Associations Between Speaking Fundamental Frequency, Vowel Formant Frequencies, and Listener Perceptions of Speaker Gender and Vocal Femininity--Masculinity.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to examine associations between speaking fundamental frequency (fos), vowel formant frequencies (F), listener perceptions of speaker gender, and vocal femininity--masculinity. Method: An exploratory study was undertaken to examine associations between fos, F1-F3, listener perceptions of speaker gender (nominal scale), and vocal femininity-masculinity (visual analog scale). For 379 speakers of Australian English aged 18-60 years, fos mode and F1-F3 (12 monophthongs; total of 36 Fs) were analyzed on a standard reading passage. Seventeen listeners rated speaker gender and vocal femininity--masculinity on randomized audio recordings of these speakers. Results: Model building using principal component analysis suggested the 36 Fs could be succinctly reduced to seven principal components (PCs). Generalized structural equation modeling (with the seven PCs of F and fos as predictors) suggested that only F2 and fos predicted listener perceptions of speaker gender (male, female, unable to decide). However, listener perceptions of vocal femininity--masculinity behaved differently and were predicted by F1, F3, and the contrast between monophthongs at the extremities of the F1 acoustic vowel space, in addition to F2 and fos. Furthermore, listeners' perceptions of speaker gender also influenced ratings of vocal femininity-- masculinity substantially. Conclusion: Adjusted odds ratios highlighted the substantially larger contribution of F to listener perceptions of speaker gender and vocal femininity--masculinity relative to fos than has previously been reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]