shaped the human voice to be highly sexually dimorphic and to signal, or exaggerate, body size 9 , 10 . Research into the communicative functions of the human voice also has many practical applications, for example improving voice recognition technologies (for review see 11 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing accuracy in voice-based assessments of biological speaker traits across speech types

Sorokowski,

Groyecka-Bernard,

Frackowiak

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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Nonverbal acoustic parameters of the human voice provide cues to a vocaliser’s sex, age, and body size that are relevant in human social and sexual communication, and also increasingly so for computer-based voice recognition and synthesis technologies. While studies have shown some capacity in human listeners to gauge these biological traits from unseen speakers, it remains unknown whether speech complexity improves accuracy. Here, in over 200 vocalisers and 1500 listeners of both sexes, we test whether voice-based assessments of sex, age, height and weight vary from isolated vowels and words, to sequences of vowels and words, to full sentences or paragraphs. We show that while listeners judge sex and especially age more accurately as speech complexity increases, accuracy remains high across speech types, even for a single vowel sound. In contrast, the actual heights and weights of vocalisers explain comparatively less variance in listener’s assessments of body size, which do not vary systematically by speech type. Our results thus show that while more complex speech can improve listeners’ biological assessments, the gain is ecologically small, as listeners already show an impressive capacity to gauge speaker traits from extremely short bouts of standardised speech, likely owing to within-speaker stability in underlying nonverbal vocal parameters such as voice pitch. We discuss the methodological, technological, and social implications of these results.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing accuracy in voice-based assessments of biological speaker traits across speech types

Sorokowski,

Groyecka-Bernard,

Frackowiak

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Li et al, 2014), and perceived domestic-violence risk (Borras-Guevara et al, 2017). Social and ecological contexts may likewise affect perceptions of masculine traits, but few studies have systematically identified and tested these effects, and thus little is known about how the influence of f o on social perceptions varies across individuals and societies (Aung, Conard, et al, 2023; Pisanski & Feinberg, 2013).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Voice Pitch on Social Perceptions Vary With Relational Mobility and Homicide Rate

Aung,

Hill,

Hlay

et al. 2024

Psychol Sci

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Fundamental frequency ( fo) is the most perceptually salient vocal acoustic parameter, yet little is known about how its perceptual influence varies across societies. We examined how fo affects key social perceptions and how socioecological variables modulate these effects in 2,647 adult listeners sampled from 44 locations across 22 nations. Low male fo increased men’s perceptions of formidability and prestige, especially in societies with higher homicide rates and greater relational mobility in which male intrasexual competition may be more intense and rapid identification of high-status competitors may be exigent. High female fo increased women’s perceptions of flirtatiousness where relational mobility was lower and threats to mating relationships may be greater. These results indicate that the influence of fo on social perceptions depends on socioecological variables, including those related to competition for status and mates.

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Voice Cues: Intersexual Selection

Cited by 2 publications

References 47 publications

Comparing accuracy in voice-based assessments of biological speaker traits across speech types

Comparing accuracy in voice-based assessments of biological speaker traits across speech types

Effects of Voice Pitch on Social Perceptions Vary With Relational Mobility and Homicide Rate

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