People will like you more or less depending on your voice

Not only do you need to worry about how you look, how you are dressed, and your body language, but it seems you also need to worry about the sound of your voice. Yes, you read that right; your voice will make people like you more or less depending on how it sounds.

High or low? Loud or quiet? The voice is very important for the first impression both in professional and private life, because we find people to be likeable or unlikeable based on their voice.

Even social information, origin, emotions and character traits can be heard through the voice. Thanks to the voice, we can usually estimate the age and gender of our interlocutor.

The voice and the judgments based on it appear to be related to important life outcomes. Studies have reported that voice characteristics influence mate choice.

(Photo: Olcay Ertem/Pixabay)

Even voting behavior is influenced by the politician's voice, as voters prefer to vote for candidates with a lower voice.

However, it remains unclear whether individual differences in voice are associated with actual individual personality traits and whether vocal traits are valid personality cues.

The Georg-August University of Göttingen decided to take a closer look at the voice and voice pitch in a study and examined the connection between voice and personality.

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The scientists from Göttingen are now researching whether and which vocal characteristics match self-reported personality traits.

The study analyzed the voice pitch of 2,217 people aged 18 to 56 and included data from four countries. With a detailed questionnaire, the participants provided information about their personality and their private lives, among other things.

Their voice was measured using a computer program to assess the exact pitch. This was then evaluated together with the questionnaires.

"In our study, we found that people with a deeper voice tended to be more extraverted, more dominant, and less restrictive in their sociological sexuality," said Dr. Julia Stern, research leader of the study at the University of Göttingen, in a press statement.

According to the journal 'Psychologie Heute', people with a deeper voice are more interested in short-term relationships and have more frequent changing sex partners and one-night stands. This applies to both male and female study participants.

The researchers recorded hundreds of deep male voices and had them assessed by test participants. In professional life, people with a low voice are considered trustworthy, but in relationships they are more often accused of being unfaithful.

However, previous research has found that men with deep voices generally appear more attractive.

People with higher voices were perceived as more introverted and less dominant.

In addition, evidence was found that this group was slightly more anxious, nervous and emotionally unstable, although they were more likely to be in long-term relationships.

According to previous studies, women with a very high pitched voice are, on average, more attractive to men.

Due to evolution, a high-pitched voice in women could suggest fertility and femininity.

Of course, the pitch of the voice also changes depending on the situation. Analyzing speed dating events, the University of Sussex found that men speak as deeply as possible when they find the other person attractive.

The study also found that women often adjust their voices and lower their voices when the man is particularly popular and they want to impress him.

According to psychologist Julia Stern, people who speak louder tend to be more extroverted and less neurotic. This was also confirmed by the test listeners. But the objective results of the Göttingen study show that this can hardly be scientifically proven.

According to Dr. Stern, speaking quickly is perceived as more extraverted, while frequent pauses in speaking are interpreted as nervousness or insecurity. However, there is still no scientifically sound basis as to whether this actually corresponds to personality.

The study, published in the Journal of Research in Personality, was the first to demonstrate that voice pitch in men and women may be a valid predictor of at least some self-reported personality traits.

However, a connection between personality traits such as openness or conscientiousness and the voice of the respondents could not be determined and is now to be further investigated.