The effects of nonphysical noise characteristics, ongoing task and noise sensitivity on annoyance and distraction due to noise at work

Factors influencing the subjective responses to noise were studied in a group of 439 persons working in offices, laboratories or industries. In each person's workplace noise was measured. Information about responses to noise and factors that might affect annoyance were collected in questionnaires. An annoyance and a distraction index were formed on the basis of a factor analysis. Annoyance was found mainly to be related to sound level, self-rated 'necessity' of the noise, hearing status and sex. Distraction was most strongly related to degree of self-control of the noise and noise predictability. The most critical noise sources for the annoyance response were other machines than those used by oneself, whereas telephone signals had the largest effect on distraction.