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Description
This study investigated crossmodal correspondences across cultures between acoustic properties of user interface sounds and five sensations: finish, weight, opacity, texture and physical state. Correspondences between these sensations and mean fundamental frequency (f0), melodic and loudness contour, and dissonance in 30 sounds were compared across three countries: France, China, and the USA. Results showed links between mean f0 and three sensations, finish, weight and opacity, in France and the USA but not China. Similarly, many links were shown between sensations and melodic and loudness contour and dissonance for France and the USA, whereas correspondences were rarer for China. Potential mechanisms for this cross-cultural difference include linguistic and cultural associations. These crossmodal associations (where they exist) have important implications for product sound design.