Discipline of Speech Pathology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia.
Discipline of Speech Pathology, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia.
J Voice. 2024 Sep;38(5):1250.e25-1250.e52. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2022.03.001. Epub 2022 Apr 8.
Gender affirming voice training is a service provided by speech language pathologists to members of the trans and gender diverse community. While there is some evidence to support the effectiveness of this training, the evidence base is limited by a lack of prospective studies with large sample sizes. Finally, there has been only limited research investigating the effectiveness of this training when delivered on intensive (compressed) schedules, even though such schedules are used in clinical practice and may have practical benefits such as increasing service access for this vulnerable population.
This study aimed to investigate and compare the effectiveness gender affirming voice training among 34 trans individuals presumed male at birth aiming to develop a perceptually feminine/female-sounding voice. Among these 34 participants, 17 received their training on a traditional schedule (one 45-minute session per week over 12 weeks) and 17 on an intensive scheduled (three 45-minute sessions per week over 4 weeks). Building on a previous mixed methodological study which indicated that these two training groups were equally satisfied with training outcomes, the current study utilised a wide range of self-report, acoustic, and auditory-perceptual outcome measures (including self-ratings and listener-ratings of voice) to investigate training effectiveness.
Results from this study indicated that both training programs were similarly effective, producing positive statistically significant change among participants on a range of outcome measures. Participants in both groups demonstrated significant auditory-perceptual and acoustic voice change and reported increased satisfaction with voice, increased congruence between gender identity and expression, and a reduction in the negative impact of voice concerns on everyday life. However, as has been the case in past studies, training was not sufficient for all participants to achieve their goal of developing a consistently feminine/female-sounding voice.
This study provides evidence to suggest that gender affirming voice training for transfeminine clients may be similarly effective whether delivered intensively or traditionally. This study provides evidence to support the practice of using a wide range of outcome measures to gain holistic insight into client progress in gender affirming voice training programs.
性别肯定性嗓音训练是言语语言病理学家为跨性别和性别多样化群体成员提供的一项服务。虽然有一些证据支持这种训练的有效性，但由于缺乏前瞻性研究和大样本量，证据基础有限。此外，尽管这种训练计划在临床实践中被使用，并且可能具有增加服务获取的实际好处，例如为这个弱势群体增加服务获取，但对于这种训练在密集（压缩）计划下的有效性的研究仍然非常有限。
本研究旨在调查和比较 34 名被认为是男性的跨性别个体的性别肯定性嗓音训练效果，这些个体旨在发展出可感知的女性/女性化的嗓音。在这 34 名参与者中，有 17 名接受传统计划（每周一次 45 分钟的课程，共 12 周），17 名接受强化计划（每周三次 45 分钟的课程，共 4 周）。在先前的一项混合方法研究的基础上，该研究表明这两个训练组对训练结果同样满意，本研究利用了广泛的自我报告、声学和听觉感知结果测量（包括自我评估和听众对声音的评估）来研究训练效果。
本研究结果表明，两种训练方案同样有效，在一系列结果测量中，参与者都取得了积极的统计学显著变化。两组参与者都表现出明显的听觉感知和声学嗓音变化，并报告说对嗓音的满意度增加，性别认同和表达的一致性增加，以及嗓音问题对日常生活的负面影响减少。然而，就像过去的研究一样，训练对所有参与者来说都不足以实现他们发展出一致的女性/女性化嗓音的目标。
本研究提供了证据表明，对于跨女性化客户的性别肯定性嗓音训练，无论是密集型还是传统型，都可能同样有效。本研究为使用广泛的结果测量来全面了解客户在性别肯定性嗓音训练计划中的进展提供了证据支持。
