Community noise exposure and annoyance, activity interference, and academic achievement among university students.

backgroundNoise annoyance and effects on academic performance have been investigated for primary and secondary school students but comparatively little work has been conducted with university students who generally spend more time in dormitories or accommodation for their self-study.

objectiveTo determine, using a socio-acoustic approach involving face-to-face interviews and actual noise measurements, the effect of various community noise sources on student activities in accommodation both inside and outside a university precinct and also relationships with cumulative grade point average (GPA). MATERIALS AND

methodsThe study sample comprised a student group resident off-campus (n = 450) and a control group resident in dormitories on-campus (n = 336). Noise levels [L

resultsMeasured noise levels were all significantly (P < 0.05) higher for off-campus students. This was not reflected in the interviewed students' subjective perceptions of how "noisy" their respective environments were. The off-campus student cohort was, however, more annoyed by all community noise categories (P < 0.001) except road traffic noise. For impact on specific student activities, the largest differences between on- and off-campus students were found for telephone and personal communication regardless of the type of community noise. There was no significant difference in the relationships between perceived annoyance due to community noise categories and cumulative GPA in the off-campus group compared to those for on-campus residents with OR

conclusionThese results provide support that various contemporary community noise sources affect university students' activities and possibly influence their educational achievement as well.