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Soundscape: The Holistic Understanding of Acoustic Environments

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Soundscapes: Humans and Their Acoustic Environment

Part of the book series: Springer Handbook of Auditory Research ((SHAR,volume 76))

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Abstract

The expanded recognition of soundscape studies has resulted in a research domain composed of various disciplinary perspectives and, at times, contradictory interpretations of what is meant by “soundscape.” At its core, soundscape is a construct of human perception that factors in the entirety of an acoustic environment and the individual’s responses to it. This stands in contrast to the acoustic environment, which is simply the composition of acoustic stimuli in an environment. The baseline of human perception in soundscape was recognized by the International Organization for Standardization in ISO 12913-1 (ISO 2014), which emphasizes the interrelationships between person, activity, and physical place in both space and time. The breadth of one’s responses beyond auditory sensation can be much more complex than reactions to noise. The meaning an individual ascribes to sounds, individual’s attitude and expectations toward the acoustic environment, socioeconomic and cultural background, and life experiences all play a role. The complexity of interrelationships between context and listener can only be understood through a multilateral, holistic approach in the field of soundscape study. This chapter traces the broad trajectory of soundscape studies to contextualize a holistic approach and concludes by highlighting various holistic research projects that sought to enhance the quality of acoustic environments and living situations.

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Abbreviations

BMVBS:

Federal Ministry of Transport, Building, and Urban Affairs

COST:

European Cooperation in Science and Technology

DEFRA:

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

EEA:

European Environment Agency

EHIA:

Environmental Health Impact Assessments

END:

Environmental Noise Directive

ENNAH:

European Network on Noise and Health

ExWoSt:

Experimental Housing and Urban Development

GSSN:

Global Sustainable Soundscape Network

HOSSANA:

Holistic and Sustainable Abatement of Noise by Optimized Combinations of Natural and Artificial Means

ISO:

International Organization for Standardization

NORAH:

Noise-Related Annoyance, Cognition, and Health study

SONORUS:

The Urban Sound Planner

STSM:

Short-Term Scientific Missions

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Compliance with Ethics Requirements

Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp declares that she has no conflict of interest.

Pamela Jordan declares that she has no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. HEAD-Genuit Foundation, Herzogenrath, Germany

    Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp

  2. University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Pamela Jordan

Authors
  1. Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp
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  2. Pamela Jordan
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Correspondence to Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. HEAD-Genuit Foundation, Herzogenrath, Germany

    Brigitte Schulte-Fortkamp

  2. Department of Engineering Acoustics, Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    André Fiebig

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Joseph A. Sisneros

  4. Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA

    Arthur N. Popper

  5. Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Richard R. Fay

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Schulte-Fortkamp, B., Jordan, P. (2023). Soundscape: The Holistic Understanding of Acoustic Environments. In: Schulte-Fortkamp, B., Fiebig, A., Sisneros, J.A., Popper, A.N., Fay, R.R. (eds) Soundscapes: Humans and Their Acoustic Environment. Springer Handbook of Auditory Research, vol 76. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-22779-0_3

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