Reducing physical noise does not automatically improve perceived urban comfort
Evidence
The soundscape in an urban space is really a complex system that has relationships with physical, psychological, and social factors. The urban soundscape represents a complex system in which environmental factors are shared with psychological, social, and cultural attributes of the living societies. Physical noise has been for long time an important component of the quality of the urban spaces, but a reduction of the noise does not automatically create better comfort, as recently argued by Kang and Zhang (2010). — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 1047
Categorization
- XREF: Directly backs the reader’s recurring thread that objective sonic dose must be separated from subjective quality — matches the already-captured Chapter 2 claim. — connects to: Noise-level reduction alone often fails to improve sonic environments perceived as unpleasant. — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology: Principles,…, 71; Roughly a fifth of urban populations may be noise-sensitive — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology: Principles,…, 941; Decibel-based annoyance measurement fails to capture urban sonic quality — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology: Principles,…, 949 (+13 more)
- recurring: this claim recurs 2 times within its source
Broader Connections
- Reducing background noise improves both safety and perceived sound quality
#complicates(0.85) - Noise is fundamentally subjective rather than an objective property of sound
#corroborates(0.80) — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 614 - Cultural background outweighs sound energy in perceived noise
#expands(0.75) — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 1537 - Visitor sensitivity to aircraft noise varies enormously with visit context and expectations
#qualifies(0.75) — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 2329 - Individual differences in noise annoyance stem from noise sensitivity
#complicates(0.72) — Almo Farina, Soundscape Ecology, 1534 - Sharpness, roughness, and narrowband temporal components increase noise annoyance
#complicates(0.72) — Ville Pulkki, Matti Karjalainen, Communication Acoustics- An…, 2491 - Annoyance and disturbance are distinct components of perceived noise quality
#expands(0.72)