Voices we prefer are like our own

Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe

Published Feb 21, 2014

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London - The world is full of countless different voices – but we prefer those that sound most like ourselves, scientists have found.

We are naturally drawn to people who speak with a similar accent, intonation and tone, they discovered.

It adds a more complex dimension to previous research that focused on how masculine or feminine voices sound. Linguist Dr Molly Babel, from the University of British Columbia, said: “We seem to like people who sound like we sound – we like people who fit within what we know.”

The study, published in the journal PLOS One, asked 30 volunteers’ to rate “attractiveness” of each others’ voices.

It also found that “breathy” voices in women – typified by Marilyn Monroe – were preferred because they implied youthfulness and health.

And participants were more drawn to men who spoke with a shorter average word length and deeper voices. - Daily Mail

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