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It’s no secret that some women have the power to woo men with nothing more than words. Throughout history, men have found themselves attracted the sexy voices of women such as Marilyn Monroe and Scarlett Johansson, amongst others.
Our body gives off clues
Whilst this is common knowledge to most, a newer finding that men are most attracted to a woman’s voice when she is at her most fertile suggests that our body gives off clues in our quest for the perfect mate.
A 2014 study by James Madison University, published in Physiology and Behaviour suggests that men are likely to find the voice of a woman more attractive when she is at the most fertile stage of her monthly cycle. The study employed three aspects to measure the men’s response to the voices: a rating scale, differences in heart rate and changes in galvanic skin response. Galvanic skin response, also known as electro dermal response, refers to the phenomenon where the skin becomes a better conductor of electricity in response to an arousing stimulus, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology explains.
Results show that when men listened to the voice of a woman at her most fertile, they rated her as more attractive, experienced an increase in heart rate and also experienced increased galvanic skin responses (GSR).
A pertinent finding is that homosexual women showed similar results to the heterosexual men when listening to the voice of a fertile woman.
Read: Your voice gives away clues about your sexuality
What is more interesting is that when listening to the voice of a woman on birth control, both homosexual women and heterosexual men rated the woman as less attractive and experienced minimal changes in heart rate and galvanic skin responses, even when the woman on birth control was at a more fertile stage of her cycle.
Men are more attracted to women with higher-pitched and breathy voices, as these seem to indicate smaller body size, a study published in Plos One suggests.
Further research indicates that women who sound attractive usually are. A 2014 study published in Evolution and Human Behaviour shows that more often than not, ladies with attractive voices have faces that are more symmetrical – a major factor that influences how attractive a person is to others. It is believed that this attraction is due to the fact that facial symmetry indicates good genes.
These studies, amongst others, suggest that, as humans, we transmit important details about our health, fertility and sexuality through our voices. This information is all processed by those around us and helps them to determine whether or not they view us as a suitable mate.
This would all work out quite well for us if we were perhaps conscious of it and the reaction wasn’t one-sided. Even if you did realise that the sexy voice on the radio is making you hot under the collar, there is no guarantee that the woman uttering those lust-worthy words will feel the same way about you.
Read more:
Do men with deeper voices have more children?
You perceive your spouse's voice more clearly than others
Are men with deep voices more likely to cheat?
Image: Close-up face of beautiful young woman from Shutterstock
