The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park
Urban parks are important urban public spaces that guarantee people recreation, create positive emotions and relieve stress. Emerging research has shown that natural soundscapes are associated with restorative landscapes in urban parks. However, there is still a lack of knowledge on the use of physi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-12-01
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| Series: | Land |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/12/1323 |
| _version_ | 1797503079313047552 |
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| author | Xin Cao Yen Hsu |
| author_facet | Xin Cao Yen Hsu |
| author_sort | Xin Cao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Urban parks are important urban public spaces that guarantee people recreation, create positive emotions and relieve stress. Emerging research has shown that natural soundscapes are associated with restorative landscapes in urban parks. However, there is still a lack of knowledge on the use of physiological indexes to evaluate the effects of natural sounds versus human-based sounds on stress relief. In this study, the three physiological indexes of skin conductance level, heart rate and heart rate variability were collected in Fuzhou West Lake Park with the help of Ergo LAB data platform, and a soundscape perception evaluation questionnaire was used to assess the degree of soundscape perceptions in the sample sites. The differences in the stress relieving effects of different urban park environments were analysed by applying the median test, the Wilcoxon test was applied to analyse the effects of soundscapes and urban park environments on relieving stress, and regression analysis was used to identify the important factors of restorative soundscapes. The results found that urban park environments provide a certain degree of stress relief, but the stress relieving effects of different urban park environments vary and that natural spaces play an important role in relieving stress. Urban park soundscapes are key to restorative environmental design, with natural sounds such as birdsong and stream sound being important factors of restorative soundscapes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:45:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e77a1cd08a4f4dbb9ab023e7fe8cc8c6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-445X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:45:23Z |
| publishDate | 2021-12-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Land |
| spelling | doaj.art-e77a1cd08a4f4dbb9ab023e7fe8cc8c62023-11-23T09:10:44ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2021-12-011012132310.3390/land10121323The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban ParkXin Cao0Yen Hsu1The Graduate Institute of Design Science, Tatung University, Taipei 104, TaiwanThe Graduate Institute of Design Science, Tatung University, Taipei 104, TaiwanUrban parks are important urban public spaces that guarantee people recreation, create positive emotions and relieve stress. Emerging research has shown that natural soundscapes are associated with restorative landscapes in urban parks. However, there is still a lack of knowledge on the use of physiological indexes to evaluate the effects of natural sounds versus human-based sounds on stress relief. In this study, the three physiological indexes of skin conductance level, heart rate and heart rate variability were collected in Fuzhou West Lake Park with the help of Ergo LAB data platform, and a soundscape perception evaluation questionnaire was used to assess the degree of soundscape perceptions in the sample sites. The differences in the stress relieving effects of different urban park environments were analysed by applying the median test, the Wilcoxon test was applied to analyse the effects of soundscapes and urban park environments on relieving stress, and regression analysis was used to identify the important factors of restorative soundscapes. The results found that urban park environments provide a certain degree of stress relief, but the stress relieving effects of different urban park environments vary and that natural spaces play an important role in relieving stress. Urban park soundscapes are key to restorative environmental design, with natural sounds such as birdsong and stream sound being important factors of restorative soundscapes.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/12/1323soundscapeurban parkrelieving stressskin conductance levelheart rateheart rate variability |
| spellingShingle | Xin Cao Yen Hsu The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park Land soundscape urban park relieving stress skin conductance level heart rate heart rate variability |
| title | The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park |
| title_full | The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park |
| title_fullStr | The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park |
| title_short | The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park |
| title_sort | effects of soundscapes in relieving stress in an urban park |
| topic | soundscape urban park relieving stress skin conductance level heart rate heart rate variability |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/12/1323 |
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