# Effect of producing a desired fundamental frequency on measures of vocal hyperfunction in transgender speakers

> **NIH NIH F32** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS) · 2022 · $69,874

## Abstract

Project Summary
Transgender (TG; gender identity does not match sex-assigned at birth) individuals are underserved, targets of
violence, and at higher risk for negative health outcomes. Many TG individuals report that producing a voice
congruent with their gender identity is crucial to affirming their gender identity. There are a variety of gender
affirming services available, but medical interventions, such as surgery or hormones do not do not ensure
satisfaction with vocal gender. Voice modification is often the preferred intervention. One of the primary goals
for voice modification is to alter fundamental frequency (fo) towards sex-normative values, but little is known
about the underlying changes to vocalization required to habituate a desired fo. Research suggests that the
compensatory strategies used by TG individuals to attain a desired fo are characterized by atypical patterns of
vocalization, consistent with vocal hyperfunction (VH). This may explain the high frequency of vocal complaints
in TG speakers. In sum, despite a critical health need in an at-risk population, there is a gap in the rigor of the
prior research, with a lack of evidence identifying changes in the subsystems of voice production between the
habitual and desired fo of TG individuals. Therefore, the goal of this proposal is to evaluate our conceptual
model of voice modification: 1) that altering fo to be more gender congruent will result in less efficient
vocalization, thus increasing signs of VH; and 2) the magnitude of the change in fo required to achieve vocal
gender satisfaction will correspond to the magnitude of change in measures of VH. This observational study
will measure VH in TG adults who are not satisfied with their habitual voice and desire a more gender-
congruent voice.
Only TG individuals who have expressed a desire to change their fo to become more gender congruent will be
recruited for this study. In Aim 1, we will collect respiratory kinematic, acoustic, aerodynamic, laryngoscopic,
self-perceived, and listener auditory-perceptual measures of VH when individuals produce their habitual and
desired fo. This aim will identify the compensatory strategies used by TG individuals to alter their fo. Aim 2 will
examine the relationship between the desired change in vocal gender needed to achieve satisfaction and the
degree of change in measures of VH necessary to produce a desired fo. This aim will identify the relationship
between vocal gender satisfaction and the compensatory strategies used when producing a desired fo.
Together, these aims will provide a roadmap for future evidence-based treatment: clinicians will gain baseline
information about vocal function within the TG population, which is critical for providing evidence-based
assessment and treatment of voice disorders.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10602986
- **Project number:** 1F32DC020627-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS)
- **Principal Investigator:** Nichole Houle
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $69,874
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-01 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10602986

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10602986, Effect of producing a desired fundamental frequency on measures of vocal hyperfunction in transgender speakers (1F32DC020627-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10602986. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*