JSLHR
Article
Changes in Acoustic Characteristics of the Voice
Across the Life Span: Measures From
Individuals 4–93 Years of Age
Elaine T. Stathopoulos,a Jessica E. Huber,b and Joan E. Sussmana
Purpose: The purpose of the present investigation was to examine
acoustic voice changes across the life span. Previous voice
production investigations used small numbers of participants,
had limited age ranges, and produced contradictory results.
Method: Voice recordings were made from 192 male and female
participants 4–93 years of age. Acoustic measures of fundamental
frequency (F0), sound pressure level (SPL), and signal-to-noise
ratio (SNR) were made. Coefficients of variation for F0, SPL, and
SNR served as measures of variability. Variables were analyzed
separately with stepwise regressions, using age and sex as
predictors.
Results: Differences in F0 and SNR across the life span were
sex specific. Male and female participants demonstrated
R
esearchers are altering their perspective of the de-
velopmental process and are appropriately discuss-
ing both development and aging as one life-span
phenomenon (Gallahue & Ozmun, 1995; Shadden & Toner,
1997). Speech scientists and naBve listeners would agree
that the sound of an individual’s voice changes through-
out his/her life span (e.g., Harnsberger, Shrivastav, Brown,
Rothman, & Hollien, 2008; Linville, 1987; Morris & Brown,
1987). Listeners can successfully identify the sex of pre-
pubertal speakers as young as 4 years of age (Bennett &
Weinberg, 1979; Ingrisano, Weismer, & Schuckers, 1980)
and can ascertain the person’s decade of life; they can
even distinguish a speaker’s chronological age to within
a
University at Buffalo, NY
b
Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
Correspondence to Elaine T. Stathopoulos: stathop@buffalo.edu
Editor: Robert Schlauch
Associate Editor: Robert Hillman
Received February 8, 2010
Revision received August 24, 2010
Accepted November 22, 2010
DOI: 10.1044/1092-4388(2010/10-0036)
Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research • Vol. 54 • 1011–1021 • August 2011 • D American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
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significant nonlinear trends for F0, but the trends were stronger
for male participants. Female participants demonstrated a
similar nonlinear trend for SNR, whereas male participants
demonstrated linear increases in SNR with age. Variability of
F0, SPL, and SNR followed nonlinear trends, higher at younger
and older ages.
Conclusions: Changes in voice production occur throughout the
life span, often in a nonlinear way and differently for male and
female individuals. Higher variability of acoustic measures of
voice in both young and old speakers reflects changes in anatomic
structure, physiologic mechanisms, and motor control.
Key Words: voice, life span, acoustic
several years (Huntley, Hollien, & Shipp, 1987; Linville &
Fisher, 1985). Perceptual indices of voice known to dif-
ferentiate young speakers from old speakers include pitch,
loudness, breathiness, and—especially for the elderly—
tremulousness (Hollien, 1987; Linville, 2002). These per-
ceptual indices have been linked to acoustic measures of
frequency, vocal intensity, noise, and acoustic variability.
Acoustic measurements have been extensively used
to make deductions about the underlying speech phys-
iology. Acoustic output of the vocal tract is closely asso-
ciated with underlying physiological mechanisms, and it
forms a bridge to human speech perception (Forrest &
Weismer, 2009; Kreiman, Gerratt, & Antoñanzas-Barroso,
2007). For example, acoustic measures have been used
to demonstrate that manipulations of speaking rate and
vocal loudness result in changes to underlying articu-
latory processes in speakers who are both neurologi-
cally disordered/dysarthric and neurologically normal
(Tjaden & Wilding, 2004). Acoustic measurements have
also been used to examine the changes to the physiol-
ogy of voice production across development and typical
aging. However, studies spanning the entire life span
are lacking.
1011
 Considering voice fundamental frequency (F0) first,
many investigations have substantiated the decrease in
F0 from infancy and/or preschool through puberty (Eguchi
& Hirsh, 1969; Huber, Stathopoulos, Curione, Ash, &
Johnson, 1999; Kent, 1976; Peterson & Barney, 1952;
Stathopoulos & Sapienza, 1997). These changes in F0
are generally considered to be a result of increased length
and mass of the vocal folds as the human body grows.
The change is sharper for male adolescents at puberty
because of a larger increase in mass as the hormonal
environment changes. Related to aging, Russell, Penny,
and Pemberton (1995) as well as Brown, Morris, Hollien,
and Howell (1991) found that F0 in women and men
generally decreased over a 50-year period. Toward the
end of that period, F0 decreased more in women and
increased slightly in men. In both men and women, the
changes in F0 have been related to hormonal changes,
leading to thinning of the folds in men and to thickening
or edematous folds in women.
A second important acoustic variable reflecting un-
derlying processes is sound pressure level (SPL). SPL
is controlled primarily through an interaction of respi-
ratory and laryngeal mechanisms, requiring coordina-
tion of muscular (Finnegan, Luschei, & Hoffman, 2000;
Isshiki, 1965) and neural (Hirano, Kurita, & Nakashima,
1983; Nagai, Ota, Konopacki, & Connor, 2005) control
systems. McAllister, Sederholm, Sundberg, and Gramming
(1994) found that women and older children approaching
pubescence are capable of producing a wider dynamic
range than younger normal-speaking 10-year-olds. Dy-
namic range is not an indication of speaking SPL, so it is
unknown whether children spoke at different SPLs than
adults. A large cross-sectional study of young children and
young adults showed that young children used higher SPL
than did the young adults when instructed to phonate a
syllable train at comfortable loudness levels (Stathopoulos
& Sapienza, 1997); however, there were no speaker data
extending into the later years. When examining the
older end of the life-span continuum, some studies have
found that voices of older adults tend to be associated with
decreased vocal intensity (Linville, Skarin, & Fornatto,
1989). In fact, researchers believe that low vocal inten-
sity may be an important indicator of old-sounding voices,
and it is used as a target for treatment of aged speakers
(L. O. Ramig et al., 2001). However, not all studies have
reported higher SPL for young children or lower SPL in
older adult speakers. Data from Huber et al. (1999) did
not show differences in SPL for young children versus
adults. Several other authors also reported no differences
in SPL between younger and older adults (Biever &
Bless, 1989; Huber, 2008; Sapienza & Dutka, 1996).
Huber and Spruill (2008) reported that older adults also
responded to several cues to increase loudness with the
same amount of loudness change as young adults. In
1012 Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research • Vol. 54 • 1011–1021 • August 2011
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sum, the findings about changes in the control of vocal
intensity across the life span are equivocal.
Another variable that impacts how voices sound is
the amount of additive noise in the voice signal, which is
thought to reflect underlying processes of vocal fold clo-
sure. It has been long known that perceived breathiness
is closely linked to increased glottal opening and noise
(e.g., Deal & Emanuel, 1978; Fritzell, Hammarberg,
Gauffin, Karlsson, & Sundberg, 1986; Hollien, 1987;
Linville, 2002; Södersten, Lindestad, & Hammarberg,
1991). Further, acoustic and modeling data support the
fact that women produce voice with larger glottal open-
ings and open quotients than men (Hanson & Chuang,
1999; Holmberg, Hillman, & Perkell, 1988; Klatt &
Klatt, 1990; Mendoza, Valencia, Muñoz, & Trujillo, 1996;
Stathopoulos & Sapienza, 1997; Titze, 1989). Hanson and
Chuang (1999) have provided a detailed analysis of the
underlying causes of the increased aspiration noise in
the voicing signal of women. Women’s stronger aspira-
tion noise results in several acoustic measures, including
the following: less well-defined formants, steeper spectral
tilt, and additional high-frequency noise around the third
formant. A strong consensus is that women produce voice
with more of a posterior glottal opening than men. In
typically aging adults, increased glottal gaps—in par-
ticular, spindle-shaped gaps—have been substantiated
by several laryngoscopic studies (Biever & Bless, 1989;
Honjo & Isshiki, 1980; Linville, 1992; Pontes, Yamasaki,
& Behlau, 2006). Along with findings of increased breath-
iness, findings show that the glottal mechanisms of el-
derly men and women display some degree of vocal fold
edema, atrophy, increased membranous glottal gap with
vocal fold vibration showing greater vibratory aperio-
dicity, altered mucosal wave, and reduced amplitude of
vibration. These changes to the vocal folds and glottal
closure result in larger amounts of noise in the voicing
signal. Signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and harmonics-to-
noise ratio (HNR) are useful for quantifying the amount
of noise in the voicing signal (Awan & Frenkel, 1994;
Ferrand, 2002; Yumoto, Sasaki, & Okamura, 1984).
Ferrand (2002) reported that elderly speakers produced
voice with lower HNR (indicating more noise in the voice
signal) than middle-age and young participants, where-
as jitter values (period-to-period changes in F0) did not
vary across participant groups. Ferrand and Yumoto
et al. (1984) concluded that a measure such as HNR is a
more sensitive measure for quantifying the amount of
additive acoustic noise in the voicing signal than jitter.
There is little agreement on whether children pro-
duce voice with more or less noise characteristics than
adults, as the data from children with normal voice are
scarce. McAllister et al. (1994) reported a high incidence
of glottal opening and breathiness and/or hoarseness in
60 school children who were 10 years of age and reduced
 voice range profiles (F0 and SPL). Their stroboscopic
findings indicate that 10% of the children had vocal nod-
ules, and 23% had glottal openings. In children, an ab-
normal glottal opening can lead to production of glottal
noise and breathier sounding voices. However, McAllister
et al. did not report HNR or SNR for these children. Data
from a glottal airflow investigation of normal-speaking
children (Stathopoulos & Sapienza, 1997) show that chil-
dren produce more glottal airflow than men during the
closed portion of the phonatory cycle, which could lead
to more noise in the voice signal; however, measures of
noise were not made in the study.
2. SPL will remain steady for most of the life span, but
it will decline in older adults. There will be no sex
differences.
3. SNR will reflect higher noise in voice signals of
younger children and older adults. There will be no
sex differences in younger children, but there will
be sex differences beginning at 20 years of age.
4. Variability of acoustic measures will demonstrate
U-shaped curves with higher variability for young
children and older adults. There will be no sex
differences.

A final factor gaining attention for examining un-

derlying processes of voice production is variability. Nu-
merous investigators support the concept that increased
Method
variability observed in acoustic voice measures reflects a Participants
more variable motor control system. Increased variabil-
The sample included 192 (88 male, 104 female) par-
ity in children’s speech has been found in acoustic mea-
ticipants who were 4–93 years of age. Exact numbers of
sures such as F0 and voice onset time (Eguchi & Hirsh,
individuals, Ms, SDs, and age ranges for the age groups
1969; Ohde, 1985; B. L. Smith, 1994; Sussman & Sapienza,
are presented in Table 1. Participants had normal speech
1994) and in aerodynamic measures (Stathopoulos, 1995).
and voice for their age, as determined by a speech-
Additionally, increased variability of voice measures
language pathologist, and spoke with a general North
has also been associated with typical speakers as they
American dialect. Participants younger than 30 years of
age (Linville, 1988; Linville & Korabic, 1986; Max &
age were required to have hearing within normal limits,
Mueller, 1996; Orlikoff, 1990). For example, increases
whereas those older than 30 years of age were required
in the SDs of F0 and SPL have been found in older men
to have hearing ability adequate to follow instructions.
and women and are associated with tremor (Linville,
All participants had to be able to perform the speech
1988; Linville & Korabic, 1986; Orlikoff, 1990). Dur-
tasks for the voice recordings. Participants reported the
ing the developmental process, more variable acoustic
absence of any major health problems, as determined by
measures have led researchers to conclude that speech
an interview and a health questionnaire, and freedom
motor control must change to accommodate changing
anatomical and neurophysiological systems (Callan,
Kent, Guenther, & Vorperian, 2000). Orlikoff (1990), in
Table 1. Participant age summary descriptive data by sex.
relation to acoustic measures, also has suggested that
increased variability of speech production in very old
Female participants Male participants
participants is not unlike the increased variability of Age
the developing child. (years) n M (SD ) Range n M (SD ) Range
Empirical studies of voice characteristics have been
4 6 4.5 (0.28) 4.0–4.8 6 4.6 (0.23) 4.3–4.8
lacking, as broad age ranges have not been studied, 6 6 6.4 (0.24) 6.1–6.6 6 6.2 (0.10) 6.0–6.3
numbers of participants have been limited, and empir- 8 6 8.5 (0.35) 8.1–8.9 6 8.4 (0.18) 8.2–8.7
ical findings have been contradictory across investiga- 10 6 10.2 (0.06) 10.1–10.3 6 10.4 (0.20) 10.2–10.7
tions (Linville, 2001). A systematic data set utilizing a 12 6 12.4 (0.33) 12.0–12.8 6 12.6 (0.24) 12.1–12.8
large number of participants is needed to clearly charac- 14 6 14.4 (0.28) 14.1–14.8 6 14.3 (0.20) 14.1–14.7
terize the acoustic changes that reflect typical life-span 16 6 16.3 (0.20) 16.2–16.7 6 16.3 (0.18) 16.0–16.5
changes. The present research design allowed assess- 18 6 18.6 (0.29) 18.2–18.8 6 18.4 (0.28) 18.0–18.7
ment of life-span acoustic changes. On the basis of pre- 20 6 22.4 (0.82) 20.9–23.1 6 21.6 (0.55) 20.8–22.4
vious literature, we hypothesized the following: 30 6 31.6 (2.80) 29.6–37.2 6 32.4 (1.97) 30.8–36.1
40 6 46.3 (2.42) 41.8–48.5 4 44.7 (3.73) 40.3–48.7
1. F0 data will be consistent with previously published 50 6 55.0 (3.79) 50.0–58.2 6 54.4 (3.05) 49.8–59.0
data. F0 will be highest for the youngest speakers 60 7 65.0 (3.07) 60.0–68.8 5 65.5 (3.90) 59.9–69.4
and will decrease until puberty for both sexes be- 70 11 75.2 (1.79) 73.0–79.3 6 75.4 (3.43) 69.7–79.3
cause of growth. As speakers approach the fifth de- 80 10 82.3 (1.54) 80.0–84.7 7 83.5 (2.19) 79.6–86.3
cade of life, F0 will decrease for female participants 90 4 92.2 (0.88) 91.3–93.4 0
and will increase for male participants, reflecting Total 104 88
hormonal changes in the body.

Stathopoulos et al.: Acoustic Characteristics of Voice Across the Life Span 1013

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 from any acute conditions such as allergies, colds, or flu
on the day of testing. Participants were nonsmokers for
at least the last 5 years, and they had no professional
voice training.
Speech Tasks
Participants were asked to sustain an [a] for a “com-
fortable” period of time using their “comfortable every-
day pitch and loudness levels.” Three trials of the task were
performed. Data collection from participants 4–25 years
of age and participants 30–93 years of age was com-
pleted at different times, separated by about 4 years.
The F0 and SPL data from the participants 4–25 years
of age were published previously in Huber et al.’s (1999)
study.
Equipment and Procedure
For children and adults 4–25 years of age, voice
recordings were obtained using a free-field microphone
(Quest condenser microphone with sound-level meter,
Model 1700) and filter/amplifier (Frequency Devices,
Model 901) using a constant 6-cm mouth-to-microphone
distance. The microphone signal was directly digitized
into an IBM PC (analog-to-digital conversion board Data
Translation, DT2821) using CSpeech at a sampling rate
of 20 KHz (Milenkovic, 2001). The signals were low-pass
filtered for anti-aliasing at 8 kHz by the Frequency De-
vices filter/amplifier. A sound-level meter and the Fre-
quency Devices filter/amplifier, coupled to the microphone,
amplified the microphone signal during the study. The
sound-level meter was set for C-weighting. The gain ap-
plied to the microphone signal by the sound-level meter
and the Frequency Devices filter/amplifier varied de-
pending on how loudly an individual spoke and was
factored in when calibrating the acoustic signal for SPL
measurements.
For adults 30–93 years of age, voice recordings were
obtained using a free-field, head-mounted microphone
(AKG C240) and preamplifier (ART Tube Amplifier)
at a constant 4-cm mouth-to-microphone distance. Be-
cause there were two different mouth-to-microphone
distance recordings, the SPL data from the 30–95-year-
old group were corrected from a 4-cm to a 6-cm mouth-
to-microphone distance using the following formula:
½20
Logð4=6Þ ¼ 3:5:
The microphone signal was directly digitized into a Dell
PC (Sound Card, Model SigmaTel C-Major, 9704) using
TF32 (Milenkovic, 2001) at a sampling rate of 44.1 kHz
and was low-pass filtered by the onboard SigmaTel
chip at 17.64 Hz. A sound-level meter and the ART Tube
amplifier, coupled to the microphone, amplified the
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microphone signal during the study. The sound-level meter
was set for C-weighting. The gain applied to the micro-
phone signal by the sound-level meter and the ART Tube
amplifier varied depending on how loudly an individual
spoke and was factored in when calibrating the acoustic
signal for SPL measurements.
Measurements
The middle interval of each vowel production (500 ms
for the 4–25-year-old participants; 2,000 ms for the 30–
93-year-old participants) was extracted for data mea-
surement. For most samples, all three measurements
listed below were based on the entire interval as one
uninterrupted sample using TF32 Jitter/Shimmer/
Voice Aperiodicity SNR Analysis (Milenkovic, 2001).
If a sample contained a voice break, the voice break was
eliminated, and measurements were made from more
than one shorter sample around the voice break and
then were averaged to obtain the trial value.
1. Average F0 in Hz: The average F0 was calculated
by averaging the values over the selected mid-vowel
sample and then by averaging across the three trials
for each participant.
2. SPL in dB: SPL provides information reflecting the
vocal intensity level of the production. SPL values
were calculated by comparing the root-mean-square
values of vowel production with calibration tone
values. Reported values were averaged across the
sample.
3. SNR: SNR is the ratio of the periodic energy in the
vowel signal to the energy in the aperiodic compo-
nent of the voiced signal.
Statistical Analysis
Data were analyzed in two ways. First, to examine
mean differences across the broad age range, participant
means of the three trials were analyzed. Second, to pro-
vide an estimate of variability, coefficients of variation
(COVARs) were computed for F0, SPL, and SNR. To ob-
tain the COVAR, Ms and SDs across the three trials for
each participant were computed. COVARs were calcu-
lated for each participant by dividing the SD across the
three trials by the mean across the three trials and then
ð1Þ multiplying the quotient by 100.
Each dependent variable was analyzed separately
using stepwise regressions. Age (linear regression), age-
squared (nonlinear regression), and sex were loaded into
the stepwise regression as predictors. If sex was a sig-
nificant predictor, a second set of stepwise regressions
was completed on male and female participants indi-
vidually; age and age-squared were loaded into the
 stepwise regression as predictors. Significance level was
set at p < .05.
Results
F0
Sex was a significant factor in the stepwise regres-
sion (F = 140.71, p < .001, R2 = .22), so further analysis
was completed separately for male and female partic-
ipants. For female participants, both age (F = 37.60,
p < .001, R2 = .48) and age-squared (F = 16.87, p < .001,
R2 = .55) were significant factors in the stepwise regres-
sion. For male participants, both age (F = 122.14, p < .001,
R2 = .30) and age-squared (F = 88.85, p < .001, R2 = .66)
were significant factors in the stepwise regression. The
fit for the nonlinear regression was much stronger for
both sexes than the linear one, and the relationship be-
tween F0 and age was somewhat stronger for male than
female participants (see Figure 1). In male participants,
F0 declined steadily from 4 to 50 years of age and then
began to steadily rise. For female participants, F0 de-
clined, although with a shallower slope than for men, to
60 years of age and then rose slightly.
SPL
Sex was not a significant factor in the stepwise re-
gression (F = 0.08, p = .77), so the analysis reflects male
and female participants combined. The linear trend for
age (F = 29.60, p < .001, R2 = .13) was significant in the
Figure 1. Scatter plot of fundamental frequency (F0) by age: male
participants (open circles) and female participants (filled circles).
Linear and nonlinear trends for both male and female participants
fit to the data.
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stepwise regression, but the nonlinear regression, age-
squared (F = 0.005, p = .95), was not significant. SPL
linearly increased with age for both female and male
participants (see Figure 2).
SNR
Sex was a significant factor in the stepwise regres-
sion (F = 134.86, p = .01, R2 = .18), so further analysis was
completed separately for male and female participants.
For female participants, both age (F = 29.41, p < .001,
R2 = .05) and age-squared (F = 24.93, p < .001, R2 = .24)
were significant factors in the stepwise regression, but
the nonlinear regression was stronger than the linear one.
SNR rose to 50 years of age and then fell after 50 years
of age, indicating more additive noise in the voicing sig-
nal at both young and old ages (see Figure 3). For male
participants, the linear trend for age (F = 7.43, p = .008,
R2 = .08) was significant in the stepwise regression, but
the nonlinear regression, age-squared (F = 1.43, p = .23),
was not significant. For male participants, SNR linearly
increased with age, indicating less additive noise as the
male participants aged (see Figure 3).
F0-COVAR
Sex was not a significant factor in the stepwise re-
gression (F = 0.00, p = .99), so the analysis reflects male
and female participants combined. Both age (F = 23.24,
p = .005, R2 = .23) and age-squared (F = 17.86, p < .001,
R2 = .20) were significant factors in the stepwise regres-
sion. For both female and male participants, F0-COVAR
Figure 2. Scatter plot of sound pressure level (SPL) by age: male
participants (open circles) and female participants (filled circles).
Linear trend fit to the data across sexes.
1015
 Figure 3. Scatter plot of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by age: male
participants (open circles) and female participants (filled circles).
Linear and nonlinear trends fit for the female participants. Linear
trend fit for the male participants.
declined steadily from 4 to 30 years of age and then
began to steadily rise, indicating higher F0 variability
for both the young and older ages (see Figure 4).
SPL-COVAR
Sex was not a significant factor in the stepwise re-
gression (F = 0.80 p = .37), so the analysis reflects male
and female participants combined. Both age (F = 12.26,
p < .001, R2 = .09) and age-squared (F = 16.00, p < .001,
Figure 4. Scatter plot of fundamental frequency coefficients of
variation (F0-COVARs) by age: male participants (open circles) and
female participants (filled circles). Linear and nonlinear trends fit
to the data across sexes.
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R2 = .03) were significant factors in the stepwise regres-
sion. For both female and male participants, SPL-COVAR
declined to about 20 years of age and then started to rise
at about 60 years of age, indicating higher SPL variability
for young and older speakers (see Figure 5).
SNR-COVAR
Sex was not a significant factor in the stepwise re-
gression (F = 0.08, p = .77), so the analysis reflects male
and female participants combined. The nonlinear re-
gression, age-squared (F = 6.71, p = .01, R2 = .03), was
significant in the stepwise regression, but the linear trend,
age (F = 3.61, p = .06), did not add significantly to the
model. For both female and male participants, SNR-
COVAR declined slightly to about 20 years of age and
started to rise at 50 years of age, indicating higher SNR
variability for younger and older speakers (see Figure 6).
Discussion
The purpose of the present cross-sectional investiga-
tion was to examine age- and sex-related acoustic voice
characteristics across the life span, beginning in early
childhood at 4 years of age and ending with the very old
at 93 years of age. The present acoustic measures are
discussed in terms of the reflected changes to the under-
lying anatomical and physiological components involved
in voice production.
F0 was included in this examination, despite the
large amount of data already available from previous
Figure 5. Scatter plot of sound pressure level coefficients of variation
(SPL-COVARs) by age: male participants (open circles) and female
participants (filled circles). Linear and nonlinear trends fit to the data
across sexes.
 Figure 6. Scatter plot of signal-to-noise ratio coefficients of variation
(SNR-COVARs) by age: male participants (open circles) and female
participants (filled circles). Nonlinear trend fit to the data across sexes.
studies, because of the need for systematic replication
of F0 data across a broad age range. Our predictions
were generally confirmed. In male participants, F0 de-
clined steadily from 4 to 50 years of age and then began
to steadily rise. In female participants, F0 declined
steadily from 4 to 60 years of age but with a shallower
slope than that of male participants. Women’s F0 begin
to rise slightly but not until 80 years of age. An obvious
explanation for young children’s steadily lowering F0 until
puberty is increased length and mass of the vocal folds
(e.g., Stathopoulos, 2000). In middle-age women, the low-
ering of F0 has always been explained by menopausal hor-
monal changes causing thickened or edematous folds. In
middle-age men, the vocal folds thin (Brown et al., 1991;
Eguchi & Hirsh, 1969; Huber et al., 1999; Kent, 1976;
Peterson & Barney, 1952; Stathopoulos & Sapienza,
1997). Abitbol, Abitbol, and Abitbol (1999) studied 100
postmenopausal women who were professional voice
users. A small number of the women (17) showed clin-
ical level voice symptoms, and another 83 women showed
slight changes to the voice, including lower vocal inten-
sity, increased vocal fatigue, decreased range of high
frequencies, and loss of timbre in their spoken and sing-
ing voices. The changes in women’s voices were asso-
ciated with a change in their hormonal environment,
including increased production of progesterone, which in
turn was hypothesized to result in atrophy of the vo-
cal fold mucosa and thyroarytenoid muscles of the vocal
folds.
The data from Raj, Gupta, Chowdhury, and Chadha
(2010) are in agreement with those of Abitbol et al. (1999);
as estrogen decreased and progesterone increased, sub-
stantial changes occurred in the women’s voices. Close
Stathopoulos et al.: Acoustic Characteristics of Voice Across the Life Span
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examination of the data shows that F0 decreased in both
women and men, with most of the F0 decline occurring
by 50 years of age. Older men demonstrated a relatively
large increase in F0 after 50 years of age, potentially
reflecting a decrease in the mass of the folds because of
changes to the hormonal environment. It is clear that la-
ryngeal cartilages and muscle function change as a func-
tion of age. Although length characteristics do not seem
to change in the aging larynx, there are other multiple
changes to the cover, lamina propria, and body (muscle)
of the vocal folds that may account for the changes in F0
(Hirano et al., 1983). A more recent investigation ex-
plored the reasons for some of the vocal parameter changes
in the elderly male voice (Gugatschka et al., 2010). Men
who displayed increased F0 were also found to have
lower estrogen levels than age-matched controls.
Unlike F0 data, there were very little previously
published data on SPL and SNR across the life span. The
prediction for SPL on the basis of the limited literature
was that SPL would remain steady for most of the life
span but would decline in older adults. It was, therefore,
somewhat surprising that data from the present inves-
tigation indicated that SPL increased as speakers aged.
Huber et al. (1999) found no differences in SPL between
children and young adults. Several other authors also
found no differences in SPL between younger and older
adult speakers (Biever & Bless, 1989; Huber, 2008; Huber
& Spruill, 2008; Sapienza & Dutka, 1996). Overall, on
the basis of previous literature and the data from the
present study, it seems that average SPL does not reflect
the declining laryngeal system. However, variability of
SPL shows a different result and may be a more sen-
sitive measure of aging effects.
The third prediction was that SNR would demon-
strate a U-shaped curve, with higher noise in voices of
younger children and older adults. This prediction was
partially supported by the data from the present study.
Female participants followed the predicted trend. A lower
SNR for the young and older female participants reflects
more additive noise in the voiced signal (see Figure 3). As
men aged, SNR steadily increased, indicating less ad-
ditive noise in the voicing signal. The fact that women
displayed higher noise characteristics than men begin-
ning in their 50s fits with what we know about female
hormonal changes. The average age for menopause is
51 years, and it is well-known that the hormonal changes
associated with menopause affect bone, skin, and mus-
cle, as well as other body systems such as the cardio-
vascular system (National Institute on Aging, 2008).
There is a plausible explanation for why women produce
voice with more additive noise than men. Along with the
acoustic studies mentioned in the previous section of this
article (Hanson & Chuang, 1999; Mendoza et al., 1996),
videostroboscopic investigations of both young and older
women with normal voices showed that both groups
1017
 displayed glottal gap configurations during phonation.
Younger women tended to display a posterior glottal gap
configuration, whereas older women displayed more an-
terior gap or spindle-shaped configurations (Linville,
1992; Pontes, Kyrillos, Behlau, De Biase, & Pontes, 2002;
Pontes et al., 2006). Hirano, Kiyokawa, and Kurita (1988)
provided data linking the larger posterior opening in
women to the morphological structure of the posterior
glottis. The vocal fold angle is larger in women than
in men. As women age and go through the soft tissue/
cartilage changes that are inevitable, these changes are
coupled with the incomplete glottal closure pattern. The
plausible result is an even noisier voice for older women
than for older men. The present large cross-sectional
study presents new data showing that aging affects men
and women differently—in particular, relative to noise
characteristics of the voice.
Children also demonstrated increased SNR, in both
male and female participants. There are several laryn-
geal differences in children that may explain this find-
ing. These differences include the following: an immature
vocal ligament until 20 years of age, differences in the
texture of the laryngeal cartilage and the shape of ar-
ticular surfaces, and less dense ligamentous fibers such
as the macula flava (Hirano et al., 1983; Kahane, 1978).
These anatomic and physiologic changes may cause chil-
dren to have reduced vocal fold closure and are likely to
result in increased spectral noise for the children. The
present data establish that young children produce voice
with more additive noise than young and middle-age
adults.
COVARs were calculated as indicators of variabil-
ity for each of the measures. There were important life-
span effects for variability, but none were sex specific.
All three variability measures showed significant U-shaped
curves, indicating more variability at younger and older
ages.
F0-COVAR declined to 30 years of age and then rose
again. These data showed that both children and older
adults demonstrated higher F0 variability. Higher vari-
ability in older adults has been associated with tremor in
the voice (Linville, 1988). Vocal tremor may be caused by
both laryngeal and respiratory tremor (Farinella, Hixon,
Hoit, Story, & Jones, 2006) and may reflect instability
in the underlying neurological substrates in older adults
(Aronson & Hartman, 1981; Duffy, 2005). Young children
have been shown to have less control over their vocal
fold tension, possibly because of immature motor be-
havior or because of shorter vocal folds. For example, in
Stathopoulos and Sapienza’s (1997) study, F0 increased
with increased SPL, and subglottal pressure was much
larger for the 4- and 6-year-old children than for the adults.
The reduced control of vocal fold tension could help ex-
plain the present findings for F0 variability. Alternatively,
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the increased variability could be linked to physical
substrates such as reduced differentiation of the vocal
fold layer structure/vocal ligament.
Higher SPL and SNR variability at young and older
ages can be explained by changes to the laryngeal his-
tologic structure for both young children and aging adults.
Laryngeal cartilages display different levels of ossifica-
tion with additional age-dependent structural changes
to the cover and layer structure of the vocal folds (Gray,
Hirano, & Sato, 1993; Hirano et al., 1983; Kahane, 1983;
Sato, Hirano, & Nakashima, 2002). It is likely that the
changes to laryngeal cartilages, soft tissue, and muscle
affect the control of adductory forces that are so impor-
tant to the overall control of voice production. SPL and
SNR show higher variability for the younger and older
speakers, reflecting changes to the physical substrates
at both ends of the life-span continuum.
The variability findings in the present study concur
with findings in previous studies, both in acoustic mea-
sures and kinematic measures. Numerous investigators
have supported the concept that increased acoustic vari-
ability of voice measures reflects a more variable motor
control system (Eguchi & Hirsh, 1969; Linville, 1988;
Linville & Korabic, 1986; Max & Mueller, 1996; Ohde,
1985; Orlikoff, 1990; B. L. Smith, 1994; Sussman &
Sapienza, 1994). Increased variability of nonacoustic mea-
sures such as the spatiotemporal index in both young
children and older adults, as compared with that of young
adults, substantiates the acoustic findings of increased
variability at the ends of the life span (A. Smith &
Zelaznik, 2004; Walsh & Smith, 2002; Wohlert & Smith,
1998). A. Smith and colleagues as well as other research-
ers have hypothesized that increased spatiotemporal
index occurs in both children and older adults because
of changes in motor control and neuroanatomical sys-
tems (Callan et al., 2000; L. A. Ramig & Ringel, 1983;
A. Smith & Zelaznik, 2004; Wohlert & Smith, 1998).
As mentioned earlier, Orlikoff (1990) has likened in-
creased variability of speech production in very old par-
ticipants to increased variability of the developing child.
This hypothesis was supported in the data from the pres-
ent study in which all three variability measures dem-
onstrated significant U-shaped curves. Without a life-span
study such as the present one, it would be difficult to
discern these kinds of nonlinear trends across the life
span. Both child and adult voices change because of
their changing anatomy and physiology. Children are
undergoing maturation, whereas older adults are un-
dergoing a lessening and weakening of their anatomical
and physiological systems (Gallahue & Ozmun, 1995).
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