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Abstract The authors' aim was to study noise-related problems in personnel at Swedish daycare centers. The authors' study comprised staff (N = 81) who completed a questionnaire (noise, illumination, indoor climate, hearing problems) at five daycare centers with noise problems. After basic and activity sound measurements, absorbers were attached to the ceilings and to two adjacent walls in the playing and dining rooms. Thereafter, basic and activity sound measures were repeated and the questionnaire was also repeated six months later. The acoustical treatment reduced the sound pressure levels by 2 to 6 dB in the playing rooms and by 0 to 3 dB in the dining rooms. The reverberation time was reduced by 20% to 50%. After the treatment the perceived noise disturbance level decreased slightly but not significantly and the proportion of the staff who often or very often planned the daily activities to reduce the noise level had decreased from about 39% to 25%. Similarly, the percentage that often or very often had a need for silence after work had decreased from 42% to 37%.
Introduction
Noise is defined as any type of sound, independent of loudness, that may produce an undesired physiological or psychological response in an individual and that may interfere with the social activities of an individual or group (Bistrup, 2001). The World Health Organization (WHO) Guidelines for Community Noise (Berglund, Lindvall, & Schwela, 1999) recommend a maximum background sound pressure level (SPL) of 35 dB equivalent continuous A-weighted sound pressure level (LAeq) in preschools. The reverberation time should be about 0.6 seconds and preferably lower for hearing-impaired children (Berglund et al., 1999). For outdoor playgrounds the SPL of noise from external sources should not exceed 55 dB LAeq. In bedrooms in preschools an indoor guideline value of 30 dB LAeq for continuous noise and 45 dB maximum A-weighted sound pressure level (LAmax) for single sound events is recommended during sleeping hours (Berglund et al., 1999; Swedish Standard, 2001). The Swedish recommendations correspond fairly well with the recommendations by WHO. The Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare recommends a maximum indoor background SPL of 30 dB equivalent continuous A-weighted sound pressure level within time T (LAeq,T) for noise without audible components in preschools and a...