Urban views and their impacts on citizens: A grounded theory study of Sanandaj city

On the definition of noise

Urbanization has exposed people to extreme sound levels. Although researchers have investigated the ability of people to listen, analyze, and distinguish sound, the concept of noise has not been clearly articulated from a human perspective. The lack of knowledge on how people perceive noise limits our capacity to control it in a targeted manner. This study aimed to interpret the definition of noise from the public perspective based on a grounded theory approach. Seventy-eight participants were interviewed about noise, and four categories of perceived understanding of noise were identified: challenges, definitions of noise, opportunities, and action. As one of the challenges, urbanization is associated with increased noise levels around the human environment. In terms of definition, perceiving sound as noise is considered to be a result of the complex and dynamic process that includes sound, the environment, and humans. Sound and humans interact with the environment. In terms of opportunities, noise may have positive roles on certain occasions, dispelling the misconception that noise is exclusively negative. In addition, we found that noise perception has gradually shifted from noise control to noise utilization. In terms of action, noise can be controlled at the sound sources, susceptible target groups, susceptible behaviors and states, locations, and times where noise is perceived with high frequency. In this study, we investigated several aspects of noise, ranging from noise control, soundscape definition, and 'soundscape indices' (SSID) integration and application. Our findings provide an additional basis for developing better definitions, control, and utilization strategies of noise in the future, thereby improving the quality of the sound environment.

The impact of the city skyline on pleasantness; state of the art and a case study

The research deals with the effect of skylines on citizens' pleasantness. The research method is based on the respondents' judgment of the color images of the skylines. 360 citizens were asked to complete a questionnaire to express their opinions and preferences along with the reasons. Three types of nature, traditional, and contemporary skylines were identified as the dominant skylines. The results showed that people prefer the nature and the traditional skyline over the contemporary skyline. They introduced some features as peacefulness, memorability, and distinctiveness as the reasons for their choice. The people's residence place could influence their attitudes toward the skyline, and most of those living in the areas with contemporary contexts selected the skyline of their contemporary context as the favorite skyline. They did not look for the sense of peacefulness in the skyline, but they underlined attractiveness. Variables of age and gender had no effect on the preferences; however, by an increase in education level, the tendency to select the traditional and contemporary skyline increased.