Fundamental frequency characteristics and perceived age of adult male speakers.

Abstract

This study investigated acoustic correlates of aging in the voice. In particular, the mean fundamental frequency (f0) and f0 variability of 57 adult male speakers obtained by a direct age estimation experiment. The results showed that the mean f0 was positively correlated with the perceived age while the f0 variability was not significantly related to the perceived age of the speakers. The magnitude of the correlation between the perceived age and the mean f0 was significantly greater than between the chronological age and the mean f0, suggesting that the listeners tended to associate perceived aging with higher average f0. The correlation increased significantly when only those speakers upon whose perceived age the listeners closely agreed (regardless of the accuracy of the estimates) were examined.