Diagnosis of emotional state using pitch analysis and the SUD: An exploratory feasibility study

This study examined the usefulness of voice-analysis for therapy diagnosis . The variability of the fundamental frequency of the voice (SD F0) was used as an indirect measure of physiological arousal (e.g., Scherer, 1979) reflecting the intensity of emotions. The Subjective Unit of Distress (SUD) (Wolpe, 1958) was used to assess (1) the success of the experimental manipulation of anxiety, (2) the subjective evaluation of the experienced emotions, and (3) the validity of the SD F0 as a stress-measure. Twenty-five female participants suffering from a Panic Disorder with Agoraphobia performed an experiment consisting of two blocks in which they relived an experience from the past or read a story aloud . Both blocks consisted of an anxiety triggering and a neutral condition, in which SD F0 and SUD were regularly measured. Accompanying changes in SUD and SD F0 across blocks indicated that the experimental manipulation of stress was successful. As expected, increases in SUD were accompanied by de creases in SD F0, validating the SD F0 as a stress-measure. The SD F0 (in combination with the SUD) appears to be a useful and easy to integrate semi-automatized diagnostic tool for measuring the intensity of emotions in clients with psychological disorders. Attempts should be made to integrate voice-analysis in present models of therapy diagnosis (e.g., Tryon, 1998).