Research by Jin, Jin, and Kang confirms that there are complex interrelationships between our sensory experiences. The trio probed how hearing various sounds at different volumes influences perceived environmental temperatures. They determined via a lab-based study that “acoustic evaluations were significantly higher for birdsong and slow-dance music than for dog barking, conversation, and traffic sound. . . .
Older individuals whose homes are more accessible are less likely to feel depressed, according to a recently published study. Vitman-Schorr and colleagues identified, via interviewing people over 65 years old, “a direct negativeeffect between perceived accessibility and depressive symptoms. . . .
Walsh and de la Fuente assessed how people manage their at-home acoustic experiences and the repercussions of those actions. The researchers report that they “propose that home and homeliness [hominess] pertain to the degree to which we can control our auditory involvements with the world and with others. What we term ‘homely listening’ concerns the use of music to make oneself feel at home, in some cases, through seclusion and immersion, and, in others, through either the musical ordering of mundane routines or the use of music to engage in sociality with others. . . .
Visual complexity has a powerful effect on how humans process and use information from their physical world. Higher levels of visual complexity, visual disorder, and clutter degrade physical and psychological experiences. Designing in moderate visual complexity elevates human behavior, cognitive performance, and health.
The Transdisciplinary Workplace Research Network met September 16-19 in Frankfurt Germany. A number of timely, compelling, applicable sets of research findings were presented; that material is shared here.
Satisfying diverse sets of user needs
Natural is best, again
Where you're from influences what's best
Buyers value particular features
Thermostat settings to set
