I think the effect is mostly from motorboat traffic, but is likely to be exaggerated by shoreline shapes.
example : Lake Conroe, in East Texas - a "constant level" lake, i.e. not a reservoir where levels are adjusted dramatically for agricultural needs. In many of the coves or arms of the lakes, the lakefront homeowners have built vertical walls in front of their property, to prevent erosion, have flat lawns, whatever. The effect is remarkable - by 10am, there are standing waves in every cove & arm of the lake, regardless of the wind. It only takes a small amount of boat traffic to start it, and it seems to continue all day.

By contrast, Lake Travis is a reservoir with hugely varying lake levels. But, even when one shoreline is steep, the other is usually a gradual entry. Even on busy motor boat traffic days, once the wakes stop, the waves settle down, too.