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Want to sound like someone people can trust? This new software could help
People can tell a lot by the sound of your voice—your mood, your hometown, and even whether you're a friend or an enemy. Now, a group of French researchers has figured out which vocal intonations make a person sound more trustworthy or competent, using a new computer program that can transform the pitch patterns of our voices.
First, the researchers built their own voice processing software, which they used to create hundreds of random intonations of a recording of the word "bonjour"—"hello" in French—by both male and female speakers. Then, they asked two groups of about 20 volunteers each to listen to about 700 pairs of recordings; they used their responses to reconstruct optimal pitch patterns for both trustworthiness and competence.
The team found that listeners clearly associated specific intonations with each social trait [open, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1716090115] [DX], regardless of their own gender or that of the speaker, they reported this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 03 2018, @04:04PM
Excellent! Soon we'll be able to develop the command Voice.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Virindi on Tuesday April 03 2018, @04:24PM (3 children)
Expect advertisers to jump all over this. In a short time, every ad will be maximized for "trustworthiness sound". Naive people will fall for it.
After a few years the majority of the public will catch on and the "trustworthiness signal" will start to be ignored, because it is heard all the time. And we will be right back where we started, except that it will be harder to interpret the intent of a person you are directly conversing with.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday April 03 2018, @04:52PM (1 child)
Advertisers have been doing this forever... some better than others, as art rather than science. I already have somewhat of a recoil reflex built up, if someone sounds too authoritative or trustworthy the assumption is that they are compensating for something, usually lack of actual authority or trustworthiness.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday April 03 2018, @06:03PM
Yes. I was going to suggest something similar.
People learn to tune it out. Filter for it.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 3, Funny) by krishnoid on Tuesday April 03 2018, @06:43PM
You know what? I believe you.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday April 03 2018, @04:49PM (3 children)
I would rather have people who ARE actually trustworthy, than people who merely SOUND trustworthy.
It's like salespeople trying to sound sincere.
"Machines are trustworthy" -- Robot from 1960's Lost In Space, episode season 2, Kidnapped in Space
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Virindi on Tuesday April 03 2018, @05:08PM (2 children)
Machines are only as trustworthy as the people who built them.
And what those people will do, like most humans, depends on what they think they can get away with.
Which is to say, machines are not very trustworthy at all.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by DannyB on Tuesday April 03 2018, @05:13PM (1 child)
The question is "trustworthy for who?"
The machines are very trustworthy for the people who built them.
The same machines might not be very trustworthy to the people who will be victimized by them.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Wednesday April 04 2018, @03:36AM
Bullshit.
https://www.usenix.org/system/files/1311_05-08_mickens.pdf [usenix.org]
Join the SDF Public Access UNIX System today!
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 03 2018, @05:52PM
"I know I've made some very poor decisions recently, but I can give you my complete assurance that my work will be back to normal. I've still got the greatest enthusiasm and confidence in the mission. And I want to help you."
(Score: 3, Informative) by Thexalon on Tuesday April 03 2018, @06:26PM
"The key to success is sincerity. Once you can fake that, you've got it made!" - attributed to all sorts of public figures, none of whom originated it
Knowing the science of how to convince people you're being honest isn't something used by people or organizations that are being honest, it's used by professional liars: lawyers, politicians, PR drones, marketers, TV personalities, upper management, etc.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by The Archon V2.0 on Tuesday April 03 2018, @06:36PM
... it's one of A7's many tricks from Max Headroom episode "Security Systems". Great.
(Score: 2) by looorg on Tuesday April 03 2018, @06:46PM (1 child)
Only "trustworthy"? Can't I modulate my voice to generate a brown-note instead when I wanna sound really intimidating? GET OF MY LAWN! Instant fertilization. I guess one of them Robocop/Hawkings boxes might do it to -- DEAD OR ALIVE YOU ARE COMING WITH ME! As long as people don't sound like Fran Drescher ... That would be the real horror.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 03 2018, @07:12PM
> GET OF MY LAWN!
I see where off you speak...
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Azuma Hazuki on Tuesday April 03 2018, @07:54PM (2 children)
"The most important thing is sincerity. If you can fake that, you've got it made."
This stuff scares me, but more than that, it fucking pisses me off. Now our very minds and brains are being hijacked in the name of some shithead turning a profit. Somehow I suspect that this is the answer to the Fermi Paradox: sufficiently-advanced civilizations Ferengi themselves out of existence.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by Virindi on Tuesday April 03 2018, @09:08PM
Don't worry so much, people will adapt. It is like trying to kill bacteria with one type of antiseptic, but continually applying a small dose that is not lethal to the whole population. Humans, and human culture, routes around damage :)
You can't fool all of the people all of the time.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 03 2018, @10:05PM
Eh, nothing new there, politicians and salesmen have done this for millennia. Apparently we just now have cheaper diagnostic methods instead of just a small handful of masters teaching their apprentices. As with all our tech related problems they aren't new just being massively scaled up.