Asperger's and Voice Registration

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Something I've noticed that some people with Asperger's have a different voice registration (voice tone, quality, timbre, pitch, resonation etc.) compared to other people who have the same accent.

Not all Aspies - far from it - but some Aspies. And I certainly do. While undoubtedly a local accent for where I live, it has such a different pitch, tone, etc.

To describe what it might sound like to some people, I have had people copy or imitate my voice all my life. And many people when imitating me tend to try to make me out to sound "ret*d" when doing so. Like how ignorant people might stereotype someone with cerebral palsy. That is what some people tend to imitate, when imitating me.

After a bad experience today with voice imitation, which offended me very much, I was curious to post this. While some Aspies seem to have different voice qualities I'm probably an extreme example of this and wondered if anyone else has noticed it. Is it a genetic thing just like AS tends to be genetic?

I know I talk pretty fast and with little intonation so I always have to repeat myself and "speak slower". I hate that ;p

btw, Edinburgh accent is one of my favourites!

I don't think my speech has ever been described as strange though it does surprise people how quickly I pick up the accent of the person I'm speaking with and how perfectly I can mimic it as well as use accents from other languages without actually having an accent of my own even though I've lived in many countries and parts of the US growing up that had strong accents.

People think I'm from Africa or Australia, never been to either as I am lacking a passport. Can be pretty offensive when people ask where I was born then say, "you don't have a local accent"
There's a local accent for where I live?

Where I grew up, I never picked up the accent. I grew up in the South, but people there assumed I was born elsewhere. I talk very fast, and when I get emotionally involved in what I'm saying the volume of my voice just rises. That drives my Mom nuts, because she thinks I do it on purpose.

My accent does have a Southern quality to it, but it isn't thick at all.

My voice is pretty normal, though it's a little low for a girl. (Not masculine, just...low.) But I've definitely met Aspies with the atypical voice registration. There is an Aspie in my psychology class (at least, I'm pretty sure he's AS) with an abnormally high pitch and volume. Also my best female friend sounds kind of like an excited robot who realizes there's supposed to be intonation in her voice and so just puts it in randomly. (There is a pattern, it's just that most people don't realize it.)
I also pick up accents extremely fast.

This is how I tend to sound. I don't know if it is considered "normal." I don't think I sound that odd, but..... ehh, we do tend not to see ourselves at times as others see/hear us.

The clip if from a year or so ago, but since I have no mic its all I have. Well... I have others but mostly are of me being purposly stupid/etc.

clcike Me


I'm from the southern united states.

I sort of sound different. Sort of. I didn't always sound like this, but ever since I watched the Teminator with Arnold Schwarzenegger I talk like he does. I wish I was joking. I don't sound like his voice, but I talk with his lisp kinda thing. It sucks.

I get asked "What country did you move here from?" a lot.
My response: "Ummm.....California?"

I actually wrote my Masters paper on prosody in HFA and AS.

For HFA:

more likely to speak slower, louder
more likely to be higher-pitched
more likely to be hypernasal
unusual rhythm (vowel lengths, use of pauses, etc.)
unusual intonation- used a rising intonation more often even when falling intonation would be expected- result is that statements may sound like questions
more likely to sound either monotone (flat intonational contour) or sing-song (excessive variations in pitch and loudness)
unusual use of stress- more likely to stress function words (very unusual pattern), had difficulty with pragmatic stress
higher rate of normal disfluencies (word and phrase repetition and revision)

There is also evidence that individuals with HFA may be more likely to have altered voice quality- generally either hoarse or harsh.


For AS:

studies differed on whether rate was more likely to be fast or slow- some evidence that rate may *appear* fast to listeners, even when slower than average
somewhat more likely to be louder
more likely to be higher-pitched
more likely to be hyponasal
unusual rhythm
unusual intonation (more likely to have rising intonation)
more likely to be sing-song
difficulty with pragmatic stress
higher rate of normal disfluencies

No matter what the aspect of prosody being examined, one almost universal feature of studies which compared the prosody of NT, HFA, and AS individuals was that participants with HFA received the most abnormal ratings, while individuals with AS performed more similarly to NTs.

Intonation actually is very important in accent perception, so it makes sense that someone with unusual intonation may be perceived as having an accent.

I'm actually mistaken for a little girl on the phone alot, but I'm really a 13 year old guy

LostInSpace that's a very interesting subject to write one's thesis about.

most of the things you wrote about AS apply to me althogh I'm not that high-pitched.