A method for automatic affective state inference from speech signals and an automated affective state interference system are disclosed. In an embodiment the method includes capturing speech signals of a target speaker, extracting one or more acoustic voice parameters from the captured speech signals, calibrating voice markers on basis of the one or more acoustic voice parameters that have been extracted from the speech signals of the target speaker, one or more speaker-inherent reference parameters of the target speaker and one or more inter-speaker reference parameters of a sample of reference speakers, applying at least one set of prediction rules that are based on an appraisal criteria to the calibrated voice markers for inferring two or more appraisal criteria scores relating to appraisal of affect-eliciting events with which the target speaker is confronted and assigning one or more affective state terms to the two or more appraisal criteria scores.