ABSTRACT
Noise is a major environmental pollution that produces negative emotional reactions and loss of quality of life (Berglund and Lindvall, 1995; Job, 1988), cognitive deficits (Haines et al., 2001; Hygge et al., 1996), and probably physical and mental health effects (Berglund and Lindvall, 1995; Job, 1996). Noise experienced in and around the home is an especially potent environmental stressor because of people’s attitudes toward their homes and recreational time, disturbance of sleep, and lack of control over the noise (Hatfield et al., in press). Research in the area has two essential purposes: (1) to determine (and thus regulate for) reasonable levels of noise exposure, balancing the needs of noisemakers (transport, construction, industry) against the negative effects on residents, and (2) to understand human reaction to noise and its underlying causal factors, including many psychological factors (see Fields, 1992; Job, 1988). Both purposes demand measurement of the extent (and possibly the form) of reaction to noise.
