IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v15y2018i11p2392-d178920.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Associations between Positive Health-Related Effects and Soundscapes Perceptual Constructs: A Systematic Review

Author

Listed:
  • Francesco Aletta

    (UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, The Bartlett, University College London (UCL), Central House, 14 Upper Woburn Place, London WC1H 0NN, UK)

  • Tin Oberman

    (UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, The Bartlett, University College London (UCL), Central House, 14 Upper Woburn Place, London WC1H 0NN, UK)

  • Jian Kang

    (UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering, The Bartlett, University College London (UCL), Central House, 14 Upper Woburn Place, London WC1H 0NN, UK)

Abstract

In policy-making and research alike, environmental sounds are often considered only as psychophysical stressors, leading to adverse health effects. The soundscape approach, on the other hand, aims to extend the scope of sound-related research to consider sounds as resources, promoting healthy and supportive environments. The ISO 12913-1 standard defined soundscapes as acoustic environments “as perceived by people, in context.” The aim of this study was assessing associations between positive soundscapes (e.g., pleasant, calm, less annoying) and positive health-related effects (e.g., increased restoration, reduced stress-inducing mechanisms, etc.). Studies collecting data about individual responses to urban acoustic environments, and individual responses on psychophysical well-being were selected, looking at cases where positive effects were observed. The Web of Science, Scopus and PubMed databases were searched for peer-reviewed journal papers published in English between 1 January 1991 and 31 May 2018, with combinations of the keywords “soundscape” and at least one among “health”, “well-being” or “quality of life.” An additional manual search was performed on the reference lists of the retrieved items. Inclusion criteria were: (1) including at least one measure of soundscape dimensions as per the ISO 12913-1 definition; (2) including at least one health-related measure (either physiological or psychological); (3) observing/discussing a “positive” effect of the soundscape on the health-related outcome. The search returned 130 results; after removing duplicates, two authors screened titles and abstracts and selected 19 papers for further analysis. Seven studies were eventually included, with 2783 participants in total. Each study included at least a valence-related soundscape measure. Regarding the health-related measures, four studies included physiological monitoring and the remaining three included self-reported psychological measures. Positive soundscapes were associated with faster stress-recovery processes in laboratory experiments, and better self-reported health conditions in large-scale surveys. Due to the limited number of items and differences in measures across studies, no statistical analysis was performed, and a qualitative approach to data synthesis was sought. Results support the claim that, in contrast with looking at noise only as an environmental stressor, sound perception can act as an enhancer of the human experience in the urban realm, from a health-related point of view.

Suggested Citation

  • Francesco Aletta & Tin Oberman & Jian Kang, 2018. "Associations between Positive Health-Related Effects and Soundscapes Perceptual Constructs: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-15, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:11:p:2392-:d:178920
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/11/2392/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/11/2392/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Francesco Aletta & Jian Kang, 2018. "Towards an Urban Vibrancy Model: A Soundscape Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-18, August.
    2. Fabrizio Minichilli & Francesca Gorini & Elena Ascari & Fabrizio Bianchi & Alessio Coi & Luca Fredianelli & Gaetano Licitra & Federica Manzoli & Lorena Mezzasalma & Liliana Cori, 2018. "Annoyance Judgment and Measurements of Environmental Noise: A Focus on Italian Secondary Schools," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-17, January.
    3. Mariola Śliwińska-Kowalska & Kamil Zaborowski, 2017. "WHO Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region: A Systematic Review on Environmental Noise and Permanent Hearing Loss and Tinnitus," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-19, September.
    4. Francesco Aletta & Jieling Xiao, 2018. "What are the Current Priorities and Challenges for (Urban) Soundscape Research?," Challenges, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-11, March.
    5. Daniel Shepherd & David Welch & Kim N. Dirks & David McBride, 2013. "Do Quiet Areas Afford Greater Health-Related Quality of Life than Noisy Areas?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-20, March.
    6. Alessandro Liberati & Douglas G Altman & Jennifer Tetzlaff & Cynthia Mulrow & Peter C Gøtzsche & John P A Ioannidis & Mike Clarke & P J Devereaux & Jos Kleijnen & David Moher, 2009. "The PRISMA Statement for Reporting Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of Studies That Evaluate Health Care Interventions: Explanation and Elaboration," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(7), pages 1-28, July.
    7. Hester Booi & Frits Van den Berg, 2012. "Quiet Areas and the Need for Quietness in Amsterdam," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-21, March.
    8. Jesper J. Alvarsson & Stefan Wiens & Mats E. Nilsson, 2010. "Stress Recovery during Exposure to Nature Sound and Environmental Noise," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-11, March.
    9. Jieling Xiao & Lisa Lavia & Jian Kang, 2018. "Towards an agile participatory urban soundscape planning framework," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 61(4), pages 677-698, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shan Shu & Hui Ma, 2019. "Restorative Effects of Classroom Soundscapes on Children’s Cognitive Performance," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-15, January.
    2. Shilun Zhang & Xiaolong Zhao & Zixi Zeng & Xuan Qiu, 2019. "The Influence of Audio-Visual Interactions on Psychological Responses of Young People in Urban Green Areas: A Case Study in Two Parks in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-14, May.
    3. Mercede Erfanian & Andrew J. Mitchell & Jian Kang & Francesco Aletta, 2019. "The Psychophysiological Implications of Soundscape: A Systematic Review of Empirical Literature and a Research Agenda," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-20, September.
    4. Daniel Steele & Edda Bild & Cynthia Tarlao & Catherine Guastavino, 2019. "Soundtracking the Public Space: Outcomes of the Musikiosk Soundscape Intervention," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-38, May.
    5. Trudeau, Christopher & King, Nicholas & Guastavino, Catherine, 2023. "Investigating sonic injustice: A review of published research," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 326(C).
    6. Gunnar Cerwén & Frans Mossberg, 2019. "Implementation of Quiet Areas in Sweden," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-18, January.
    7. Jiaxi Yang & Hong Lu, 2022. "Visualizing the Knowledge Domain in Urban Soundscape: A Scientometric Analysis Based on CiteSpace," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-18, October.
    8. Robert Thorne & Daniel Shepherd, 2013. "Quiet as an Environmental Value: A Contrast between Two Legislative Approaches," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, July.
    9. Elizabeth T Cafiero-Fonseca & Andrew Stawasz & Sydney T Johnson & Reiko Sato & David E Bloom, 2017. "The full benefits of adult pneumococcal vaccination: A systematic review," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(10), pages 1-23, October.
    10. Ludoviko Zirimenya & Fatima Mahmud-Ajeigbe & Ruth McQuillan & You Li, 2020. "A systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the association between urogenital schistosomiasis and HIV/AIDS infection," PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(6), pages 1-13, June.
    11. Trang Nguyen & Sara Holton & Thach Tran & Jane Fisher, 2019. "Informal mental health interventions for people with severe mental illness in low and lower middle-income countries: A systematic review of effectiveness," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 65(3), pages 194-206, May.
    12. Natalya Ivanova & Ekaterina Zolotova, 2023. "Landolt Indicator Values in Modern Research: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-22, June.
    13. Su Keng Tan & Wai Keung Leung & Alexander Tin Hong Tang & Roger A Zwahlen, 2017. "Effects of mandibular setback with or without maxillary advancement osteotomies on pharyngeal airways: An overview of systematic reviews," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(10), pages 1-20, October.
    14. Vecchio, Riccardo & Caso, Gerarda & Cembalo, Luigi & Borrello, Massimiliano, 2020. "Is respondents’ inattention in online surveys a major issue for research?," Economia agro-alimentare / Food Economy, Italian Society of Agri-food Economics/Società Italiana di Economia Agro-Alimentare (SIEA), vol. 22(1), March.
    15. Alessandro Concari & Gerjo Kok & Pim Martens, 2020. "A Systematic Literature Review of Concepts and Factors Related to Pro-Environmental Consumer Behaviour in Relation to Waste Management Through an Interdisciplinary Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-50, May.
    16. Damiano Pizzol & Mike Trott & Igor Grabovac & Mario Antunes & Anna Claudia Colangelo & Simona Ippoliti & Cristian Petre Ilie & Anne Carrie & Nicola Veronese & Lee Smith, 2021. "Laparoscopy in Low-Income Countries: 10-Year Experience and Systematic Literature Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(11), pages 1-11, May.
    17. Yehuda Weizman & Oren Tirosh & Jeanie Beh & Franz Konstantin Fuss & Sonja Pedell, 2021. "Gait Assessment Using Wearable Sensor-Based Devices in People Living with Dementia: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-14, December.
    18. Alessandro Margherita & Emanuele Banchi & Alfredo Biffi & Gianluca di Castri & Rocco Morelli, 2022. "Beyond Total Cost Management (TCM) to Systemic Value Management (SVM): Transformational Trends and a Research Manifesto for an Evolving Discipline," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-16, October.
    19. Fabio Magnacca & Riccardo Giannetti, 2024. "Management accounting and new product development: a systematic literature review and future research directions," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 28(2), pages 651-685, June.
    20. Jacob Elnaggar & Fern Tsien & Lucio Miele & Chindo Hicks & Clayton Yates & Melisa Davis, 2019. "An Integrative Genomics Approach for Associating Genetic Susceptibility with the Tumor Immune Microenvironment in Triple Negative Breast Cancer," Biomedical Journal of Scientific & Technical Research, Biomedical Research Network+, LLC, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:11:p:2392-:d:178920. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.