Naslov
Associations between soundscape experience and self-reported wellbeing in open public urban spaces: a field study

Autori
Aletta, Francesco ; Oberman, Tin ; Mitchell, Andrew ; Erfanian, Mercede ; Lionello, Matteo ; Kachlicka, Magdalena ; Kang, Jian

Izvornik
The Lancet (0140-6736) 394 (2019); 17-17

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Radovi u časopisima, članak, znanstveni

Ključne riječi
soundscape, health and wellbeing

Sažetak
Background Previous studies, mainly conducted in laboratory experiments, showed there are associations between the perception of acoustic environments (ie, soundscapes, as per the International Organization for Standardization [ISO] 12913-1:2014 definition) and measures of individual health and wellbeing. The aim of this study was to confirm these findings in more ecologically realistic settings, by exploring associations between soundscapes and wellbeing via a questionnaire campaign. Methods Study design We performed a socioacoustic field survey with adult volunteers from members of the public who we approached across seven public spaces in London (UK), two in Venice (Italy), and two in Granada (Spain), including parks, urban squares, and commercial streets. Questionnaires gathered individual data about self-reported soundscape experience and wellbeing. Analysis The soundscape assessment protocol relied on the ISO/TS 12913-2:2018, whereas wellbeing measures were based on the WHO- five well-being index (WHO-5). A k-means cluster analysis was performed on the scores of the 15-item soundscape questionnaires, resulting in a two- group stratification of the sample into positive and negative soundscape experiences. The primary outcomes were WHO-5 scores and soundscape experience cluster membership. Findings WHO-5 scores were computed for 825 (97%) of 849 surveyed participants following WHO instructions. An independent- samples t test showed statistically significant differences in WHO-5 scores between the groups who had a positive (n=445) or negative (n=380) soundscape experience ; t(823)=–3·578 ; p<0·001. The positive group had higher WHO-5 scores (mean 63·5 [SD19·1]) than the negative group (mean 58·7 [18·9]). Interpretation To the best of our knowledge, this is the first field study to explore associations between (perceived) soundscapes and self-reported measures of wellbeing. Although no causal effects can be established at this stage, results suggest that people with higher levels of wellbeing are more likely to report positive soundscapes, whereas people with lower levels of wellbeing might have a more negative attitude towards the acoustic environments. Self-reported data should be interpreted with caution: to contain any consequent bias, future studies might consider non-participatory methods of investigation and look at temporal effects in longitudinal designs. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of taking into account personal traits when characterising the quality of urban soundscapes and complementing conventional assessments by decibel-related metrics. Funding European Research Council Advanced Grant (no 740696) on Soundscape Indices.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Arhitektura i urbanizam, Interdisciplinarne tehničke znanosti, Javno zdravstvo i zdravstvena zaštita

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