Effects of non-acoustic factors on annoyance caused by floor impact sounds: A structural equation analysis

摘要

Previous research studies have addressed the relevance of non-acoustic factors in the perception of noise. However, the majority of these studies have focused on environmental noise, such as road traffic, railway and aircraft noises, and no attempt has been made to investigate the impact of building noises. In this paper, a conceptual model which explains the annoyance caused by floor impact sounds in apartment buildings was proposed based on previous findings and is subject to empirical testing. Online and paper questionnaire surveys were conducted in Korea and the questionnaire included questions designed to assess the impact of non-acoustic factors on annoyance caused by floor impact sounds, such as noise sensitivity and neighbourhood satisfaction. The structural equation model developed from the survey indicated that a negative relationship with neighbours resulted in greater annoyance, while a greater sensitivity to noise leaded to a greater perception of disturbance from noise. The various types of noises also produced different effects on relationship between noise annoyance and relationship with neighbours.