Effects of Aging on Vocal Fundamental Frequency and Vowel Formants in Men and Women

This study reports data on vocal fundamental frequency (fo) and the first four formant frequencies (F1, F2, F3, F4) for four vowels produced by speakers in three adult age cohorts, in a test of the null hypothesis that there are no age-related changes in these variables. Participants were 43 men and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of voice 2018-09, Vol.32 (5), p.644.e1-644.e9
Main Authors: Eichhorn, Julie Traub, Kent, Raymond D., Austin, Diane, Vorperian, Houri K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acoustics
Adult
Adult acoustics
Age Factors
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging - physiology
Aging voice
Female
Formants
Fundamental frequency
Humans
Male
Menopause
Middle Aged
Sex differences
Sex Factors
Sound Spectrography
Speech Acoustics
Speech Production Measurement
Voice Quality
Young Adult
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Summary:This study reports data on vocal fundamental frequency (fo) and the first four formant frequencies (F1, F2, F3, F4) for four vowels produced by speakers in three adult age cohorts, in a test of the null hypothesis that there are no age-related changes in these variables. Participants were 43 men and 53 women between the ages of 20 and 92 years. The most consistent age-related effect was a decrease in fo for women. Significant differences in F1, F2, and F3 were vowel-specific for both sexes. No significant differences were observed for the highest formant F4. Women experience a significant decrease in fo, which is likely related to menopause. Formant frequencies of the corner vowels change little across several decades of adult life, either because physiological aging has small effects on these variables or because individuals compensate for age-related changes in anatomy and physiology.
ISSN:0892-1997
1873-4588
DOI:10.1016/j.jvoice.2017.08.003