This thesis examines acoustic properties of speech which influence perceptions of
personality traits, specifically charisma. The following questions are addressed: How does
amplitude variation influence ratings of dominance (i), how does voice quality affect
personality trait attribution (ii), and how does allophonic variation affect ratings of
charisma (iii).
Chapter 2 addresses question (i), finding that certain linguistic levels (increased
amplitude in sentence and syllable levels) affected dominance ratings while others
(increased amplitude at word level and reduction at syllable level) did not. Increased
sentence amplitude increased dominance ratings while increased syllable amplitudes had
inverse effects. Additionally, two types of dominance were examined (social and physical
dominance) but no statistically significant differences were found between the two.
Chapter 3 examines question (ii). All voice qualities investigated (modal, creaky,
breathy, nasal, and smiling) were found to be statistically significant. Effect sizes for
statistical significance varied for each voice quality. Creaky voice (rated the lowest/ most
negative) and smiling voice (rated the highest/most positive) had the strongest effects.
Chapter 4 examines question (iii). Experiment 1 (in-person) and Experiment
2 (online) examined the effects of allophonic variation, final consonant devoicing
(FCD), and /t/ variation, on ratings of charisma. Experiment 1 found statistically
significant rating differences for FCD. Final voiced items were rated higher
compared to devoiced ones. For the /t/ variation, only speaker differences were
found to be statistically significant. Experiment 2 showed no statistically significant
results for FCD, whereas /t/ variation found statistical significance for [t]
productions versus the glottal stop, and for flap productions versus the glottal stop.
No rating differences were found between [t] and flap.
Overall, this thesis demonstrates that some acoustic variations within speech
affect personality trait ratings, specifically charisma, while others do not. I discuss
reasons for these outcomes and their utilization in various domains, including AI. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / This research explores the effects of different aspects of speech on the impressions
of the speaker’s personality. It examines three questions: (i) how loudness affects the
perception of dominance, (ii) how voice quality influences personality traits, and (iii) how
pronunciation variations impact charisma.
Chapter 2 (i) found that for sentences, increases in loudness increases perceptions
of dominance, while for syllables they reduce them. Chapter 3 (ii) found that each voice
quality investigated affects personality trait ratings, but creaky voice was perceived most
negatively and smiling voice most positively. Chapter 3 (iii) found that voiced final
consonants are rated higher in charisma than devoiced ones for in-person participants, but
not for online participants. Regular [t] and flap pronunciations differ from glottal stops
but not from each other only for online participants.
The findings suggest that certain aspects of speech variation influence personality
trait ratings and offer applications to teaching and AI.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/29947 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Pearsell, Sara |
| Contributors | Pape, Daniel, Cognitive Science of Language |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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