Can perpetrators discern survivors from voice?

Background: Research has shown that potential perpetrators and individuals high in psychopathic traits tend to body language cues to target a potential new victim. However, whether targeting occurs also by tending to vocal cues has not been examined. Thus, the role of voice in interpersonal violence merits investigation.

Objective: In two studies, we examined whether perpetrators could differentiate female speakers with and without sexual and physical assault histories (presented as rating the degree of ‘vulnerability’ to victimization).

Methods: Two samples of male listeners (sample one N = 105, sample two, N = 109) participated. Each sample rated 18 voices (9 survivors and 9 controls). Listener sample one heard spontaneous speech, and listener sample two heard the second sentence of a standardized passage. Listeners’ self-reported psychopathic traits and history of previous perpetration were measured.

Results: Across both samples, history of perpetration (but not psychopathy) predicted accuracy in distinguishing survivors of assault.

Conclusions: These findings highlight the potential role of voice in prevention and intervention. Gaining a further understanding of what voice cues are associated with accuracy in discerning survivors can also help us understand whether or not specialized voice training could have a role in self-defense practices.

HIGHLIGHTS

• We examined whether listeners with history of perpetration could differentiate female speakers with and without assault histories (presented as rating the degree of ‘vulnerability’ to victimization).
• Listeners’ higher history of perpetration was associated with higher accuracy in differentiating survivors of assault from non-survivors.
• These findings highlight that voice could have a crucial role in prevention and intervention.