Why are female voices always used in public announcements?

"The female voice is actually more complex than the male voice, due to differences in the size and shape of the vocal cords and larynx between women and men, and also due to women having greater natural `melody´ in their voices.. This causes a more complex range of sound frequencies than in a male voice."

"When a man hears a female voice the auditory section of his brain is activated, which analyses the different sounds in order to `read´ the voice and determine the auditory face."

"When men hear a male voice the part of the brain that processes the information is towards the back of the brain and is colloquially known as the `mind´s eye´. This is the part of the brain where people compare their experiences to themselves, so the man is comparing his own voice to the new voice to determine gender."

"This research could also explain why female voices are considered to be clearer then male voices. This could be linked to the fact that female voices are interpreted in the auditory part of the brain, and are therefore more easily decoded."

Well, you can make your own minds up on which sounds best in all kinds of public announcements, concentrating on the trains here - in my opinion it's even stevens:

On the West Highland train line in the Highlands of north western Scotland - a nicely accented female Scottish voice:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOlH_hUh98c&feature=related

Now down to the centre of england - to Brummieland:

Birmingham New Street train station, Birmingham, England

One of the busiest train stations in the UK as it is a focal point on the compass to all parts of the UK owing to its central location.

I am advised that all announcements there are in a male voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epsDZnCLhFY&feature=related

South now to London:

London Victoria train station - Southern region

A male announcer - clear, sharp and easy to hear voice, but even so - with all the information about all the various trains to various destinations I reckon it could lead to confusion among some passengers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSQ-N4TCjhg&feature=related

Back north and home to Scotland again:

On board a Scot Rail train in Scotland out of Glasgow Central train station heading north - a female announcer this time - again a clear voice rattling out a long list of placenames where the train will stop, including Tynedrum where I and my fellow scouts camped out for the night during a sort of "adventure weekend" when I was 15.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmnWx-8erqk&feature=related

Back down to England again -

A nice clear female voice at a suburban train station on British Rail Southern region announcing the next train bound for London Waterloo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Z7r17-vrQE&feature=related


And another female announcer who I strongly suspect is of Caribbean origin.......loud and clear (sort of)......on a train from London Stansted International airport heading for London Liverpool Street train station:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeQlB7eAwQg&feature=related

And now let's go bi-lingual....and back to a male voice again so let's not say all the announcements are not bisexual.....on board a Eurostar train from Paris Gare de Nord train station to London St Pancras International train station......on the French side of the Chunnel the announcements are always French first, then English, and once out of the Chunnel on the UK side the languages are reversed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25EyW6RaUpA

I work in a call center it's simple physics. Man's voices are easily muffled. I have to talk in a high effeminate voice to be understood well on a headset. However doing that at a public announcement and my voice sounds unsincere and forced. Because it is, it's that simple

I've never personally been on Liverpool Street train station in London (located in the real City of London itself, as opposed to the rest of Metropolitan Greater London).......Liverpool Street is the main terminus train station for destinations in Eastern England and East Anglia - places like Cambridge, Colchester, Chelmsford, Ipswich, Stowmarket, Diss, Norwich, Great Yarmouth, Ely, Wisbech, Lowestoft and King's Lynn, and a whole host of other stations across the railway network in that region of England.

Anyway, it seems that they have a female voice doing the announcing there, at least in this YT clip they have, but she obviously had to contend with another lot of commuters strutting their stuff on the main concourse of the station while waiting for they trains to depart and having her public address system rudely interrupted, like the bloke over in Antwerp, Belgium. It sure passes the time. I must remember to start off something like this the next time I'm on Edinburgh Waverley train station or the one at King's Cross in London waiting for my train. I like the way some old biddies join in the fun...good for them!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ3d3KigPQM&feature=related

It is, of course, Gare du Nord train station in Paris and not as I stated previously. Stupid mistake on my part and I have only just noticed it.

Bonsoir.

I've noticed this too. My theory is that those who decide these things think that a female voice will be more appealing (softer, more melodic, warmer, clearer, whatever). What they don't take into account is that everyone else (yeah, except in Scotland and Tibet) has got the same daft notion. When just about every public announcement is in a female voice (albeit a robotic female voice) it starts grating on the nerves.

On the Los Angeles Metro, the English language announcements are in a male voice, while the Spanish language announcements are in a female voice. I don't know if that's supposed to signify anything, but I find the male voice more resonant and calming. The female voice sounds like my mother lecturing me.