Real-time magnetic resonance imaging reveals distinct vocal tract configurations during spontaneous and volitional laughter

A substantial body of acoustic and behavioural evidence points to the existence of two broad categories of laughter in humans: spontaneous laughter that is emotionally genuine and somewhat involuntary, and volitional laughter that is produced on demand. In this study, we tested the hypothesis these are also physiologically distinct vocalisations, by measuring and comparing them using real-time MRI (rtMRI) of the vocal tract. Following Ruch & Ekman (2001), we further predicted that spontaneous laughter should be relatively less speech-like (i.e. less articulate) than volitional laughter. We collected rtMRI data from five adult human participants during spontaneous laughter, volitional laughter, and spoken vowels. We report distinguishable vocal tract shapes during the vocalic portions of these three vocalisation types, where volitional laughs were intermediate between spontaneous laughs and vowels. Inspection of local features within the vocal tract across the different vocalisation types offers some additional support for Ruch and Ekman’s (2001) predictions. We discuss our findings in light of a dual-pathway hypothesis for the neural control of human volitional and spontaneous vocal behaviours, identifying tongue shape and velum lowering as potential biomarkers of spontaneous laughter to be investigated in future research

Amplitude Onsets and Spectral Energy in Perceptual Experience

A commentary on A temporal sampling framework for developmental dyslexi

An open-source toolbox for measuring vocal tract shape from real-time magnetic resonance images

Real-time magnetic resonance imaging (rtMRI) is a technique that provides high-contrast videographic data of human anatomy in motion. Applied to the vocal tract, it is a powerful method for capturing the dynamics of speech and other vocal behaviours by imaging structures internal to the mouth and throat. These images provide a means of studying the physiological basis for speech, singing, expressions of emotion, and swallowing that are otherwise not accessible for external observation. However, taking quantitative measurements from these images is notoriously difficult. We introduce a signal processing pipeline that produces outlines of the vocal tract from the lips to the larynx as a quantification of the dynamic morphology of the vocal tract. Our approach performs simple tissue classification, but constrained to a researcher-specified region of interest. This combination facilitates feature extraction while retaining the domain-specific expertise of a human analyst. We demonstrate that this pipeline generalises well across datasets covering behaviours such as speech, vocal size exaggeration, laughter, and whistling, as well as producing reliable outcomes across analysts, particularly among users with domain-specific expertise. With this article, we make this pipeline available for immediate use by the research community, and further suggest that it may contribute to the continued development of fully automated methods based on deep learning algorithms

A dual larynx motor networks hypothesis

Humans are vocal modulators par excellence. This ability is supported in part by the dual representation of the laryngeal muscles in the motor cortex. Movement, however, is not the product of motor cortex alone but of a broader motor network. This network consists of brain regions which contain somatotopic maps that parallel the organisation in motor cortex. We therefore present a novel hypothesis that the dual laryngeal representation is repeated throughout the broader motor network. In support of the hypothesis we review existing literature which demonstrates the existence of network-wide somatotopy, and present initial evidence for the hypothesis’ plausibility. Understanding how this uniquely human phenotype in motor cortex interacts with broader brain networks is an important step toward understanding how humans evolved the ability to speak. We further suggest that this system may provide a means to study how individual components of the nervous system evolved within the context of neuronal networks

Speech timing cues reveal deceptive speech in social deduction board games

The faculty of language allows humans to state falsehoods in their choice of words. However, while what is said might easily uphold a lie, how it is said may reveal deception. Hence, some features of the voice that are difficult for liars to control may keep speech mostly, if not always, honest. Previous research has identified that speech timing and voice pitch cues can predict the truthfulness of speech, but this evidence has come primarily from laboratory experiments, which sacrifice ecological validity for experimental control. We obtained ecologically valid recordings of deceptive speech while observing natural utterances from players of a popular social deduction board game, in which players are assigned roles that either induce honest or dishonest interactions. When speakers chose to lie, they were prone to longer and more frequent pauses in their speech. This finding is in line with theoretical predictions that lying is more cognitively demanding. However, lying was not reliably associated with vocal pitch. This contradicts predictions that increased physiological arousal from lying might increase muscular tension in the larynx, but is consistent with human specialisations that grant Homo sapiens sapiens an unusual degree of control over the voice relative to other primates. The present study demonstrates the utility of social deduction board games as a means of making naturalistic observations of human behaviour from semi-structured social interactions

Impaired generalization of speaker identity in the perception of familiar and unfamiliar voices

In 2 behavioral experiments, we explored how the extraction of identity-related information from familiar and unfamiliar voices is affected by naturally occurring vocal flexibility and variability, introduced by different types of vocalizations and levels of volitional control during production. In a first experiment, participants performed a speaker discrimination task on vowels, volitional (acted) laughter, and spontaneous (authentic) laughter from 5 unfamiliar speakers. We found that performance was significantly impaired for spontaneous laughter, a vocalization produced under reduced volitional control. We additionally found that the detection of identity-related information fails to generalize across different types of nonverbal vocalizations (e.g., laughter vs. vowels) and across mismatches in volitional control within vocalization pairs (e.g., volitional laughter vs. spontaneous laughter), with performance levels indicating an inability to discriminate between speakers. In a second experiment, we explored whether personal familiarity with the speakers would afford greater accuracy and better generalization of identity perception. Using new stimuli, we largely replicated our previous findings: whereas familiarity afforded a consistent performance advantage for speaker discriminations, the experimental manipulations impaired performance to similar extents for familiar and unfamiliar listener groups. We discuss our findings with reference to prototype-based models of voice processing and suggest potential underlying mechanisms and representations of familiar and unfamiliar voice perception. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved

Speech with pauses sounds deceptive to listeners with and without hearing impairment

Purpose: Communication is as much persuasion as it is the transfer of information. This creates a tension between the interests of the speaker and those of the listener as dishonest speakers naturally attempt to hide deceptive speech, and listeners are faced with the challenge of sorting truths from lies. Hearing impaired listeners in particular may have differing levels of access to the acoustical cues that give away deceptive speech. A greater tendency towards speech pauses has been hypothesised to result from the cognitive demands of lying convincingly. Higher vocal pitch has also been hypothesised to mark the increased anxiety of a dishonest speaker.// Method: listeners with or without hearing impairments heard short utterances from natural conversations some of which had been digitally manipulated to contain either increased pausing or raised vocal pitch. Listeners were asked to guess whether each statement was a lie in a two alternative forced choice task. Participants were also asked explicitly which cues they believed had influenced their decisions.// Results: Statements were more likely to be perceived as a lie when they contained pauses, but not when vocal pitch was raised. This pattern held regardless of hearing ability. In contrast, both groups of listeners self-reported using vocal pitch cues to identify deceptive statements, though at lower rates than pauses.// Conclusions: Listeners may have only partial awareness of the cues that influence their impression of dishonesty. Hearing impaired listeners may place greater weight on acoustical cues according to the differing degrees of access provided by hearing aids./