High testosterone levels predict low voice pitchamong men

We measured salivary testosterone levels and voice pitch, or fundamental frequency,among 61 male and 88 female college students. Higher levels of testosterone were significantlyassociated with lower pitched voices among males but not among females. The magnitude of theeffect was approximately the same as the magnitude of other relationships that have beenreported between testosterone and behavior. There are two plausible explanations of a linkbetween testosterone and pitch. One explanation is physiological, in which testosterone changesthe bulk, length, or tension of the vocal folds. The other is psychological, in which testosteroneaffects the vocal style that an individual uses as part of a social interaction strategy.