When Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote that “the human voice is the organ of the soul,” he didn't have the good fortune of scientific studies on which to draw. Yet more than 100 years after his death, research supports his statement. Our voice can communicate much more than spoken words — it can convey emotion, physical attractiveness, and even personality traits. It can also impart other kinds of information outside of our conscious awareness.
Here are 3 surprising things our voice reveals to others when we may not even realize it:
1. “I'm cheating on you.”
As it turns out, men and women alter their voices when speaking to lovers vs. friends — and these shifts can potentially detect infidelity. Take a study that investigated how individuals modulate their voices when speaking to romantic partners vs. same-sex friends during short telephone conversations. Researchers had 24 people who were in the early blush of a relationship, i.e., the honeymoon phase, phone their romantic partners as well as a close same-sex friend. In both instances, they were specifically instructed to ask “how are you?” and “what are you doing?” These conversations were recorded, and the callers' voices were rated by 80 judges. What did the researchers find? When callers were talking to their romantic partners, they sounded more pleasant, sexy and romantically interested than when they were talking to their same-sex friends. (Remarkably in some cases, the judges could accurately assess whether the caller was talking to a lover or a friend after listening to only 2 seconds of the conversation.) These qualities can tell you whether someone is talking to a friend — or someone who is actually more than a friend.
2. “I'm bigger than you are.”
Research has found that in men, the sound of one's voice can indicate physical shape and size. Consider a study in which investigators recruited 50 heterosexual men. They took vocal samples from each participant, in which they recited the English vowels ‘‘a’’, ‘‘e’’, ‘‘i’’ and ‘‘o’’. They also took physical measurements, including the circumference of the skull, neck at the Adam's apple, shoulders, chest, and hips; the participants' height was also taken. The results revealed that having a low voice was associated with having a larger body shape — and specifically a bigger upper body. In addition, weight was negatively correlated with voice pitch. The authors say that these results lend support for the “good genes” theory, which argues that low voice pitch in men is an indicator of high genetic quality and hormonal health — which would have been attractive to potential mates over the course of evolutionary history.
3. “I'm fertile.”
Research suggests that when women are fertile, their voice pitch goes up. Investigators measured the voice pitch of 69 women across their ovulatory cycles, and found that their voice went up in certain social contexts when they are at peak fertility. This study provides support for the theory that people find a higher voice pitch in women more feminine — and that it is more attractive to potential mates. It is also part of a suite of changes that women are thought to unconsciously engage in when they are highly fertile, in which they try to maximize their looks in order to attract men of superior genetic quality for their progeny. Studies have similarly found that women will walk with a sexier gait and wear more make up during ovulation.
Source: PsychologyToday
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