Speaker Sex Perception from Spontaneous and Volitional Nonverbal Vocalizations

Area of Science:

• Auditory Perception
• Acoustic Phonetics
• Speech Communication

Background:

• Speaker sex recognition is crucial for social interaction.
• Vocalizations vary in volitional control, from spontaneous (laughter, crying) to volitional (vowels).
• The influence of vocal flexibility on sex perception remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how vocal flexibility, via volitional and spontaneous vocalizations, affects speaker sex recognition.
• To determine if impaired volitional control in spontaneous vocalizations impacts accuracy in sex perception.
• To analyze acoustic cues, specifically fundamental frequency (F0), related to sex perception.

Main Methods:

• Two experiments involving participants judging speaker sex from spontaneous (laughter, crying) and volitional (vowels, volitional laughter) vocalizations.
• Measurement of listener performance accuracy and reaction times.
• Acoustic analysis of vocalizations, focusing on fundamental frequency (F0).

Main Results:

• Listener performance in recognizing male speaker sex was impaired for spontaneous vocalizations (laughter, crying) compared to volitional vowels.
• Reaction times were longer for spontaneous vocalizations, indicating increased processing load.
• Higher fundamental frequency (F0) was associated with perceiving a speaker as female, an effect more pronounced for male vocalizations.

Conclusions:

• Vocal flexibility, particularly reduced volitional control in spontaneous vocalizations, significantly modulates speaker sex recognition.
• Acoustic cues, like F0, play a role in sex perception, with their salience varying across vocalization types.
• Findings highlight the complex interplay between vocal production control and auditory perception in identifying speaker characteristics.