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A Fascinating Look At How We Judge Women Based On The Way They Sound

We woke up sounding like this.

NPR made this really interesting video about the biological way we respond to voices and how that affects the way women try to change the way they sound.

View this video on YouTube

Via youtube.com

Many women get told their voices are annoying or not authoritative.

Studies have shown that lower-pitched voices are perceived as more competent. Because of this, many women, especially political candidates, have been coached to speak lower.

But there's a limit to the degree that you can change your voice and it's also RIDICULOUS to do that.

Lowering your voice also leads to vocal fry, which is where your voice cracks and sizzles in lower ranges. People don't seem to like that, either.

This is vocal fry and we all do it. Britney Spears does it best, though.

w.soundcloud.com

Uptalk is another thing women do when they speak, which makes it sound like every statement is a question. The pitch goes up at the end as if to ask something.

Uptalkers are seen as timid and lacking confidence.

Unfortunately, the way we perceive voices is biological. So try to keep this in mind the next time you judge someone for having a high-pitched voice, or for using vocal fry or uptalk.

And don't feel pressure to change your voice - others are capable of listening to the content of what you're saying and that should determine how they feel about you.