The regulation of voice levels in various room acoustic conditions

Talking-listeners show a systematic variation in their voice level due to changes in the ambient noise level (Lombard effect) and the perception of their own voice. While these effects have to be interpreted in the context of the communication task, some studies point out an additional influence of room acoustics. This pilot study investigates the changes in the voice levels of participants in various room acoustic conditions that were simulated in anechoic conditions. The participants vocalized three vowels at a comfortable level to a manikin at a distance of 5 meters, while listening to the sound of their voice in a simulated room. The results are in some agreement with recent findings that show a negative relationship between the voice level of a talking-listener and the level of the room reflections returned from their own voice (quantified as room gain). However, the overall trend was not uniform across the room acoustic conditions studied here, and current results are discussed in comparison to results from past studies.