Ben-David Boaz M, Icht Michal
Communication, Aging, and Neuropsychology Lab (CANlab), Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center (IDC), Herzliya, Israel; Department of Speech-Language Pathology, and the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Department of Communication Disorders, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel.
J Voice. 2016 Mar;30(2):247.e1-11. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2015.04.002. Epub 2015 Aug 28.
Occupational-related vocal load is an increasing global problem with adverse personal and economic implications. We examined voice changes in real speaking situations during a single day, with and without vocal loading, aiming to identify an objective acoustic index for vocal load over a day.
Call center operators (CCOs, n = 27) and age- and gender-matched students (n = 25) were recorded at the beginning and at the end of a day, with (CCOs) and without (students) vocal load. Speaking and reading voice samples were analyzed for fundamental frequency (F0), sound pressure level (SPL), and their variance (F0 coefficient of variation [F0 CV], SPL CV). The impact of lifestyle habits on voice changes was also estimated.
The main findings revealed an interaction, with F0 rise at the end of the day for the students but not for the CCOs. We suggest that F0 rise is a typical phenomenon of a day of normal vocal use, whereas vocal loading interferes with this mechanism. In addition, different lifestyle profiles of CCOs and controls were observed, as the CCOs reported higher incidence of dehydrating behaviors (eg, smoking, caffeine). Yet, this profile was not linked with voice changes. In sum, we suggest that F0 rise over a day can potentially serve as an index for typical voice use. Its lack thereof can hint on consequent voice symptoms and complaints.
与职业相关的嗓音负荷是一个日益严重的全球性问题，会对个人和经济产生不利影响。我们研究了在一天中有或无嗓音负荷的实际说话情境中的嗓音变化，旨在确定一天中嗓音负荷的客观声学指标。
在一天开始和结束时对呼叫中心操作员（CCO，n = 27）以及年龄和性别匹配的学生（n = 25）进行录音，呼叫中心操作员有嗓音负荷，学生无嗓音负荷。对说话和朗读的嗓音样本分析其基频（F0）、声压级（SPL）及其方差（F0变异系数[F0 CV]，SPL CV）。还评估了生活习惯对嗓音变化的影响。
主要研究结果显示存在交互作用，学生在一天结束时F0升高，而呼叫中心操作员没有。我们认为F0升高是正常嗓音使用一天中的典型现象，而嗓音负荷会干扰这一机制。此外，观察到呼叫中心操作员和对照组有不同的生活方式特征，因为呼叫中心操作员报告有更高的脱水行为发生率（如吸烟、摄入咖啡因）。然而，这种特征与嗓音变化无关。总之，我们认为一天中F0升高可能作为正常嗓音使用的指标。F0未升高可能暗示随后出现的嗓音症状和不适。
