Annoyance

About: Annoyance is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2015 publications have been published within this topic receiving 38300 citations. The topic is also known as: annoy.

Health consequences of aircraft noise.

Abstract: Continually rising levels of air traffic are making it increasingly important to medically evaluate the effects of aircraft noise, with particular emphasis on organic diseases, annoyance, and functional disorders. Field studies under conditions of daily living are suitable instruments for this purpose. Laboratory tests are of only limited value because they fail to record phenomena such as habituation, sensitization, conditioning, and exhaustion. Sleep disorders in the form of awakening reactions (1) are also little suited for evaluation purposes since their avoidance is insufficient for the prevention of long-term health hazards (2). Epidemiological research into the effects of noise has made significant strides in recent years. The availability of new studies therefore mandates a reassessment of the current situation. Many of the epidemiological studies published up to the year 2000 exhibit methodological deficiencies. In many cases, extreme groups were considered in a simplifying approach or the study population was classified as "exposed to stress" and "not exposed to stress" on the basis of a noise level criterion. These studies reveal only a trend towards increased health risks from continuous noise levels of 65 dB(A) upwards (3). New results are available especially as regards hypertension, annoyance, and learning difficulties (box 1). Box 1 How loud are continuous sound levels? Continuous sound levels are energy values averaged over a long assessment period and are inaudible. Only momentary sound events are perceptible. If the sound energy remains constant over the assessment period, however, the continuous sound level has the same value as the momentary sound level. The continuous sound level, with additions or deductions for the time of day, for example, is a single figure value intended to gauge only the long term effects of a noise situation. In Germany the established practice is to differentiate between the continuous daytime sound level (6 a.m. to 10 p.m.) and the continuous nocturnal sound level (10 p.m. to 6 a.m.). The unit of measurement is the dB(A), which takes into account that human hearing has variable sensitivity for different frequencies. The fact that aircraft noise is perceived as a greater annoyance than road and rail noise, however, is not factored in. In residential areas around civil airports, the continuous aircraft related noise level now reaches levels exceeding 65 dB(A). For example, about 200 000 residents in the area around Frankfurt Airport, some of whom live more than 20 km distant from the airport along the flight corridors, are exposed to a continuous daytime noise level of 55 dB(A) and above.

Noise annoyance predicts symptoms of depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance 5 years later. Findings from the Gutenberg Health Study.

Abstract: Background Cross-sectional studies have shown that noise annoyance is strongly associated with mental distress, however, its long-term effects on mental health is unknown. We therefore investigated whether noise annoyance predicts depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance in a large, representative sample 5 years later. Methods We investigated longitudinal data of N = 11 905 participants of the Gutenberg Health Study, a population-based, prospective, single-centre cohort study in mid-Germany (age at baseline 35-74 years). Noise annoyance was assessed at baseline and 5-year follow-up (sources: road traffic, aircraft, railways, industrial, neighbourhood indoor and outdoor noise; and day vs. nighttime). Depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2. Participants suffering from depression, anxiety or sleep disturbance at baseline were excluded from the respective multivariate analyses of new onset at follow-up. Results General noise annoyance remained stable. Daytime noise annoyance predicted new onset of depressive, anxiety symptoms (also nighttime annoyance) and sleep disturbance (beyond respective baseline scores). Additional predictors were female sex, lower age and low socioeconomic status (SES). Regarding specific sources, daytime baseline aircraft annoyance predicted depression and anxiety. Sleep disturbance was most consistently predicted by neighbourhood annoyance (baseline and follow-up) and follow-up annoyance by aircraft (night) and road traffic (day and night). Conclusions We identified current and past noise annoyances as risk factors for mental distress and sleep disturbance. Furthermore, women, younger adults and those with lower SES are particularly susceptible to noise annoyance. Our results indicate the need to provide regulatory measures in affected areas to prevent mental health problems.

Aircraft noise and risk politics

Abstract: Air mobility spans most of the globe, but its side effects are concentrated in relatively small localities. In this paper aircraft noise annoyance is interpreted from the perspective of risk society theory as described by Ulrich Beck. With the increase in air mobility, side effects like noise nuisance gradually dominate the air mobility discussions. The logic of wealth distribution is thereby replaced by the logic of risk distribution. General annoyance statistics support this interpretation. But these statistics actually construct noise annoyance in the first place. Airport planners and professionals intentionally introduced the issue of noise annoyance to a wider audience. This exemplifies the ambivalence of risk theory as proposed by Beck. He employs a constructivist perspective, however he has a tendency to naturalize hazards. The dynamics that Beck describes as reflexive thrive on the inherent capacity of pollutants to confront the society that brought them forth. This article uses a constru...

An Assesment of dB(A) for Predicting Loudness and Annoyance of Noise Containing Low Frequency Components

Abstract: The value of dB(A) as a predictor of loudness and annoyance for noise with low frequency components has been assessed in an experiment using a matching technique. Twenty subjects compared two noise...