article Open Access (hybrid) EN 2021-11-15

The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems

Aleksandra Ćwiek, Susanne Fuchs, Christoph Draxler, Eva Liina Asu, Dan Dediu, Katri Hiovain, Shigeto Kawahara, Sofia Koutalidis, Manfred Krifka, Pärtel Lippus, Gary Lupyan, Grace E. Oh, Jing Paul, Caterina Petrone, Rachid Ridouane, Sabine Reiter, Nathalie Schümchen, Ádám Szalontai, Özlem Ünal–Logacev, Jochen Zeller, Marcus Perlman, Bodo Winter

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, Vol. 377, Issue 1841, pp. 20200390–20200390 (2021)

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Leibniz Institute for the German Language, Leibniz-Centre General Linguistics, Berlin Heart (Germany), Keio University, Laboratoire de Phonétique et Phonologie, Dassault Systèmes (Germany), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Institute of the Estonian Language, University of Tartu, Université Lumière Lyon 2, Laboratoire Dynamique du Langage, Communauté urbaine de Lyon, Université Paris Lumières, University of Helsinki, Digital Science (United States), 358 (Finland), Institute of Linguistic Studies, Mita Hospital, Bielefeld University, Hochschule Bielefeld, Institute for Literary Studies, Institute of Linguistics, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison Group (United States), Institute of Psychology, Konkuk University, Seoul Medical Center, Konkuk University Medical Center, Institute for Literature, Instituto de Lengua Literatura y Antropología, Asian University, Decatur Memorial Hospital, Agnes Scott College, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Aix-Marseille Université, Laboratoire Parole et Langage, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, Centro Universitário Curitiba, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Universidade Federal do Pará, University of Southern Denmark, Odense Municipality, Language Science (South Korea), Budapest University of Economics and Business, ELTE Research Centre for Linguistics, Haemonetics (United States), Neuronetics (United States), Istanbul Medipol University, Istanbul University, Center for Applied Linguistics, Durban University of Technology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Birmingham City University, University College Birmingham, University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Birmingham

DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0390 PMID: 34775818

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Abstract

Abstract The bouba/kiki effect—the association of the nonce word bouba with a round shape and kiki with a spiky shape—is a type of correspondence between speech sounds and visual properties with potentially deep implications for the evolution of spoken language. However, there is debate over the robustness of the effect across cultures and the influence of orthography. We report an online experiment that tested the bouba/kiki effect across speakers of 25 languages representing nine language families and 10 writing systems. Overall, we found strong evidence for the effect across languages, with bouba eliciting more congruent responses than kiki. Participants who spoke languages with Roman scripts were only marginally more likely to show the effect, and analysis of the orthographic shape of the words in different scripts showed that the effect was no stronger for scripts that use rounder forms for bouba and spikier forms for kiki. These results confirm that the bouba/kiki phenomenon is rooted in crossmodal correspondence between aspects of the voice and visual shape, largely independent of orthography. They provide the strongest demonstration to date that the bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Voice modulation: from origin and mechanism to social impact (Part II)’.

Topics

Language, Metaphor, and Cognition 0.99 Action Observation and Synchronization 0.99 Neuroscience and Music Perception 0.99

Field: Psychology · Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Keywords

Psychology

MeSH Terms

Data CollectionData CollectionData CollectionData CollectionHumansHumansHumansHumans

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Quality Education (0.85)

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Citations by Year

2026	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021
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APA

Aleksandra Ćwiek, Susanne Fuchs, Christoph Draxler, Eva Liina Asu, Dan Dediu, Katri Hiovain, Shigeto Kawahara, Sofia Koutalidis, Manfred Krifka, Pärtel Lippus, Gary Lupyan, Grace E. Oh, Jing Paul, Caterina Petrone, Rachid Ridouane, Sabine Reiter, Nathalie Schümchen, Ádám Szalontai, Özlem Ünal–Logacev, Jochen Zeller, Marcus Perlman, Bodo Winter (2021). The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, 377(1841), 20200390–20200390. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0390

MLA

Aleksandra Ćwiek, et al. "The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, vol. 377, no. 1841, 2021, pp. 20200390–20200390. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0390

Chicago

Aleksandra Ćwiek, Susanne Fuchs, Christoph Draxler, Eva Liina Asu, Dan Dediu, Katri Hiovain, Shigeto Kawahara, Sofia Koutalidis, Manfred Krifka, Pärtel Lippus, Gary Lupyan, Grace E. Oh, Jing Paul, Caterina Petrone, Rachid Ridouane, Sabine Reiter, Nathalie Schümchen, Ádám Szalontai, Özlem Ünal–Logacev, Jochen Zeller, Marcus Perlman, Bodo Winter. "The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences 377, no. 1841 (2021): 20200390–20200390. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2020.0390

BibTeX

@article{ćwiek2021,
  title = { The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems },
  author = { Aleksandra Ćwiek and Susanne Fuchs and Christoph Draxler and Eva Liina Asu and Dan Dediu and Katri Hiovain and Shigeto Kawahara and Sofia Koutalidis and Manfred Krifka and Pärtel Lippus and Gary Lupyan and Grace E. Oh and Jing Paul and Caterina Petrone and Rachid Ridouane and Sabine Reiter and Nathalie Schümchen and Ádám Szalontai and Özlem Ünal–Logacev and Jochen Zeller and Marcus Perlman and Bodo Winter },
  journal = { Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences },
  year = { 2021 },
  volume = { 377 },
  number = { 1841 },
  pages = { 20200390--20200390 },
  doi = { 10.1098/rstb.2020.0390 }
}

RIS

TY  - JOUR
TI  - The bouba/kiki effect is robust across cultures and writing systems
AU  - Aleksandra Ćwiek
AU  - Susanne Fuchs
AU  - Christoph Draxler
AU  - Eva Liina Asu
AU  - Dan Dediu
AU  - Katri Hiovain
AU  - Shigeto Kawahara
AU  - Sofia Koutalidis
AU  - Manfred Krifka
AU  - Pärtel Lippus
AU  - Gary Lupyan
AU  - Grace E. Oh
AU  - Jing Paul
AU  - Caterina Petrone
AU  - Rachid Ridouane
AU  - Sabine Reiter
AU  - Nathalie Schümchen
AU  - Ádám Szalontai
AU  - Özlem Ünal–Logacev
AU  - Jochen Zeller
AU  - Marcus Perlman
AU  - Bodo Winter
JO  - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences
PY  - 2021
VL  - 377
IS  - 1841
SP  - 20200390
EP  - 20200390
DO  - 10.1098/rstb.2020.0390
ER  -

169

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15.20

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99%

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112

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