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Li M, Erickson IM. It's Not Only What You Say, But Also How You Say It: Machine Learning Approach to Estimate Trust from Conversation. HUMAN FACTORS 2024; 66:1724-1741. [PMID: 37116009 PMCID: PMC11044523 DOI: 10.1177/00187208231166624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to estimate trust from conversations using both lexical and acoustic data. BACKGROUND As NASA moves to long-duration space exploration operations, the increasing need for cooperation between humans and virtual agents requires real-time trust estimation by virtual agents. Measuring trust through conversation is a novel and unintrusive approach. METHOD A 2 (reliability) × 2 (cycles) × 3 (events) within-subject study with habitat system maintenance was designed to elicit various levels of trust in a conversational agent. Participants had trust-related conversations with the conversational agent at the end of each decision-making task. To estimate trust, subjective trust ratings were predicted using machine learning models trained on three types of conversational features (i.e., lexical, acoustic, and combined). After training, model explanation was performed using variable importance and partial dependence plots. RESULTS Results showed that a random forest algorithm, trained using the combined lexical and acoustic features, predicted trust in the conversational agent most accurately ( R a d j 2 = 0.71 ) . The most important predictors were a combination of lexical and acoustic cues: average sentiment considering valence shifters, the mean of formants, and Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCC). These conversational features were identified as partial mediators predicting people's trust. CONCLUSION Precise trust estimation from conversation requires lexical cues and acoustic cues. APPLICATION These results showed the possibility of using conversational data to measure trust, and potentially other dynamic mental states, unobtrusively and dynamically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengyao Li
- Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Isabel M Erickson
- Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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Guldner S, Lavan N, Lally C, Wittmann L, Nees F, Flor H, McGettigan C. Human talkers change their voices to elicit specific trait percepts. Psychon Bull Rev 2024; 31:209-222. [PMID: 37507647 PMCID: PMC10866754 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-023-02333-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
The voice is a variable and dynamic social tool with functional relevance for self-presentation, for example, during a job interview or courtship. Talkers adjust their voices flexibly to their situational or social environment. Here, we investigated how effectively intentional voice modulations can evoke trait impressions in listeners (Experiment 1), whether these trait impressions are recognizable (Experiment 2), and whether they meaningfully influence social interactions (Experiment 3). We recorded 40 healthy adult speakers' whilst speaking neutrally and whilst producing vocal expressions of six social traits (e.g., likeability, confidence). Multivariate ratings of 40 listeners showed that vocal modulations amplified specific trait percepts (Experiments 1 and 2), which could be explained by two principal components relating to perceived affiliation and competence. Moreover, vocal modulations increased the likelihood of listeners choosing the voice to be suitable for corresponding social goals (i.e., a confident rather than likeable voice to negotiate a promotion, Experiment 3). These results indicate that talkers modulate their voice along a common trait space for social navigation. Moreover, beyond reactive voice changes, vocal behaviour can be strategically used by talkers to communicate subtle information about themselves to listeners. These findings advance our understanding of non-verbal vocal behaviour for social communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Guldner
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
- Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
| | - Nadine Lavan
- Department of Psychology, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Clare Lally
- Department of Speech, Hearing and Phonetic Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lisa Wittmann
- Institute of Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Frauke Nees
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Centre Schleswig Holstein, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Herta Flor
- Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Carolyn McGettigan
- Department of Speech, Hearing and Phonetic Sciences, University College London, London, UK
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Torre I, White L, Goslin J, Knight S. The irrepressible influence of vocal stereotypes on trust. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2023:17470218231211549. [PMID: 37872679 DOI: 10.1177/17470218231211549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
There is a reciprocal relationship between trust and vocal communication in human interactions. On one hand, a predisposition towards trust is necessary for communication to be meaningful and effective. On the other hand, we use vocal cues to signal our own trustworthiness and to infer it from the speech of others. Research on trustworthiness attributions to vocal characteristics is scarce and contradictory, however, being typically based on explicit judgements which may not predict actual trust-oriented behaviour. We use a game theory paradigm to examine the influence of speaker accent and prosody on trusting behaviour towards a simulated game partner, who responds either trustworthily or untrustworthily in an investment game. We found that speaking in a non-regional standard accent increases trust, as does relatively slow articulation rate. The effect of accent persists over time, despite the accumulation of clear evidence regarding the speaker's level of trustworthiness in a negotiated interaction. Accents perceived as positive for trust can maintain this benefit even in the face of behavioural evidence of untrustworthiness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilaria Torre
- Division of Interaction Design and Software Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
- KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
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Zhang J. Femme/Butch/Androgyne Identity and Preferences for Femininity Across Face, Voice, and Personality Traits in Chinese Lesbian and Bisexual Women. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2022; 51:3485-3495. [PMID: 36028632 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-022-02334-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2021] [Revised: 03/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Studies indicate that individuals preferring masculinity/femininity in one domain also prefer it in other domains. Heterosexual men and women and gay men have reported consistent preferences for masculinity/femininity across the faces and voices of their preferred sex. This study explored the femininity preferences of 417 Chinese lesbian and bisexual women in terms of face, voice pitch, vocal tract length, and personality traits and explored the effect of sexual self-labels (femme, butch, and androgyne) on these preferences. We found that lesbian and bisexual women showed a stronger preference for feminized faces, voice pitch, vocal tract length, and personality traits than masculinized versions, and these preferences were highly consistent across the four domains. Moreover, femininity preference was moderated by sexual self-labels, with butches preferring more feminine voice pitch, vocal tract length, and personality traits than femmes and androgynes. However, no significant difference was found for facial femininity preferences among different sexual self-labels. These findings present evidence of consistent femininity preference across visual, auditory, and personality traits and suggest that, regardless of sexual orientation, multiple cues may be used together when determining the attractiveness of individuals. Furthermore, these results support the hypothesis that the partner preference of lesbian and bisexual women mirrors that of heterosexual men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Zhang
- School of Psychology, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610068, China.
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Zhang J, Tao S. Vocal Characteristics Influence Women's Perceptions of Infidelity and Relationship Investment in China. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY 2022; 20:14747049221108883. [PMID: 35898188 PMCID: PMC10303567 DOI: 10.1177/14747049221108883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 05/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Vocal characteristics are important cues to form social impressions. Previous studies indicated that men with masculine voices are perceived as engaging in higher rates of infidelity and being less committed to their relationship. In the current study, we examined how women in China perceive information regarding infidelity and relationship investment conveyed by the voices (voice pitch and vocal tract length) of males, and whether different vocal characteristics play a similar role in driving these impressions. In addition, we examined whether these perceptions are consistent in Chinese and English language contexts. The results indicated that women perceived men with more masculine voices (lower voice pitch and longer vocal tract length) as showing a lower likelihood of infidelity and higher relationship investment; further, women who preferred more masculine voices in long-term relationships, but not in short-term relationships, were more likely to perceive men with masculine voices as less likely to engage in infidelity and more likely to invest in their relationship. Moreover, the participants formed very similar impressions irrespective of whether the voices spoke native (Chinese) or foreign (English) languages. These results provide new evidence for the role of the voice in women's choices in selecting long-term partners.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Zhang
- School of Psychology, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Shuli Tao
- School of Psychology, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
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Abstract
Abstract. Two experiments examined the impact of voice pitch on gender stereotyping. Participants listened to a text read by a female (Study 1; N = 171) or male (Study 2, N = 151) speaker, whose voice pitch was manipulated to be high or low. They rated the speaker on positive and negative facets of masculinity and femininity, competence, and likability. They also indicated their own gendered self-concept. High pitch was associated with the ascription of more feminine traits and greater likability. The high-pitch female speaker was rated as less competent, and the high-pitch male speaker was perceived as less masculine. Text content and participants’ gendered self-concept did not moderate the pitch effect. The findings underline the importance of voice pitch for impression formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Krahé
- Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Germany
| | | | - Meike Herzberg
- Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Germany
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Zhang J, Zheng L, Zhang S, Xu W, Zheng Y. Vocal characteristics predict infidelity intention and relationship commitment in men but not in women. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2020.110389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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Schirmer A, Chiu MH, Lo C, Feng YJ, Penney TB. Angry, old, male - and trustworthy? How expressive and person voice characteristics shape listener trust. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0232431. [PMID: 32365066 PMCID: PMC7197804 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examined how trustworthiness impressions depend on vocal expressive and person characteristics and how their dependence may be explained by acoustical profiles. Sentences spoken in a range of emotional and conversational expressions by 20 speakers differing in age and sex were presented to 80 age and sex matched listeners who rated speaker trustworthiness. Positive speaker valence but not arousal consistently predicted greater perceived trustworthiness. Additionally, voices from younger as compared with older and female as compared with male speakers were judged more trustworthy. Acoustic analysis highlighted several parameters as relevant for being perceived as trustworthy (i.e., accelerated tempo, low harmonic-to-noise ratio, more shimmer, low fundamental frequency, more jitter, large intensity range) and showed that effects partially overlapped with those for perceived speaker affect, age, but not sex. Specifically, a fast speech rate and a lower harmonic-to-noise ratio differentiated trustworthy from untrustworthy, positive from negative, and younger from older voices. Male and female voices differed in other ways. Together, these results show that a speaker’s expressive as well as person characteristics shape trustworthiness impressions and that their effect likely results from a combination of low-level perceptual and higher-order conceptual processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annett Schirmer
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- The Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- * E-mail:
| | - Man Hey Chiu
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
| | - Clive Lo
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
| | - Yen-Ju Feng
- Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Trevor B. Penney
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
- The Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong
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Tognetti A, Durand V, Barkat-Defradas M, Hopfensitz A. Does he sound cooperative? Acoustic correlates of cooperativeness. Br J Psychol 2019; 111:823-839. [PMID: 31820449 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2019] [Revised: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The sound of the voice has several acoustic features that influence the perception of how cooperative the speaker is. It remains unknown, however, whether these acoustic features are associated with actual cooperative behaviour. This issue is crucial to disentangle whether inferences of traits from voices are based on stereotypes, or facilitate the detection of cooperative partners. The latter is likely due to the pleiotropic effect that testosterone has on both cooperative behaviours and acoustic features. In the present study, we quantified the cooperativeness of native French-speaking men in a one-shot public good game. We also measured mean fundamental frequency, pitch variations, roughness, and breathiness from spontaneous speech recordings of the same men and collected saliva samples to measure their testosterone levels. Our results showed that men with lower-pitched voices and greater pitch variations were more cooperative. However, testosterone did not influence cooperative behaviours or acoustic features. Our finding provides the first evidence of the acoustic correlates of cooperative behaviour. When considered in combination with the literature on the detection of cooperativeness from faces, the results imply that assessment of cooperative behaviour would be improved by simultaneous consideration of visual and auditory cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaud Tognetti
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.,Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, France
| | | | | | - Astrid Hopfensitz
- Toulouse School of Economics, Université Toulouse 1 Capitole, France
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Schild C, Stern J, Zettler I. Linking men's voice pitch to actual and perceived trustworthiness across domains. Behav Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arz173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Previous research suggests that judgments about a male speaker's trustworthiness vary due to the speaker's voice pitch (mean F0) and differ across domains. However, mixed results in terms of the direction and extent of such effects have been reported. Moreover, no study so far has investigated whether men's mean F0 is, indeed, a valid cue to their self-reported and behavioral trustworthiness, and whether trustworthiness judgments are accurate. We tested the relation between mean F0 and actual general, economic, and mating-related trustworthiness in 181 men, as well as trustworthiness judgments of 95 perceivers across all three domains. Analyses show that men's mean F0 is not related to Honesty–Humility (as a trait indicator of general trustworthiness), trustworthy intentions, or trust game behavior, suggesting no relation of mean F0 to general or economic trustworthiness. In contrast, results suggest that mean F0 might be related to mating-related trustworthiness (as indicated by self-reported relationship infidelity). However, lower mean F0 was judged as more trustworthy in economic but less trustworthy in mating-related domains and rather weakly related to judgments of general trustworthiness. Trustworthiness judgments were not accurate for general or economic trustworthiness, but exploratory analyses suggest that women might be able to accurately judge men's relationship infidelity based on their voice pitch. Next to these analyses, we report exploratory analyses involving and controlling for additional voice parameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Schild
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Julia Stern
- Department of Psychology and Leibniz Science Campus Primate Cognition, University of Goettingen, Gosslerstrasse, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Ingo Zettler
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Øster Farimagsgade, Copenhagen, Denmark
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Angry, old, male - and trustworthy? How expressive and person voice characteristics shape listener trust. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0210555. [PMID: 30650135 PMCID: PMC6334957 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0210555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2018] [Accepted: 12/27/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examined how trustworthiness impressions depend on vocal expressive and person characteristics and how their dependence may be explained by acoustical profiles. Sentences spoken in a range of emotional and conversational expressions by 20 speakers differing in age and sex were presented to 80 age and sex matched listeners who rated speaker trustworthiness. Positive speaker valence but not arousal consistently predicted greater perceived trustworthiness. Additionally, voices from younger as compared with older and female as compared with male speakers were judged more trustworthy. Acoustic analysis highlighted several parameters as relevant for differentiating trustworthiness ratings and showed that effects largely overlapped with those for speaker valence and age, but not sex. Specifically, a fast speech rate, a low harmonic-to-noise ratio, and a low fundamental frequency mean and standard deviation differentiated trustworthy from untrustworthy, positive from negative, and younger from older voices. Male and female voices differed in other ways. Together, these results show that a speaker’s expressive as well as person characteristics shape trustworthiness impressions and that their effect likely results from a combination of low-level perceptual and higher-order conceptual processes.
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12
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Suire A, Raymond M, Barkat-Defradas M. Human vocal behavior within competitive and courtship contexts and its relation to mating success. EVOL HUM BEHAV 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2018.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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13
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Zhang J, Zheng L, Zheng Y. Consistency in preferences for masculinity in faces, bodies, voices, and personality characteristics among homosexual men in China. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2018.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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O'Connor JJM, Barclay P. High voice pitch mitigates the aversiveness of antisocial cues in men's speech. Br J Psychol 2018; 109:812-829. [PMID: 29745423 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2017] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Speech contains both explicit social information in semantic content and implicit cues to social behaviour and mate quality in voice pitch. Voice pitch has been demonstrated to have pervasive effects on social perceptions, but few studies have examined these perceptions in the context of meaningful speech. Here, we examined whether male voice pitch interacted with socially relevant cues in speech to influence listeners' perceptions of trustworthiness and attractiveness. We artificially manipulated men's voices to be higher and lower in pitch when speaking words that were either prosocial or antisocial in nature. In Study 1, we found that listeners perceived lower-pitched voices as more trustworthy and attractive in the context of prosocial words than in the context of antisocial words. In Study 2, we found evidence that suggests this effect was driven by stronger preferences for higher-pitched voices in the context of antisocial cues, as voice pitch preferences were not significantly different in the context of prosocial cues. These findings suggest that higher male voice pitch may ameliorate the negative effects of antisocial speech content and that listeners may be particularly avoidant of those who express multiple cues to antisociality across modalities.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pat Barclay
- Department of Psychology, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
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15
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O'Connor JJ, Barclay P. The influence of voice pitch on perceptions of trustworthiness across social contexts. EVOL HUM BEHAV 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2017.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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