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Apicella CL & Feinberg DR. Voice pitch alters mate-choice relevant perception in hunter-gatherers. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B276 (1659), 1077-1082
Abstract
In humans, voice pitch is thought to be a cue of underlying quality and
an important criterion for mate choice, but data from non-Western
cultures have not been provided. Here we test attributions to and
preferences for voices with raised and lowered pitch in
hunter–gatherers. Using a forced-choice playback experiment, we found
that both men and women viewed lower pitched voices in the opposite sex
as being better at acquiring resources (e.g. hunting and gathering).
While men preferred higher pitched women's voices as marriage partners,
women showed no overall preference for voice pitch in men. However,
women who were currently breastfeeding had stronger preferences for
higher pitched male voices whereas women not currently breastfeeding
preferred lower pitched voices. As testosterone is considered a costly
signal associated with dominance, heritable immunity to infection and
low paternal investment, women's preferences potentially reflect a
trade-off between securing good genes and paternal investment. Men's
preferences for higher pitched female voices are probably due to an
evolved preference for markers of fecundity, reflected in voice pitch. |