An Experimental Study on the Influence of Soundscapes on People’s Behaviour in an Open Public Space

Abstract

Several studies have investigated how environmental sounds and music can modulate people's behaviours, particularly in marketing research. However, there are relatively few examples of research about such relationships with a focus on the management of urban public spaces. The current study investigated an open public space used mainly as a pedestrian crossing to analyse the relationship between the audio stimuli and peoples' behaviours. An experiment relying on covert behavioural observation was performed. During the experiment, three different music stimuli and a control condition (i.e., no music) were reproduced in order to find out firstly whether music compared to no music could elicit an increase in the number of people stopping in the investigated area, and secondly whether music is associated with a longer duration of stay for those who stop. Results showed that the presence of music had no effect on the number of people stopping in the area, but it had a statistically significant effect on the duration of stay for those who stopped. The above findings support the idea that people felt more invited to stay in the area with music rather than with no music, and suggest that the acoustical manipulation of the existing sound environment could provide soundscape strategies capable of promoting social cohesion in public spaces.

Social cohesion revisited: a new definition and how to characterize it

“…Aletta investigates an open public space used mainly as a pedestrian crossing to analyse the relationship between the audio stimuli and peoples' behaviours (Aletta et al 2016). The results support the idea that the acoustical manipulation of the existing sound environment could provide soundscape strategies capable of promoting social cohesion in public spaces.…”

Analysis of Field Data to Describe the Effect of Context (Acoustic and Non-Acoustic Factors) on Urban Soundscapes

“…In recent years, the importance of context factors has been one of the most widely-discussed issues in the soundscape approach [1,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Many studies conclude that elements related to the visual dimension, safety or cleanness, among others, are more relevant in the overall environmental experience of a place than acoustic parameters, particularly when considering soundscape and quietness.…”

“…Many studies conclude that elements related to the visual dimension, safety or cleanness, among others, are more relevant in the overall environmental experience of a place than acoustic parameters, particularly when considering soundscape and quietness. There are many references that highlight the relevance of context factors (e.g., landscape [9][10][11]14,15], geography and thermal conditions [16], maintenance, and cleanness [12]), and person-or community-related features such as culture and personal characteristics) in the soundscape approach, since these items have a remarkable influence on the perception process [1,17,18]. In addition, there is increasing evidence that the congruence between the different elements of a place is important in human preference [19], as well as how they influence the expectation of a place [20].…”

Public Space Users’ Soundscape Evaluations in Relation to Their Activities. An Amsterdam-Based Study

“…Field observation (Aletta et al, 2016b; Lavia et al, 2016) has been increasingly integrated in urban soundscape research, particularly to document the effects of certain acoustic interventions on the ways in which people engage with and act in their public spaces 3 . Documenting public space use is crucial for on-site studies, as it shows how users relate to and behave in their physical (built) environments and how this relationship can further connect with their soundscape evaluations.…”

“…While the role of users’ activities as a variable potentially influencing their relationship with their soundscapes has been suggested before (Dubois, 2000; Lercher and Schulte-Fortkamp, 2003), the effective and explicit integration of activity in scientific research with a focus on urban public spaces is still in its incipient, exploratory phase (Aletta et al, 2016b; Bild et al, 2016, 2018; Lavia et al, 2016; Steffens et al, 2017). Most of these research projects arise from more practice-oriented questions, either dealing with specific soundscape interventions with some form of behavioral control in mind (see Lavia et al, 2012, 2016), or emphasizing the role users’ soundscapes play in relaxation or rehabilitation activities or in relation to auditory comfort, both indoors and outdoors (Mzali, 2002; Delepaut, 2009; Cerwén et al, 2016; Filipan et al, 2017).…”