Vocal attractiveness in homosexual and heterosexual listeners

Abstract The voice is a common carrier for a wide range of communicative signals as well as cues to stable attributes of the speaker, such as secondary sexual characteristics. Previous research on heterosexual courtship indicates a preference for voices that exaggerate sex-typical features which speakers may attempt to manipulate by modulating their voices. However, research often excludes homosexual listeners on the assumption that their voice preferences are less aligned with theories of sexual selection. This study investigated voice attractiveness ratings among female and male heterosexual and homosexual participants. Participants rated voices that were either synthetically masculinized/feminized (Experiment 1) or modulated more naturalistically by speakers imitating auditory targets (Experiment 2). We replicate heterosexual preference for voices that exaggerate sexually dimorphic cues. However, including data from homosexual listeners provided a richer context, revealing that all listener groups apart from heterosexual males favoured masculinized voices. Despite differences in how groups responded to voice modulation, there was strong consensus across sexual orientations regarding which unmodulated voice identities were most attractive, highlighting the additive influence of voice features that are unrelated to sexual dimorphism. Our findings demonstrate the added scientific value of widening the inclusivity of voice research.