Year: 2013
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Voice-induced synesthesia, a form of synesthesia in which synesthetic perceptions are induced by the sounds of people's voices, appears to be relatively rare and has not been systematically studied. In this study we investigated the synesthetic color and visual texture perceptions experienced in response to different types of "voice quality" (e.g., nasal, whisper, falsetto). Experiences of three different groups-self-reported voice synesthetes, phoneticians, and controls-were compared using both qualitative and quantitative analysis in a study conducted online. Whilst, in the qualitative analysis, synesthetes used more color and texture terms to describe voices than either phoneticians or controls, only weak differences, and many similarities, between groups were found in the quantitative analysis. Notable consistent results between groups were the matching of higher speech fundamental frequencies with lighter and redder colors, the matching of "whispery" voices with smoke-like textures, and the matching of "harsh" and "creaky" voices with textures resembling dry cracked soil. These data are discussed in the light of current thinking about definitions and categorizations of synesthesia, especially in cases where individuals apparently have a range of different synesthetic inducers.
Source: Frontiers in Psychology
Institutions: University of Glasgow, University of Edinburgh
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,801
Funder: University of Glasgow
OpenAlex ID: W2015442552