Effects of Gender and Semantics on Auditory Displays: An Exploratory Study on User Interface Design

Applying speech-based sounds in User Interfaces presents several advantages compared to other stimuli. Regarding the auditory displays, most part of previous research analyses Pleasure, Commandingness and Urgency in a single situation with high level of designed urgency. Considering this gap, the present study aimed to analyse the aforementioned factors in multiple situations with different levels of designed urgency, focusing also on the effects of gender and Semantics. Through a survey, 28 participants rated each factor on eight messages, spoken by a male and female Agent, using declarative and imperative wording. Results revealed that the participants’ and Agent’s gender influence the perceptions according to the situation’s level of designed urgency. The female Agent had a higher Pleasure rating, what replicates previous findings, but also a higher score for Urgency rating, contradicting the literature. Regarding the Semantics, results showed that despite the level of designed urgency of the situation the imperative wording led to a higher score for Commandingness and Urgency.