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Pisanski et al 2016 Biology Letters - Uncorr. Proofs.pdf (167 kB)

Can blind persons accurately assess body size from the voice?

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posted on 2023-06-09, 01:10 authored by Katarzyna Pisanski, Anna Oleszkiewicz, Agnieszka Sorokowska
Vocal tract resonances provide reliable information about a speaker’s body size that human listeners utilize for biosocial judgments as well as speech recognition. Although humans can accurately assess men’s relative body size from the voice alone, how this ability is acquired remains unknown. In the present study we test the prediction that accurate voice-based size estimation is possible without prior audiovisual experience linking low frequencies to large bodies. Ninety-one healthy congenitally or early blind, late blind, and sighted adults (aged 20-65) participated in the study. On the basis of vowel sounds alone, participants assessed the relative body sizes of male pairs of varying heights. Accuracy of voice-based body size assessments significantly exceeded chance and did not differ among participants who were sighted, congenitally blind, or lost their sight later in life. Accuracy increased significantly with relative differences in physical height between men, suggesting that both blind and sighted participants utilized reliable vocal cues to size (i.e., vocal tract resonances). Our findings demonstrate that prior visual experience is not necessary for accurate body size estimation. This capacity, integral to both nonverbal communication and speech perception, may be present at birth or may generalize from broader cross-modal correspondences.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Accepted version

Journal

Biology Letters

ISSN

1744-9561

Publisher

The Royal Society

Issue

4

Volume

12

Page range

20160063

Department affiliated with

  • Psychology Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2016-05-09

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2017-04-19

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2016-05-09

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