[NFBWATlk] Why do we hate the sound of our own voices? - The Conversation - May 17, 2021

[Becky Frankeberger]

When I get hearing aids, especially this last time, I tell them to turn down
my voice, yeak. You are hearing yourself like the article says plus a tiny
non precise amplifier. Oh, trust me I don't sound like my hearing aids tells
me I do. Turn the darn things down and record yourself. You do sound
different, but not that tin tiny swelch sound through the hearing aids, eak!


Thank you Noel for the wonderful thoughtful articles you send us, warm
smile.

Becky    

-----Original Message-----
From: NFBWATlk <nfbwatlk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Nightingale, Noel
via NFBWATlk
Sent: Friday, June 25, 2021 10:34 AM
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Cc: Nightingale, Noel <Noel.Nightingale at ed.gov>
Subject: [NFBWATlk] Why do we hate the sound of our own voices? - The
Conversation - May 17, 2021

The below article is not blindness related, but I found this interesting or
somewhat disconcerting, and it is audio-related, so I'M passing it along.

https://theconversation.com/why-do-we-hate-the-sound-of-our-own-voices-15837
6?mkt_tok=MTMxLUFRTy0yMjUAAAF91B8D58xjfzePHOYBpLAFgyGT60TSsdVKRD8Z_LEXOgCjw_
Xlz83hobzqgWMWFZ2up7IW1kKBV2qJNCg3Q4HguY2SPwtQwB2LKQo4vy-BlFk
Why do we hate the sound of our own voices?
By Beth Daley
The Conversation
May 17, 2021

As a surgeon who specializes in treating patients with voice problems, I
routinely record my patients speaking. For me, these recordings are
incredibly valuable. They allow me to track slight changes in their voices
from visit to visit, and it helps confirm whether surgery or voice therapy
led to improvements.
Yet I'm surprised by how difficult these sessions can be for my patients.
Many become visibly uncomfortable upon hearing their voice played back to
them.
"Do I really sound like that?" they wonder, wincing.
(Yes, you do.)
Some become so unsettled they refuse outright to listen to the recording -
much less go over the subtle changes I want to highlight.
The discomfort we have over hearing our voices in audio recordings is
probably due to a mix of physiology and psychology.
For one, the sound from an audio recording is transmitted differently to
your brain than the sound generated when you speak.
When listening to a recording of your voice, the sound travels through the
air and into your ears - what's referred to as "air conduction." The sound
energy vibrates the ear drum and small ear bones. These bones then transmit
the sound vibrations to the cochlea, which stimulates nerve axons that send
the auditory signal to the brain.
However, when you speak, the sound from your voice reaches the inner ear in
a different way. While some of the sound is transmitted through air
conduction, much of the sound is internally conducted directly through your
skull bones. When you hear your own voice when you speak, it's due to a
blend of both external and internal conduction, and internal bone conduction
appears to boost the lower frequencies.
For this reason, people generally perceive their voice as deeper and richer
when they speak. The recorded voice, in comparison, can sound thinner and
higher pitched, which many find cringeworthy.
There's a second reason hearing a recording of your voice can be so
disconcerting. It really is a new voice - one that exposes a difference
between your self-perception and reality. Because your voice is unique and
an important component of self-identity, this mismatch can be jarring.
Suddenly you realize other people have been hearing something else all
along.
Even though we may actually sound more like our recorded voice to others, I
think the reason so many of us squirm upon hearing it is not that the
recorded voice is necessarily worse than our perceived voice. Instead, we're
simply more used to hearing ourselves sound a certain way.
A study published in 2005 had patients with voice problems rate their own
voices when presented with recordings of them. They also had clinicians rate
the voices. The researchers found that patients, across the board, tended to
more negatively rate the quality of their recorded voice compared with the
objective assessments of clinicians.
So if the voice in your head castigates the voice coming out of a recording
device, it's probably your inner critic overreacting - and you're judging
yourself a bit too harshly.


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