Soundscape effects on visiting experience in city park: A case study in Fuzhou,China

The main objective of this study was to reveal the relationships between sound/soundscape perception and public visiting experience in city parks, based on a questionnaire survey of 146 park users in West Lake park in Fuzhou, China. The results indicated that, the three visiting experience indicators, i.e., soundscape tranquil degree (STD), landscape aesthetic degree (LAD) and visiting satisfaction degree (VSD) were positively related with each other, and LAD (correlation coefficients = 0.728, p < 0.01) was more associated with VSD than STD (correlation coefficients = 0.565, p < 0.01). Perception of certain individual sounds was found in close relationships with the three indicators. Specifically, STD showed the most significant relationships with harmonious degree of individual sounds, where perception of traffic sounds showed the most negative effects, while perception of music related sounds and water sound showed positive effects. LAD was more associated with perceived occurrences of individual sounds, where traffic sounds and music related sounds showed the most significant effects again. Both perceived occurrences and dominant degree of individual sounds showed the most and equal relationships with VSD. Specifically, mechanical sounds showed the most negative effects, and dog barking showed significant negative effects too, while music related sounds could be the only kind of sound positively contributed to VSD. Social/demographical/behavioral factors and visit motivations all showed significant relationships with individual sound perception and visiting experience. Considering the effects of all associated factors, key factors were detected for each of the visiting experience indicators. All the three visiting experience indicators showed negative relationships with certain traffic sounds, while tree rustling sound was the only sound showing positive relationship with STD. Age was the most important social/demographical/behavioral factor showing positive relationships with LAD and VSD. The research results provided theoretical references for management and design of soundscapes to contribute to more satisfied experiences in city parks.     

森林公园声景观资源调查分析——以江西三爪仑国家森林公园为例

景观资源的评价是旅游开发的基础。传统的森林景观美学价值评价,仅研究人对森林景观的视觉感知,忽视人的听觉感知。实际上,缺少任何感知,其美学意境都不完整。该研究针对森林＂声景观＂被严重忽视的情况,以三爪仑国家级示范森林公园为例进行声景观资源的调查与分析,将声景资源分成水声景、雨声景、鸟语声景、叶声景、虫鸣声景和风声景6个大类,并界定森林公园各类声景观的定义、内涵和规律,为更全面地开发、利用和管理森林景观资源提供重要依据。     

Spatio-temporal variability in human and natural sounds in a rural landscape

The study of landscape structure and functions, including the underlying ecological and anthropogenic processes has traditionally relied on visual aspects without considering information of non-visionary cues, e.g. auditory. In this work we applied a complementary approach for the study of landscapes using qualitative information for the sonic environment. In particular we studied the qualitative linkages between landscape structure and functions and daily sound patterns. The main objectives were the investigation of the spatial and temporal variability in sound perception, and the identification of the dominant sound categories (anthropogenic, biological, geophysical originated sounds) in relation to landscape characteristics. Our results showed significant spatio-temporal variability in the intensity of different sound categories, which reflects distinct soundscape patterns. Temporal sound variability reflected the daily cycle of anthropogenic activities and biological processes, whereas the spatial sound viability was mainly shaped by landscape attributes. The combination of the visual landscape information and its emergent acoustic profile enhances our perception and understanding of nature and this integrated approach may have many practical applications in landscape management, monitoring and planning.     

昆明翠湖公园声景观的保护和发展

针对目前国家为改善民生和提高广大人民群众的精神文化修养等提出了一系列的政策,各地从不同程度上将不少古典园林开放为非赢利性的公共性公园,这从一定程度上进一步提高了人民群众生活品质。但是随着这种转变趋势的加强,古典园林的声环境景观遭到破坏。本文通过对昆明市翠湖公园声景观的现状,使用者行为及其空间分布和声景观要素选择进行分析阐述,力求探索古典园林转变为公园之后的声景观环境如何进行保护和发展。     

Tranquillity Trails for urban areas

Tranquil spaces can be found and made in the city and their promotion and use by residents and visitors is an important means of building resilience. Studies have shown that spaces that are rated by visitors as tranquil are more likely to produce higher levels of relaxation and less anxiety that should ultimately result in health and well-being benefits. Such spaces can therefore be classed as restorative environments. Tranquil spaces are characterized by a soundscape dominated by natural sounds and low levels of man-made noise. In addition, the presence of vegetation and wild life has been shown to be an important contributory factor. Levels of rated tranquillity can be reliably predicted using a previously developed model TRAPT and then used to design and identify tranquil spaces, improve existing green spaces and develop Tranquillity Trails to encourage usage. Tranquillity Trails are walking routes that have been designed to enable residents and visitors to reflect and recover from stress while receiving the benefits of healthy exercise. This paper describes Tranquillity Trails designed for three contrasting areas. Predictions of the rated tranquillity have been made along these routes and feedback from users was elicited at one site that confirmed the expected benefits. 199 words     

Audio-visual interaction and visitor characteristics affect perceived soundscape restorativeness: Case study in five parks in China

The capacity of urban parks to contribute to soundscape restorativeness, understood here as contributions to people’s recovery from attentional fatigue and reflection on life issues, is receiving increased interest in research and policy. However, scientific understanding of the influential mechanism of perceived soundscape restorativeness is still not clear. This paper aims to explore the effects of audio-visual interaction on perceived soundscape restorativeness (PSR) of urban parks, considering visitors of different social and demographic characteristics. The research design comprises a survey of 419 visitors to five urban parks in Fuzhou, China, general structure equation modeling, and multi-group model analysis. The results show a substantial dependence of visitors’ PSR values on respective perceptions of soundscape pleasantness and eventfulness, especially soundscape pleasantness. Visual landscape characteristics showed mediating effects on the influence of soundscape pleasantness and eventfulness on the perceived soundscape restorativeness (19.3 % and 28.3 % of the total effect, respectively). Age was the most influential social and demographic characteristic affecting the PSR, followed by gender, while occupation and educational background showed only limited effects. Future development of urban parks should strongly integrate soundscape design considerations to enhance positive PSR effects for visitors.     

Effects of hearing diverse orthoptera sounds on human psychology

There is a growing interest in the health improvement functions of green spaces. Natural sounds have various effects on the human mind and body and this positive effect is a cultural service of the ecosystem; however, the mechanisms of these effects are poorly understood. This study investigated the psychological effects of diverse orthoptera calls on Japanese university people. Sixty-five participants were exposed to seven different sound sources, which comprised 1–4 different species, and then asked to answer questions on impressions and preferences. We compared the differences in preference scores according to species and number of species. Factor analysis was used to identify the common factors of impressions. Structural equation modeling was used to understand the influence of participants’ attributes on their preferences. The results showed that as the number of species increased, the sound preference score increased. As a result of the factor analysis of the impressions, the factors Calm, Gorgeous, Musicality, and Deep were extracted; the factor scores of Gorgeous and Musicality increased as the number of species increased. Both, the inclusion of certain species and an increased diversity of species, increased the score. The combination of multiple species resulted in a favorable evaluation due to the harmonization of sounds and diversification of rhythms on the time axis. The results showed that the presence of diverse species of orthopteran calls has a positive effect on humans; orthopteran sounds are assumed to have psychological restorative effects. However, since the influence of the participants’ attributes on preference was unclear in this result, further research is required to understand the effects of racial and cultural backgrounds, age, place of residence and personal attributes. Diverse orthopteran calls are an ecosystem service that contribute to the quality of the soundscape.     

Soundscapes of urban parks: An innovative approach for ecosystem monitoring and adaptive management

Urban foresters are addressing the challenge of urban biodiversity loss through management plans in the context of rapid urbanization. Protecting the integrity of the urban ecosystem requires long-term monitoring and planning for resilience as well as effective management. The soundscape assessment has attracted attention in this field, but applying the soundscape assessment in urban ecological monitoring requires a protocol that links soundscapes to the impact of resource management on biodiversity over time. The effective processing and visualization of large-scale data also remains an important challenge. The aim of this study was to better understand the relationship between soundscape and physical environment, and examine the feasibility of this innovative soundscape approach in highly urbanized areas. Soundscape recordings were collected for 20 urban parks twice on 4 consecutive days in Spring. A total of 691,200 min of sound material were automatically obtained. In order to track the spatio-temporal patterns of a soundscape and determine its potential suitability for ecosystem monitoring, our study characterized soundscape information by adopting 4 widely used acoustic indices: acoustic diversity index (ADI), bioacoustic index (BIO), normalized difference vegetation index (NDSI), and power spectral density (PSD). Daily patterns of PSD have provided a potential connection between soundscapes and bird songs, and 1–2 kHz presented a similar pattern that was linked to human activity. Through further modeling, we tested the relationship of soundscapes to physical environment characteristics. The results showed the importance of habitat vegetation structure for acoustic diversity. More vertical heterogeneity, with an uneven canopy height or multilayered vegetation, was associated with more acoustic diversity. This suggests that clearing ground cover may have a significant negative impact on wildlife. Our results suggest that soundscape approaches provide a way to quickly synthesize large-scale recording data into meaningful patterns that can track changes in bird songs and ecosystem conditions. The proposed approach would enable regular assessment of urban parks and forests to inform adaptive planning and management strategies that can maintain or enhance biodiversity.     

Research on spatiotemporal variation characteristics of soundscapes in a newly established suburban forest park

Passive acoustic monitoring has developed rapidly as a tool for ecological assessments, and the use of acoustic indices to assess biodiversity in urban forests promises to be a low-cost and efficient analytical approach. However, the accuracy of using acoustic indices to characterize biodiversity may be compromised by excessive human interference. The acoustic complexity index (ACI) and normalized difference soundscape index (NDSI) were chosen to determine their application value, and explore the spatiotemporal patterns of change in the soundscape of a newly established suburban forest park in China. To understand the influence of drivers such as different sound source types, road distance, and vegetation structure on the soundscape, the Eastern Suburb Forest Park was selected as the study area, and 55 recording points (200 m intervals, 5 × 11 grids) were set up using a systematic grid. Passive acoustic monitoring was performed for four consecutive days in each season, and the spatiotemporal variation of the soundscape was visualized based on indices interpolation. The results showed that when using ACI and NDSI to rapidly assess biodiversity in urban forest environments, attention needs to be paid to the implications of seasonal fluctuations on indices. The temporal variation of the soundscape was closely related to the natural rhythms and vocal activity intensity of organisms. Distance to a nearby main road, distance to water, and structural complexity of vegetation were key factors influencing spatial variation. The findings support the use of acoustic methods to assess the characteristics of soundscapes in human-built urban forests. Soundscape mapping visualizes hotspots and moments of ecoacoustic activity, and has great potential for development in the conservation and management of suburban forest soundscapes.