Inferring Speaker Attributes in Adductor Spasmodic Dysphonia: Ratings From Unfamiliar Listeners

Abstract

Unfamiliar listeners judge speakers with ADSD more negatively than control speakers, with judgments extending beyond typical clinical measures. The results have implications for counseling and understanding the psychosocial effects of ADSD.

Everyday listeners’ impressions of speech produced by individuals with adductor spasmodic dysphonia

“…Some made inferences about the speakers that would not have been made by a trained clinician, such as the assumption that the distortions in samples of ADSD speech were attributable to a cognitive impairment. These results are consistent with previous studies that showed everyday listeners make judgments of ADSD speakers that go beyond voice and speech quality (Isetti et al, 2014).…”

“…Belief in a cognitive cause for vocal deviance is also consistent with reports of individuals with ADSD that people are prone to talk down to them (Baylor et al, 2005). These qualitative findings also agree with quantitative results obtained from everyday listeners using rating scales for ADSD speakers (Isetti et al, 2014;Silverman & Hummer, 1989), as well as listeners who judge speakers with other intelligibility difficulties (Klasner, Yorkston, & Lillvik, 2002).…”

“…If judged as elderly, the speaker's voice quality was accepted as a routine part of normal aging. As reported by Isetti et al (2014), listeners in the present study attributed some of the dysphonia to aging, differentially penalizing speakers with ADSD compared to age-matched controls.…”

“…Although individuals with ADSD may be inherently sensitive to judgments by others based solely on their speech (Baylor et al, 2005), they may need to be made aware of the perspective of their communication partners. Relatedly, as noted by Isetti et al (2014), increasing everyday listener knowledge about communication disorders in general, and ADSD in particular, may lead to improved communicative success for individuals with ADSD.…”

Review of differential diagnosis and management of spasmodic dysphonia

“…This study highlights the sound and speech characteristics of SD that evoke negative and judgemental reactions from listeners. As a result, individuals with SD experience a social penalty [33]. This emphasises the need for a better understanding of the underlying basis of perceptual judgements of voice in everyday communication [32].…”