Vocalizations and body movement

A study examines links between movement and speech in humans. Human vocal abilities are the most advanced among those of hominins. Hand movements often occur during verbal communication, even when gestures cannot visually enrich speech, such as during phone conversations. To determine whether humans can perceive upper limb movements made in conjunction with vocalizations, Wim Pouw and colleagues recruited three men and three women to phonate a vowel with one breath while moving the arm or wrist at different tempos. Thirty participants listened to 36 of the vocalizations. Although they were unable to see the vocalizer, listeners synchronized their own arm and wrist movements with those of the vocalizer. This phenomenon also occurred with subtle movements that were hard to detect as well as across slow, medium, and fast tempos. However, listeners had slightly more difficulty synchronizing with a vocalizer’s wrist movements than hand movements. The findings suggest that musculoskeletal tensioning of the body constrains speech, which affects the respiratory-vocal system. Communication cues, such as excitement, may be perceived through gesture-induced acoustics, given that the human voice provides information about an individual’s dynamic physical state.

Article #20-04163: “Acoustic information about upper limb movement in voicing,” by Wim Pouw, Alexandra Paxton, Steven J. Harrison, and James A. Dixon.

MEDIA CONTACT: Wim Pouw, Radboud University Nijmegen, NETHERLANDS; tel: +0031630030071; email:

[email protected]

; <

[email protected]

>; James Dixon, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT; tel: 860-214-1766; email:

[email protected]

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