While the voice may appear to be the preferred medium for verbal communication and social interaction, it is not simply a tool for mediating semantic information. Indeed, beyond the linguistic message it conveys, the voice is also an object of identity whose role is fundamental within human populations. Modular and ostensibly dimorphic, the voice enables us to share our mental, emotional and affective state with others via an infinite number of nuances. The acoustic characteristics of the human voice, such as its pitch (low or high), melody (monotone or lilting), timbre (clear or deep), quality (breathy or hoarse) and rhythm (slow or fast), result from the complex interplay of biological, social and cultural factors, which provide valuable information about the speaker, such as gender, morphology, age, socio-cultural background, sexual orientation and even certain personality traits such as cooperativeness.
The work we are developing is based on the study of vocal preferences. Our hypothesis is that voice is a sexually selected trait that functions as a reliable marker of phenotypic quality. In this context, we are exploring the links between voice and reproductive success, sexual orientation, perceived attractiveness and the hormonal profiles and health status of individuals.
PI :
Surprisingly, the study of language activity has long been conducted in isolation from any question...More
