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Most people would agree that exposure to unwanted noise can produce stress. We measure noise with the decibel (dB) scale. The threshold for hearing is 0 dB. Normal conversation is about 40 dB, while the noise around a busy street is about 70 dB, and a rock band might be 120 dB. Long exposure to 90 dB can damage the eardrums. Sometimes noise is defined as any sound of a high enough intensity to inflict physical harm; but usually the definition includes the idea that noise is disturbing, either psychologically or physically. Thus, lower levels of sound can also be considered noise, especially when sounds are unpleasant and uncontrollable.
A study reported by Cohen and his colleagues (1986) found that children living on the lower floors of a particular high-rise apartment building had poorer hearing abilities and more problems with reading than did children on the upper floors. The apartment building was built near a freeway and the noise levels were blamed for the deficiencies of the children living on the lower floors. Smith and Stansfeld (1986) reported that noise also affects adults in daily life. For instance, people living in a noisy neighborhood tended to make more mistakes in simple tasks, forgot common things, and even dropped things more often. Noise can be objectionable, but does it actually affect our social behavior? Yes, according to a number of research studies. For instance, Mathews and Canon (1975) found that people were less likely to help someone pick up dropped books when a noise of 85 dB was present. The same results were obtained whether the research took place in a laboratory situation or on a street where a lawn mower provided the noise. Other studies have shown that people living in noisy neighborhoods have fewer social interactions, are more aggressive, and tend to dislike their neighbors more. Some research suggests that stressful noise can have an influence on our behavior even after we stop hearing it. In 1972 David Glass and Jerome Singer placed people in a noisy environment and either told them that they could control the noise (with a switch) or that they had no control over the noise. The group with control did not often use it, but when both groups were tested on a task afterward, the performance of the group who had control was significantly better. Glass and Singer proposed that noise is a source of stress and that uncontrollable stress leads to a feeling of helplessness. Thus, those in the group with control could relieve helplessness because of their belief that they could control its cause. This suggests that the psychological interpretation of environmental stressors, such as noise, crowding, or heat, plays an important role in determining our reactions to them. |
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