Sixty undergraduate males participated in an experiment with a 2 × 3 factorial design involving two levels of density and three levels of noise to demonstrate effects of the independent variables (density, noise) on cognitive task performance and affect. As predicted, it was found that crowding and noise lead to deterioration of subject's performance on cognitively complex tasks but not on simple (cognitive) task. Also, density and noise generated a negative feeling in the subjects. Significant two‐way interaction for complex task, showed variation in performance of Ss of high and low density under low and high noise conditions. In addition, crowded‐condition subjects reported more dissatisfaction about their performance and evaluated the presence of the experimenter as significantly less pleasant than their noncrowded‐condition counterparts.
Sixty male and 60 female subjects previously classified as high and low on a residential crowding experience scale participated in an experiment involving a 2 × 3 × 2 × 2 (density, noise, crowding experience, gender) factorial design. The research was undertaken primarily to determine the influence of previous residential crowding experience as tapped by the Crowding Experience Scale (CES) on reactivity to the environmental stressors of noise and crowding. The results indicated that exposure to environmental stressors produced a deleterious effect on complex task performance and generated negative affect in the respondents. Interestingly, respondents who had reported high levels of experience with crowding showed relatively more crowding tolerance by performing significantly better on cognitively complex tasks (complex anagrams and story comprehension) and exhibiting more positive affect in conditions of high density as compared to low experience of crowding respondents. Reactions to noise were not influenced by crowding experience. Thus, prior experience of crowding as measured by the CES appears to influence reactivity to density in other settings.
Army families living in apartments and mobile homes near a large Army base were assessed for feelings about their housing, morale, marital harmony, health, and well‐being. Reactions to mobile homes and apartments were similar. Higher quality housing was associated with positive housing ratings but not with more favorable morale, harmony, health, or well‐being. The experience of housing problems is related to negative housing evaluation, while the experience of Army lifestyle problems is related to lowered morale, harmony, health, and well‐being. Results were generally similar for enlisted men and their spouses.
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