Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Cooperation Via Communication: Influencing Vocal Alignment In Conversation, Elliot A. Pollack

Senior Theses and Projects

Alignment of human behavior is a well-documented phenomenon, however, the factors which influence its direction and magnitude are not firmly established. Conversational partners align on a variety of speech factors including word choice, syntax, and rate of speech. The present study examines factors which lead to alignment of fundamental frequency (F0), colloquially known as pitch. Subjects (Speakers) complete a puzzle task which requires them to communicate with a partner (Model). The Model’s F0 is manipulated to either converge towards or diverge from that of the Speaker, whereas a control condition does not change the Model voice. The Speaker is recorded …