Changes in salivary estradiol predict changes in women’s preferences for vocal masculinity

Although many studies have reported that women’s preferences for masculine physical characteristics in men change systematically during the menstrual cycle, the hormonal mechanisms underpinning these changes are currently poorly understood. Previous studies investigating the relationships between measured hormone levels and women’s masculinity preferences tested only judgments of men’s facial attractiveness. Results of these studies suggested that preferences for masculine characteristics in men’s faces were related to either women’s estradiol or testosterone levels. To investigate the hormonal correlates of within-woman variation in masculinity preferences further, here we measured 62 women’s salivary estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone levels and their preferences for masculine characteristics in men’s voices in five weekly test sessions. Multilevel modeling of these data showed that changes in salivary estradiol were the best predictor of changes in women’s preferences for vocal masculinity. These results complement other recent research implicating estradiol in women’s mate preferences, attention to courtship signals, sexual motivation, and sexual strategies, and are the first to link women’s voice preferences directly to measured hormone levels

Changes in salivary estradiol predict changes in women’s preferences for vocal masculinity

Although many studies have reported that women’s preferences for masculine physical characteristics in men change systematically during the menstrual cycle, the hormonal mechanisms underpinning these changes are currently poorly understood. Previous studies investigating the relationships between measured hormone levels and women’s masculinity preferences tested only judgments of men’s facial attractiveness. Results of these studies suggested that preferences for masculine characteristics in men’s faces were related to either women’s estradiol or testosterone levels. To investigate the hormonal correlates of within-woman variation in masculinity preferences further, here we measured 62 women’s salivary estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone levels and their preferences for masculine characteristics in men’s voices in five weekly test sessions. Multilevel modeling of these data showed that changes in salivary estradiol were the best predictor of changes in women’s preferences for vocal masculinity. These results complement other recent research implicating estradiol in women’s mate preferences, attention to courtship signals, sexual motivation, and sexual strategies, and are the first to link women’s voice preferences directly to measured hormone levels

Exercise therapy for knee osteoarthritis pain:how does it work? A study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

INTRODUCTION: Muscle strengthening training (MST) and behavioural graded activity (BGA) show comparable effects on knee osteoarthritic (KOA) pain, but the mechanisms of action remain unclear. Both exercise-induced anti-inflammation and central sensitisation are promising pathways for pain relief in response to exercise therapy in patients with KOA: MST has the potential to decrease inflammation and BGA has the potential to decrease central sensitisation. Hence, this study aims to examine inflammation and central sensitisation as mediators for the effect of MST and/or BGA on pain in patients with KOA. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Knee OsteoArthritis PAIN trial started on 10 January 2020 (anticipated end: April 2024). The three-arm clinical trial aims to recruit 90 KOA patients who will be randomly allocated to 12 weeks of (1) MST, (2) BGA or (3) care as usual. Assessments will be performed at baseline, 13 and 52 weeks after finishing the intervention. Outcomes, including pain (Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score), were chosen in line with the OARSI recommendations for clinical trials of rehabilitation interventions for OA and the IMMPACT/OMERACT recommendations for the assessment of physical function in chronic pain clinical trials. Inflammation as well as features of central sensitisation (including conditioned pain modulation, offset analgesia, temporal summation of pain and event-related potentials following electrical stimulation), will be considered as treatment mediators. A multiple mediators model will be estimated with a path-analysis using structural equation models. In July 2023, all 90 KOA patients have been included and 42 participants already finished the study. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study obtained ethics approval (B.U.N. 143201941843). Unravelling the mechanisms of action of exercise therapy in KOA will not only be extremely valuable for researchers, but also for exercise immunology and pain scientists and clinicians. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04362618.</p

Exercise therapy for knee osteoarthritis pain:how does it work? A study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

INTRODUCTION: Muscle strengthening training (MST) and behavioural graded activity (BGA) show comparable effects on knee osteoarthritic (KOA) pain, but the mechanisms of action remain unclear. Both exercise-induced anti-inflammation and central sensitisation are promising pathways for pain relief in response to exercise therapy in patients with KOA: MST has the potential to decrease inflammation and BGA has the potential to decrease central sensitisation. Hence, this study aims to examine inflammation and central sensitisation as mediators for the effect of MST and/or BGA on pain in patients with KOA. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Knee OsteoArthritis PAIN trial started on 10 January 2020 (anticipated end: April 2024). The three-arm clinical trial aims to recruit 90 KOA patients who will be randomly allocated to 12 weeks of (1) MST, (2) BGA or (3) care as usual. Assessments will be performed at baseline, 13 and 52 weeks after finishing the intervention. Outcomes, including pain (Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score), were chosen in line with the OARSI recommendations for clinical trials of rehabilitation interventions for OA and the IMMPACT/OMERACT recommendations for the assessment of physical function in chronic pain clinical trials. Inflammation as well as features of central sensitisation (including conditioned pain modulation, offset analgesia, temporal summation of pain and event-related potentials following electrical stimulation), will be considered as treatment mediators. A multiple mediators model will be estimated with a path-analysis using structural equation models. In July 2023, all 90 KOA patients have been included and 42 participants already finished the study. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study obtained ethics approval (B.U.N. 143201941843). Unravelling the mechanisms of action of exercise therapy in KOA will not only be extremely valuable for researchers, but also for exercise immunology and pain scientists and clinicians. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04362618.</p

Mosaic Brains? A Methodological Critique of Joel et al. (2015)

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Tennis grunts communicate acoustic cues to sex and contest outcome

Despite their ubiquity in human behaviour, the communicative functions of nonverbal vocalisations remain poorly understood. Here, we analysed the acoustic structure of tennis grunts, nonverbal vocalisations produced in a competitive context. We predicted that tennis grunts convey information about vocalizer and context, similar to nonhuman vocal displays. Specifically, we tested whether the fundamental frequency (F0) of tennis grunts conveys static cues to a player’s sex, height, weight, and age, and covaries dynamically with tennis shot type (a proxy of body posture) and the progress and outcome of male and female professional tennis contests. We also performed playback experiments (using natural and resynthesised stimuli) to assess the perceptual relevance of tennis grunts. The F0 of tennis grunts predicted player sex, but not age or body size. Serve grunts had higher F0 than forehand and backhand grunts, grunts produced later in contests had higher F0 than those produced earlier, and grunts produced during contests that players won had a lower F0 than those produced during lost contests. This difference in F0 between losses and wins emerged early in matches, and did not change in magnitude as the match progressed, suggesting a possible role of physiological and/or psychological factors manifesting early or even before matches. Playbacks revealed that listeners use grunt F0 to infer sex and contest outcome. These findings indicate that tennis grunts communicate information about both vocalizer and contest, consistent with nonhuman mammal vocalisations

Can listeners assess men's self-reported health from their voice?

Men's voices may provide cues to overall condition; however, little research has assessed whether health status is reliably associated with perceivable voice parameters. In Study 1, we investigated whether listeners could classify voices belonging to men with either relatively lower or higher self-reported health. Participants rated voices for speaker health, disease likelihood, illness frequency, and symptom severity, as well as attractiveness (women only) and dominance (men only). Listeners' were mostly unable to judge the health of male speakers from their voices; however, men rated the voices of men with better self-reported health as sounding more dominant. In Study 2, we tested whether men's vocal parameters (fundamental frequency mean and variation, apparent vocal tract length, and harmonics-to-noise ratio) and aspects of their self-reported health predicted listeners' health and disease resistance ratings of those voices. Speakers' fundamental frequency (ₒ) negatively predicted ratings of health. However, speakers' self-reported health did not predict ratings of health made by listeners. In Study 3, we investigated whether separately manipulating two sexually dimorphic vocal parameters—ₒ and apparent vocal tract length (VTL)—affected listeners' health ratings. Listeners rated men's voices with lower ₒ (but not VTL) as healthier, supporting findings from Study 2. Women rated voices with lower ₒ and VTL as more attractive, and men rated them as more dominant. Thus, while both VTL and ₒ affect dominance and attractiveness judgments, only ₒ appears to affect health judgments. Results of the above studies suggest that, although listeners assign higher health ratings to speakers with more masculine ₒ, these ratings may not be accurate at tracking speakers' self-rated health.Accepted manuscrip

How valid are assessments of conception probability in ovulatory cycle research? Evaluations, recommendations, and theoretical implications

Over the past two decades, a large literature examining psychological changes across women's ovulatory cycles has accumulated, emphasizing comparisons between fertile and non-fertile phases of the cycle. While some studies have verified ovulation using luteinizing hormone (LH) tests, counting methods – assessments of conception probability based on counting forward from actual or retrospectively recalled onset of last menses, or backward from actual or anticipated onset of next menses – are more common. The validity of these methods remains largely unexplored. Based on published data on the distributions of the lengths of follicular and luteal phases, we created a sample of 58,000+ simulated cycles. We used the sample to assess the validity of counting methods. Aside from methods that count backward from a confirmed onset of next menses, validities are modest, generally ranging from about .40–.55. We offer power estimates and make recommendations for future work. We also discuss implications for interpreting past research

Are men’s perceptions of sexually dimorphic vocal characteristics related to their testosterone levels?

Feminine physical characteristics in women are positively correlated with markers of their mate quality. Previous research on men’s judgments of women’s facial attractiveness suggests that men show stronger preferences for feminine characteristics in women’s faces when their own testosterone levels are relatively high. Such results could reflect stronger preferences for high quality mates when mating motivation is strong and/or following success in male-male competition. Given these findings, the current study investigated whether a similar effect of testosterone occurs for men’s preferences for feminine characteristics in women’s voices. Men’s preferences for feminized versus masculinized versions of women’s and men’s voices were assessed in five weekly test sessions and saliva samples were collected in each test session. Analyses showed no relationship between men’s voice preferences and their testosterone levels. Men’s tendency to perceive masculinized men’s and women’s voices as more dominant was also unrelated to their testosterone levels. Together, the results of the current study suggest that testosterone-linked changes in responses to sexually dimorphic characteristics previously reported for men's perceptions of faces do not occur for men's perceptions of voices