It’s Personal: How Personality Impacts Perception and Symptoms of Voice Problems
Thursday 10th April 2025, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM (London Time)
For over 25 years, researchers have investigated the intersection of personality traits and voice disorders, uncovering a predictive relationship between a person’s personality and their likelihood of experiencing certain voice issues. For instance, extraverts, who are naturally more talkative, often face problems like inflammation or nodules due to high vocal use. However, recent research aims to dig deeper, exploring whether there's more to this story than just "extraverts talk a lot, so they have voice problems."
This course takes you on an intriguing journey into the relationship between personality traits and voice fatigue, shedding light on how specific personality characteristics can predict the likelihood of experiencing voice disorders. Students will dive into cutting-edge research examining the correlation between the Big Five Personality traits—Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, and Openness—and various voice conditions.
Throughout the course, learners will gain a comprehensive understanding of how personality traits, especially extraversion, are linked to voice problems such as inflammation and nodules. They will explore current perspectives on personality science and the behaviours that underlie voice problems, providing a deeper insight into this complex relationship.
Join us to uncover the nuances of how our personalities can influence our vocal health and discover the latest findings that could revolutionize the way we understand and manage voice disorders.
🏷️ Price £20 (UK VAT inclusive)
🎥 Recording automatically sent to all who book (even if you cannot attend live)
▶️ Rewatch as many times as you like
📜 Certificate of attendance available
Lynn Maxfield
Lynn Maxfield is the director of the Utah Center for Vocology at the University of Utah where, in addition to research activities, he coordinates and teaches at the Summer Vocology Institute.
Sorry, this is an archived short course...
We have plenty of upcoming short courses coming soon. See details of some of them below or look at the full list of short courses.
Wednesday 29th October 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
A neurodiversity-affirmative approach to the voice!
Hilary Davies
In recent years, the music therapy profession has begun to consider the application of the neurodiversity paradigm to music therapy practice, in particular In relation to autism, and an increasing amount of literature embracing this perspective has been published. This lecture, delivered from a lived experience perspective, will provide an explanation of the key concepts around neurodiversity - particular consideration will be given to the use of the voice, both one's own but also to the neurodivergent individual’s particular ways of using language, song and vocal sounds.
Thursday 30th October 2025
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
(London Time)
Creative Articulation
Annie Morrison
Most of us have little idea of HOW we speak, or what to do to make speech more muscular. Join Annie Morrison (creator of the 'Morrison Bone Prop') for this two hour session on Creative Articulation, a holistic and haptic approach to the touchings and feelings of the articulators in the dance of speech. Seeing articulation as a purely mechanical skill is detrimental to an actor's process: it is crucial to understand what language is doing on a biological level.
Tuesday 4th November 2025
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
(London Time)
The Belt Voice in R&B/Soul Singing: Vocal Characteristics & Physiology
Dr Matt Allen
The belt’s got soul! This course offers a deep dive into the vocal artistry and biomechanics of R&B/soul singing, with a particular focus on the belt voice—a powerful and expressive vocal technique central to the genre. Drawing from over 80 years of stylistic evolution, the course explores how R&B/soul singing has shaped contemporary commercial music and investigates the unique vocal traits that define its sound.