Age-related changes in acoustic characteristics of adult speech

Abstract

This paper addresses effects of age and sex on certain acoustic properties of speech, given conflicting findings on such effects reported in prior research. The speech of 27 younger adults (15 women, 12 men; mean age 25.5 years) and 59 older adults (32 women, 27 men; mean age 75.2 years) was evaluated for identification of differences for sex and age group across measures of fundamental and formant frequencies (F0, F1, F2 and F3) and voice onset time (VOT). There were significant sex-by-age group interactions for F0, F1, and VOT, some of which were specific to individual speech sounds. The findings suggest that further research on aging speech should focus on sex differences and the potential influence such changes may have on communication abilities of older adults with hearing loss.

Learning outcomes: The reader will be able to understand and describe (1) possible changes in specific acoustic properties with age, (2) how these changes may differ for women and men, and (3) the potential impact these changes may have on the speech understanding of older individuals with hearing loss.