Sex Differences,Extraversion and Neuroticism in Relation to Speech Rate During the Expression of Emotion

Abstract

It has been suggested that changes in speech rate may reflect changes in drive or arousal. The experiment was designed to examine the relation between extraversion, neuroticism and sex of subjects and speech rate changes when the subjects expressed anger and pleasure while counting aloud. 48 male and female subjects completed the Eysenck Personality Inventory and then performed the counting task after practice. Analysis indicated that although there were no significant effects for extraversion and neuroticism, male subjects showed a significantly lower rate of change than did females when expressing anger. The results are discussed in relation to learned stereotypes of emotions and drive theories of speech rate change.

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