Subjective perception of hospital environments with varying dynamic ranges of noise

• Published in: The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America Vol. 148; no. 4; p. 2479
• Main Authors: Bliefnick, Jay, Ryherd, Erica E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.10.2020
• ISSN: 0001-4966; 1520-8524
• DOI: 10.1121/1.5146868

Individuals may perceive noise stimuli differently based on the content of the source, due to factors such as the frequency spectra, level, temporal characteristics, or even the dynamic range of the noise source (the range of sound levels from quietest to loudest in a given sample). Results from earlier phases of this research indicated subject preference for quieter overall environments with a larger dynamic range of noise (based on the analysis of noise Occurrence Rates within real hospital units). In this phase of the study, a subjective perceptual laboratory test was designed and administered to 33 subjects to assess the annoyance perception of noise stimuli with varying dynamic ranges. Simulated hospital environments were utilized as the source stimuli, selected to represent a “typical” hospital unit patient area. It was found that in a controlled setting, subjects perceived noise stimuli with a wider dynamic range and louder peak noise events more negatively than noise sources with more consistent sound levels.