High-pitched female voices encourage male risk-taking, but only if men think it boosts their attractiveness

Two experiments in China examined the effects of female voice pitch on male risk-taking behavior. One experiment indicated that high-pitched female voices made men more likely to take risks. The second experiment showed this effect occurred only when men believed risk-taking would increase their attractiveness to women. When men believed women preferred men who are not prone to risk-taking, the opposite effect was observed. The research was published in Personality and Individual Differences.

People often engage in behaviors that carry risks, such as hazardous driving, extreme sports, gambling, high-risk investments, and unsafe sexual activities. Despite being aware of potential dangers or negative consequences, individuals adopt these behaviors in pursuit of favorable outcomes.

Typically, when deciding whether to engage in risky behavior, an individual weighs the expected benefits and risks. However, this process is subjective and depends on various factors. For example, evolutionary theory suggests that males are more prone to risk-taking because it signals high genetic quality, enhancing their attractiveness to potential mates. This implies that cues related to mating might prompt males to undertake riskier activities.

One such cue might be the pitch of a female voice, with a higher pitch indicating a woman’s attractiveness and fertility. Study author Qian Tian and colleagues aimed to explore the effects of female voice pitch on male risk-taking behavior. They hypothesized that men exposed to high-pitched female voices would exhibit more risk-taking behavior. To test this, they conducted two experiments.

Participants in the first experiment were 66 young heterosexual men, with an average age of 22. They completed a driving scenario in virtual reality (the Stoplight task) while being navigated by a female voice representing a car’s navigation system. In one group, the voice was low-pitched, while in the other group, it was high-pitched. The scenario was designed so that whenever participants approached an intersection, the traffic light turned yellow. Participants had to decide whether to run the yellow light or stop. The number of times participants chose to run the yellow light served as an indicator of risk-taking behavior.

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In the second study, 120 young heterosexual men participated in another virtual reality experiment. They were divided into two groups, with one group listening to a high-pitched female voice and the other to a low-pitched voice. The simulation began in an empty room (in virtual reality) with a blackboard in the center. A female voice (high- or low-pitched, depending on the group) introduced a smart voice product, and participants rated the attractiveness of the voice.

Following this, participants were randomly assigned to one of two texts. Half of the participants read a text stating that women prefer men who are “brave, strong, healthy, sports-loving, and masculine”—a message intended to encourage risk-taking behavior. The other half read a text stating that women prefer men who are “patient, family-oriented, kind, attentive, and mature”—a message intended to discourage risk-taking behavior.

Participants were then placed on a (virtual reality) rooftop of a high-rise building, with a 3-meter-long wooden plank suspended at the edge. A voice instructed them to walk to the end of the plank. The speed at which participants walked was recorded as an indicator of risk-taking behavior.

The results of the first study showed that participants who listened to a high-pitched female voice ran more yellow lights compared to those who listened to the low-pitched voice. The difference was significant, indicating that the high-pitched voice strongly encouraged risk-taking behavior.

In the second study, the effects of the high-pitched female voice depended on context. In the group that was told women prefer men prone to risk-taking, the high-pitched voice increased risk-taking behavior. However, in the group that read the text suggesting women prefer men who are not risk-takers, the high-pitched voice led to much less risk-taking.

“The results revealed that high-pitched female voices promoted male risk-taking behavior, and there was an interaction between voice pitch and sociocultural background. The study demonstrates that individual psychology and behavior are influenced not only by evolutionary factors but also significantly by the socio-cultural context of their development. Male risk-taking behavior exhibits situational sensitivity and results from both natural and cultural adaptations,” the study authors concluded.

The study provides insights into the effects of female voice pitch on male behavior. However, the experiments were conducted using virtual reality, and no real risks were involved. Participants were fully aware that the environment was simulated and that the “risk-taking behaviors” carried no real-life consequences. The results may differ in scenarios involving real and substantial risk.

Additionally, the texts used in the second study might have been interpreted by participants as instructions on how they were expected to behave in the gamified context, raising the possibility that the results were influenced by the Hawthorne effect—participants behaving in ways they believe the researchers expected, rather than how they would normally behave. If this were the case, their behavior outside the research setting might be very different.

The paper, “The siren’s call: Exploring the impact of female voice pitch on male risk-taking behavior,” was authored by Qian Tian, Jingyun Ding, and Jiahui Guo.