Abstract | Since sound insulation of party walls is solely for the benefit of people, it is imperative that researchers improve their understanding of how people in multi-residence buildings react to noise from their neighbours. This note describes a pilot study undertaken to test the suitability of one experimental approach. Ninety-eight subjects were interviewed using a structural questionnaire, the background noise levels in their homes were measured and the sound insulation of the corresponding 49 party walls was measured. The note describes the survey procedure, including site selection, questionnaire used, measurement of noise and sound insulation, and analysis. The results are discussed with respect to the characteristics of the survey sample, differences between row housing and apartment residences, composite response scales and physical acoustical and non-acoustical variables as response predictors. |
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