You walk into an interview with a polished resume, strong answers, and genuine enthusiasm for the role. You leave feeling confident. The rejection email arrives a week later with no real explanation.
What went wrong? It might have been something you never thought to consider: the sound of your voice.
The Research
In 2014, researchers at Duke University and the University of Miami ran an experiment to measure how vocal fry affects hiring decisions. Vocal fry is that low, creaky vibration at the end of sentences. Think of the Kardashians, or the way many young professionals trail off with a gravelly rumble.
The researchers recorded speakers saying the exact same phrase, "Thank you for considering me for this opportunity," in two different ways: once with a normal voice and once with vocal fry. They then played these recordings for 800 participants and asked them to rate each speaker on a range of traits including competence, education, trustworthiness, and hirability.
The results were unambiguous. Speakers using vocal fry were rated significantly lower across all four dimensions. Participants perceived them as less educated, less competent, less trustworthy, and critically, less hirable. These were not subtle differences in a few edge cases. The pattern held consistently across the large sample.
But the most troubling finding involved gender. While both male and female speakers faced a vocal fry penalty, women paid a much steeper price. The negative impact on hirability ratings was significantly greater for female speakers using vocal fry than for male speakers using the exact same voice pattern.
Why This Happens
Vocal fry occurs when breath support drops at the end of a sentence. As airflow decreases, the vocal cords flutter irregularly instead of vibrating smoothly. This produces that characteristic low, popping sound. Linguistically, it is a neutral vocal register. Many people slip into vocal fry naturally when relaxed or finishing a thought.
The problem is that listeners do not perceive it as neutral. Research suggests vocal fry triggers a credibility penalty because it conflicts with vocal patterns associated with confidence and authority. A voice that trails off into a creaky rumble can signal, unconsciously to listeners, that the speaker is uncertain, disengaged, or lacking energy.
Practical Applications
Vocal fry is often a breath support issue, not a personality trait. Here is how to address it:
1. Maintain Breath Support Through Sentence Endings
Vocal fry typically happens when you run out of air. Practice taking slightly deeper breaths and keeping steady airflow until you have completely finished your thought. The goal is not to speak louder, just to sustain the tone through the final words.
2. Record Yourself and Listen for Patterns
Most people do not realize they use vocal fry until they hear it. Record a mock interview or casual conversation and pay attention to how your sentences end. Are you trailing off with a creak, or finishing with clear tone? Listening back gives you objective data on your actual patterns.
3. Slow Down at Important Statement Endings
Rushing through sentence endings often leads to breath collapse and vocal fry. Giving yourself an extra beat allows you to finish with full voice, which sounds more confident and deliberate. This is especially important for key points you want to land with impact.
4. Practice High-Stakes Phrases Specifically
Common interview phrases like "Thank you for considering me" or "I am excited about this opportunity" are particularly prone to vocal fry because they often come at transition points where speakers relax. Practice these phrases specifically to build muscle memory for strong endings.
The Bottom Line
Your qualifications matter. Your preparation matters. But so does how you sound. The vocal fry penalty is real, measurable, and disproportionately affects women in hiring contexts. This is not about conforming to arbitrary standards. It is about understanding that voice quality influences how people perceive competence and trustworthiness, whether we like it or not. Awareness is the first step toward making conscious choices about how you want to be heard.
Put This Into Practice
Understanding the vocal fry penalty is one thing. Hearing it in your own voice is another.