RETRACTED: The Effects of Soundscapes in Relieving Stress in an Urban Park

Abstract

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.

Landscape Perception and the Importance of Recreation Areas for Students during the Pandemic Time

“…A positive influence of nature and “health-promoting landscapes” on concentration is also visible [ 43 , 54 , 55 ]. The soundscapes of city parks, often described as quiet areas, also play a considerable role in stress alleviation [ 56 , 57 ].…”

Impact of the Classic Chinese Garden Soundscape With Focus on Physiological and Psychological Effects, Tested Through Eye-Tracking, and Subjective Evaluation

“…The sound quality in cultural landscapes and natural spaces have been shown to have an impact on the viewer, especially as the human preference for natural sounds enhances mood satisfaction ( Carles et al, 1999 ). For example, the influence of soundscapes in modern parks has been proven ( Cao and Hsu, 2021 ; Jo and Jeon, 2021 ). The relationship between human behavior and a good environment can be determined by evaluating sound quality.…”

Soundscape Mapping of Agodi Park and Gardens, Ibadan Southwestern Nigeria

“…Urban parks are usually surrounded by busy streets, commercial buildings, and areas of high noise levels due to human activities and heavy traffic. Cao & Hsu (2021) affirmed that stress restorative benefits of urban parks may be compromised by overexposure to noise, which can have a negative impact on human health. It therefore goes without saying that patrons of urban parks might be denied the benefits of open space utilization if the noise level is beyond acceptable limits.…”

“…Parks and outdoor areas offer a unique opportunity to conserve acoustic environments dominated by biophonic and geophonic sounds (Dumyahn & Pijanowski, 2011). Studies on outdoor soundscape have categorized acoustic environments into three categories; anthrophony, biophony, and geophony (Cao & Hsu, 2021;Buxton et al, 2019). Anthrophony sounds are generated from humans or man-made objects.…”