Promoting Healthy and Supportive Acoustic Environments: Going beyond the Quietness

• Other Authors: Aletta, Francesco (Editor), Kang, Jian (Editor)
• Format: Electronic Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland MDPI - Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2020
• Subjects: Humanities; Social interaction; green space; greenness; noise exposure; noise perception; soundscape; environmental sounds; quietness; vibrancy; acoustic environments; urban sound planning; environmental noise; public health; well-being; quality of life; restoration; quiet areas; noise abatement; soundscape design; landscape planning; urban planning; general plan; sustainability; acoustic comfort; inner yard acoustics; soundscape pleasantness; sound perception; virtual room acoustics; virtual audio; quality of experience; irrelevant speech noise; noise annoyance; productivity; mental health; cross-sectional survey; open-plan offices; shared offices; occupants' behavior; restorative effect; children's cognitive performance; classroom soundscape; sustained attention; short-term memory; urban environments; semiosis model; square dancing; public spaces; acoustic territory; enjoyment; appropriateness; psychological restoration; emotions; acoustic environment; urban open public spaces; urban design; stress; experiment; virtual reality; bird song; noise; perceived restoration; quiet area; urban park; urban square; audio-visual interaction; audio-visual walk; young people's psychological response; orthogonal analysis; urban parks; Musikiosk; soundscape intervention; democratic soundscape installation; quality of the urban public experience; mixed methods study; pocket park; physiology; perceptual attributes; auditory; sonic experience; tranquillity; garden therapy; landscape architecture; Japanese gardens; autoethnography; soundscape actions; n/a
• Online Access: DOAB: download the publication; DOAB: description of the publication

This book gathers 14 original contributions published in an IJERPH Special Issue that deal with the perception of environmental sounds and how such sounds are likely to affect human quality of life and well-being and the experience of a place. The research focus over the years has been gradually shifting from treating sound simply as "noise" and something that cities should get rid of to a potential "resource" to promote and support community life in public spaces. Three main topics or "needs" to be addressed by researchers and practitioners emerged from this Special Issue: (1) the need to re-think "quietness" in cities as something that goes beyond the mere "pursuit of silence", (2) the need to integrate additional contextual factors in the characterization and management of urban acoustic environments for public health, and (3) the need to consider the acoustic quality of indoor spaces as opposed to an outdoor-only perspective. The contributions collected in this book will hopefully trigger new questions and inform the agenda of future researchers and practitioners in the environmental acoustics domain.