University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Effects of imposed background noise on listening comprehension of primary children

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Effects of imposed background noise on listening comprehension of primary children

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Content EFFECTS OF IMPOSED BACKGROUND NOISE
ON LISTENING COMPREHENSION
OF PRIMARY CHILDREN
A Dissertation
Presented to
the Faculty of the School of Education
University of Southern California
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Education
by
Mary Crutchfield Handelsman
June 1977
This dissertation, written under the direction
of the Chait·man of the candidate's Guidance
Committee and approved by all members of the
Committee, has been presented to and accepted
by the Faculty of the School of Education in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
degree of Doctor of Education.
Date ...... June ... 1977 .............................................................. .
'
I ~
/
,t/ _.
. . ....•.•..•..•.•....
Dean
Guidance Committee
0.u£~ .. /J . .' ... ~
Chairman
. ~dd!Ji. . . : .......... £
... a4L&~ .. ········ .. ········ ····
To Mother
Who read to me .
To Father
Who kept the faith.
To Norman
Who Held my hand.
ii
1
, .
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
It is with great pleasure that I express my appre
ciation to the many persons who helped make this research
ossible.
The Administrative Staff of the Beverly Hills
Unified School District and the Board of Education who
permitted the research to be co~ducted in that district
and supported that research.
The Teaching Staff at Beverly Vista School who coop
erated in the research and the students who participated.
Mark Taylor who narrated the listening comprehen
sion test, gave editorial advice, and was always a friend.
Ted Gettinger and Dick Shea who gave valuable
assistance and advice.
James E. Hughes, M.D. whose interpretations of
psychic reality made completion of this study an external
reality.
The teaching staff of the University of Southern
California who gave me the opportunity to learn, share
their knowledge, and vision with me.
Tom Stanton, Stanton Films, who provided the excel
lent films shown prior to the investigation.
The Committee on Studies: Dr. Robert Gerletti,
Dr. Gerald Hasterok, and especially Dr. William H. Allen
who guided this research with concern for excellence and
good will.
l_
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I
Page
LIST OF TABLES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
Chapter
I. THE PROBLEM AND DEFINITIONS OF TERMS . . . .
II.
III.
IV.
Introduction
Background of t~e Problem
Statement of the Problem
Importance and Significance
of the Study
Definitions of Terms Used
Limitations
Delimitations
Organization of the Remainder
of the Study
LITERATURE REVIEW . . . . . . .
General Background of Effects
of Noise on Performance
Theories of Effects of Noise
on Performance
Imposed Background Noise
. . . . . . .
METHODOLOGY .....
• • •
. . . . . . . . .
Experimental Design
Experimental Sample Population
Experimental Variables
Experimental Mater·ials
Dependent Variable
Testing Instrument
Adaptation of Instrument
Instrumentation
Field Procedures
Statistical Analysis
RESULTS . . . _j • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
The Study
iv
1
11
24
36
Chapter
V. SUMMARYJ RESULTSJ DISCUSSIONJ
AND RECOMMENDATIONS ....
Summary
Results
Discussion
Recommendations
• • • • • • • •
REFERENCES ... . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
V
Page
45
51
-------- ---
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page 1
1. Diagram of Experimental Design--Four Separate
One-way Analysis of Variance. . . . . . . . 34
2.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Cell SizeJ MeansJ and Standard Deviations
for Listening Vocabulary ....... . . .
Analysis of Variance for Listening
Vocabulary .......... . . . . . . .
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances
for Listening Vocabulary ....
• • • •
Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference
between Means with Unequal Cell Sizes
for Listening Vocabulary ....... .
Cell SizeJ MeansJ and Standard Deviations
for Following Directions ....... .
Analysis of Variance for Following
• •
• •
• •
Directions .. . ....... .
• • • • • •
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for
Following Directions ....... . . .
Scheffe
1
s Tests of Significant Differences
between Means with Unequal Cell Sizes
for Following Directions ....... .
Cell SizeJ MeansJ and Standard Deviations
for Contextual Clues . . . ..... .
Analysis of Variance for Contextual Clues.
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for
Contextual Clues ......... .
• •
Scheffe
1
s Tests of Significant Difference
between Means with Unequal Cell Sizes
for Contextual Clues ......... .
Cell SizeJ Means, and Standard Deviations
for Total of Three Subsets of the
• •
. .
• •
• •
• •
38
38
38
39
39
41
41
42
I
. .
L
Evan Wright Test of Listening
Comprehension ............ .
vi
I
43 I
-- --------------
15.
Analysis of Variance for Total of Three
Subsets of the Evan Wright Test of
Listening Comprehension ...... . . .
• •
16. Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for
Total of Three Subsets of the Evan
Wright Test of Listening
Comprehension .......... .
• •
17. Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference
between Means with Unequal Cell Sizes
for Total of Three Subsets of the
Evan Wright Test of Listening
• • •
Page
43
44
Comprehension. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
vii
CHAPTER I
THE PROBLEM AND DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
Introduction
Since earliest times and the development of lan
guage (since man developed language)J the oral tradition
has been man's means of transmitting important ideas and
discoveries from one generation to another. Through tales
of heroesJ chantsJ songsJ and prayersJ the child of every
culture has been brought into the tradition of the people.
The jet age and its sonic assaultsJ rock music
and its deafening decibelsJ TV and its remote volume con
trol have all had their effect on listening for learning.
Still the auditory channel continues to be widely used as
the primary channel for purposeful verbal instruction with
young children.
The purpose of this study was to examine four pos
sibl3 classroom auditory environments to determine whether
or not ambient room noise can be masked by one of three
imposed noises and thus eliminated as a distractor during
a listening task. It was proposed that ambient room noise
acts as an external distractor during a listening task
because it fluctuates in intensity and j_ t is intermittent
in nature. Imposed noises can be controlled in intensity
1
and continuity of presentation and therefore it was sug
gested that masking ambient room noise with an imposed
jnoise would eliminate distractors and result in improved
learning on a listening task . Further, it was suggested
that one imposed noise, a musical program of ascending
progression, would not only serve to mask ambient room
noise but would also stimulate arousal and result in
increased learning .
Background of the Problem
It would be difficult to overestimate the impor
tance of listening for comprehension. In an early study,
Rankin (1926) reported that the average person spends 68
percent of his waking time in communication and 42 percent
of that time in listening . Wilt (1949) found that elemen
tary school pupils spend 58 percent of the school day
listening . Over half that time was spent listening to the
teacher .
To date the main thrust of research in the field
has been toward identifying le arner characteristics .
According to Duker (1969), the study by Hall (1954) has
been credited as "the most thorough and painstaking study
of the interrelat~onships between listening ability and
other factors at the elementary school level . " His study
identified a group of learners with both the intelligence
and the ability to handle language but who are poor read-
2
ers. He recommended that listening laboratories and lis
tening clinics equivalent to reading laboratories and
clinics be established. These recommendations have not
been followed in the more than 20 years since they were
made.
Little attention has been given to the auditory
3
environment in education. A study by Eddleblute (1971)
reported some effects of background noise on learner infor
mation handling rates. He concluded that college students
performed equally well under conditions of normal class
room silence and two imposed noises: white noise and back
ground music.
Although concern with "noise pollution" has
heightened in recent years and research is being conducted
in this area by acoustical engineers, results are being
published primarily "in house," if at all. The "open plan"
and "masking for privacy" have been the subjects for some
reported investigations. Imposed background noise such as
music or white noise has been used in business and indus
try. A perusal of the literature generally available
indicates that little specific application of this research
has been made in public schools.
Statement of the Problem
Intermittent, intrusive, ambient room noise has
interrupted auditory tasks in school settings in the past
1
and such noise has often been accepted as an inevitable,
unalterable condition under which listening must take place.
This investigation was an effort to find an acceptable
alternative.
The tests of hypotheses of this study were based
on the scores obtained by primary students on three sub
tests of the Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehension
in one of four auditory environments: ambient room noise,
ambient room noise and imposed white noise, ambient room
noise and continuous playground noise, and ambient room
noise and music.
It was hypothesized that three imposed background
noises--white noise, continuous playground noise, and
music--would mask auditory distractors found in ambient
room noise and result in better listening comprehension
scores. It was further projected that music would stimu
late arousal and result in increased learning and that,
therefore, music would be the preferred imposed noise.
The basic hypotheses of this study were:
1. The imposition of white noise will result in a
significantly more effective listening compre
hension score by young children than will
ambient room noise alone.
2. The imposition of continuous playground noise
will result in a significantly more effective
listening comprehension score by young children
than will ambient room noise alone.
3. The imposition of music will result in a sig
nificantly more effective listening comprehen
sion score by young children than will ambient
room noise alone, imposed white noise, or
imposed continuous playground noise.
Importance and Significance
of the Study
5
"It's so loud, I can't hear myself think!" Such a
common expression often summarizes the intuitive knowledge
of a truth yet to be verified by scientific method.
There is a close parallel between the stages in
language development and the stages of thinking as
described by Piaget (1950). A sample of a four year old's
ability to hold two contrary points of view is expressed
in: There is a God, but, of course, I don't believe in him.
Chukovsky (1968) gave delightful examples of the develop
ment of the young child's thinking through the use of
language.
Kendler (1963) postulated a mediation theory of
learning in which eJ mediator (word, idea, or classifica
tion) inserted between the stimulus and the response would
make the learning easier. He cited examples of children
6
talking to themselves as they performed difficult tasks.
This great ability to manipulate and cope with the
world is dependent on the auditory channel. Language pro
ceeds from the aural to the oral. There is usually a lag
of 2 to 7 months from the first hearing of a word until
its first meaningful utterance. Delayed learning by the
deaf exemplifies the enormous importance of the auditory
channel to performance on learning tasks.
Penfield (1959) stated:
When, by chance, the neurosurgeon's electrode
activates past experience, that experience unfolds
progressively, moment by moment. This is a little
like the performance of a wire recorder or a strip
of cinematographic film on which are registered all
those things of which the individual was once aware-
the things he selected for his attention in that
interval of time. Absent from it are the sensations
he ignored, the talk he did not heed. (p. 53)
Travers (1970) suggested that the more important
aspects of human memory are probably in a verbal form. He
pointed out that visual information is more likely to be
remembered in detail when coded into words. Further, words
permit man to store information in the same form regardless
of the original form, whether visual, haptic, or auditory.
Broadbent (1958) suggested a filter theory of
selective perception in which each sound is first analyzed
for pitch, localization or other similar qualities and
then only sounds possessing certain qualities are passed
on for further analysis.
7
It is proposed by this investigator that by
external masking of irrelevant, intrusive noise the learner
will be freed to attend to auditory messages of importance ,
to listening comprehension. Thus the quality of perform
ance on auditory tasks will significantly improve.
Definitions of Terms Used
Ascending progression. A constant progression of
musical brightness throughout the group of musical selec
tions. Brightness may be obtained from several roots:
tempo, instrumentation, musical arrangement, melodic line,
or incidental rhythm.
Arousal function. The function of a sensory event
of giving tone to the cortex, of arousing the cortex to
vigilance or readiness.
Decibel: db. A unit for measuring the difference
between the perceived intensity or loudness of a certain
sound and that of a standard sound. Conventionally, the
standard sound is that of an air wave exerting a pressure
of .0002 dynes per square centimeter. This is rcughly the
average human intensity threshold for a tone of 1000 c.p.s.
Masking. The partial or complete prevention of
auditory perception by presenting a simultaneous sound
of different pitch.
8 1
Noise. The sensory effect of irregular (aperiodic)
sound waves; a sound that lacks tone, that is composed of
conflicting pitches.
Noise/white. Random fluctuation noise, the noise
that is heard when very many sound waves of different
lengths are combined so that they reinforce or cancel one
another in a haphazard fashion.
Set/perceptual. A readiness to perceive the envi
ronment in a certain way, generally in acccrd with a pat
tern.
Limitations
Separation of speakers from 10° to 90° might have
been helpful to the listeners in this study since they were
asked to respond to the reccrded listening comprehension
test and to ignore the recorded background noises. How
ever, lack of separation is unlikely to be positively harm
ful, according to Broadbent (1958).
Delimitations
Time constraints prevented administering the com
plete listening comprehension test and it is therefore
unknown what the effects of listening in the presence of
imposed background noise might be for longer periods of
time.
9
Learner characteristics on specific auditory tasks
were unknown prior to this study and therefore there was no
attempt to correlate such characteristics and scores
obtained with imposed background noise. The application
of such knowledge would most frequently take place only in
a tutorial setting and would not have improved application
to group settings. According to Hall (1954), teacher rat
ings of student listening skills have been unreliable.
They were therefore not used in this study.
Organization of the Remainder
of the Study
Chapter II reviews the literature and research
relevant to this study. Studies concerned with the effects
of intermittent and continuous background noises are dis
cussed. The use of imposed noises in businessJ industryJ
and education are explored. Theories of effects of noise
on work performance are reviewed.
Chapter III describes in detail the research
design and the implementation of that design. A randomized
control-group posttest only design was used. The control
group responded to a recorded test of listening comprehen
sion in one of three controlled auditory environments.
Subjects were randomly assigned to each of the four groups.
Chapter IV presents the data obtained from this
study and the analysis of that data. A one-way analysis
10
a variance statistical procedure was employed.
Chapter V presents a summary of this study, appro
priate conclusions, and recommendations.
CHAPTER II
LITERATURE REVIEW
The prime objective of this study was to determine
whether or not imposed noise could mask auditory distrac
tors so that young children's listening comprehension
scores might improve significantly in an auditory environ
ment including imposed background noise. The chosen back
ground noises were white noise, continuous playground
noise, and music. This chapter attempts to summarize the
research to date on the effects of noise on performance,
relate the findings of three major hypotheses or theories,
and survey the attempts of various researchers to reduce
or alter these effects.
General Background of Effects
of Noise on Performance
Teichner (1963) identified three results of inves
tigations of the effect of environmental noise on perform
ance: those which indicated a decrement in performance,
those which indicated an increment in performance, and
those which indicated no effect on performance. He further
stated that decremental effects have usually been attrib
uted to distraction, incremental effects have been attrib
uted to motivational compensation, and that lack of effect
11
12
has been attributed to a lack of sensitivity of the task
or compensation.
Hoffman (1966) pointed out that research prior to
1964 was restricted almost completely to adultsJ that the
tasks employed were for the most part visual-motorJ and
that "noise" is a very general term that may refer to many
types of auditory stimuli. The 25 studies reported by
Hoffman were compiled in table form including yearJ experi
menterJ number of subjectsJ noise levelJ quiet levelJ taskJ
and findings. No studies using primary children were
reported. No auditory tasks were employed. White noise
was used as the imposed auditory stimuli in most of these
investigations. Hoffman summarized:
Past research of performance under variable noise
thus revealed: (a) a decrement when the mean db level
is above 95J (b) an increased reaction time when the
mean db level is 75J and (c) an increment in perform
ance when the mean level is 64.5 db. (p. 39)
Kryter (197o)J discussing the physiological effects
of noiseJ concluded that no real somatic arousal effects
occur when the noise level is below 40 dbJ that levels
between 40 and 80 db have slight effectsJ and that noise
from 80 to 130 db has some definite degree of effect on
somatic arousal. He noted that with the possible exception
of the highest levels of noiseJ somatic arousal effects
,
adapt with continued steady-state or interrupted exposures
to noiseJ and arousal from noise to begin with is relatively
small and transitory in comparison with the effects of
task motivation.
13
The extensive bibliographies of Floyd (1973, 1974,
1975) and Kramer-Greene (1976) revealed that there are, to
date, no studies that clearly identify any consistent or
predictable effects of noise on performance. The continued
efforts of individual researchers leave many unanswered
questions regarding the major variables.
Theories of Effects of Noise
on Performance
In conducting a review of the literature of the
effects of noise on performance in general and on listening
:in specific, it was helpful to consider three theories
regarding those effects. Broadbent (1957) presented his
Filter Theory based on his own and other investigations in
his bench mark volume "Performance and Communication."
Teichner (1963) presented his own Response Interference
Hypothesis in contrast to Broadbent's theory which Teichner
labeled a sensory interference hypothesis. Kryter (1970)
focused or what he considered the most meaningful theory,
Response Contingency Effects, based on the work of Azrin
(1958).
Broadbent (1957) described his Filter Theory based
on this summary of the effects of noise on behavior:
It is worth noting that the three features which
make sounds particularly annoying are all features
which, in ordinary language, make sounds likely to
secure attention. That is, if a man is observed in
a situation in which he must distribute responses
between several sources of stimulation, he iR more
likely to respond to intense stimuli, to stimuli
which have not recently been presented, and to high
pitched sounds. (pp. 10-16)
14
He further stated that due to the limited capacity
of the-human perceptual system, some incoming sensory
information is filtered out before reaching the main
analyzing centers of the brain. He noted that each sound
is first analyzed for pitch, localization, or other similar
qualities and only sounds possessing certain qualities are
passed on for further analysis. Most often, irrelevant
features of the surroundings are ignored, and task stimuli
are those that control response. However, after prolonged
work in noise, auditory stimulation may interfere with the
task stimulation and produce the effect of an "internal
blink. II
Kryter (1970) pointed out that in 1954 Broadbent
conducted a study which led him to propose the Filter
Theory. Kryter believed that the evidence for that theory
is somewhat inconclusive. He pointed out that in Broad
bent's investigation of the effects of noise on a vigilance
task, noise caused a decrement for only about 27 seconds
out of 11 hours. Further, Kryter summarized the work of
Broadbent, Brewer and Briess, Helper, Loeb, Miller, Smith,
Plutchik, Saul and Jaffe, Sanders, and Park and Payne, by
15
stating that they found steady-state or interrupted noise
up to levels of 120 db or so had no average discernible
effects on the performance of a wide variety of mental and ,
motor tasks. Some of these investigators did find somewhat
greater variability in noise than in quiet.
In giving his view of the distraction response to
noise, Teichner (1963) stated:
Such responses may take the form of a sensory
orientation to the no1se or of subjective states of
annoyance to which the subject may respond, or of
active efforts to reduce or eliminate the noise.
This approach to distraction requires no speculation
about underlying neural mechanisms and, as will be
seen, permits an experimental approach to the problem
of amount of distraction and habituation. From this
point of view, in the presence of noise, the subject
may lose task information because he is responding
directly or indirectly to the noise or he may retain
task information but suffer in an attempt to respond
in more than one manner simultaneously. Classical
studies of division of attention show losses for both
cases. ( p. 84)
Teichner further pointed out that where the stimu
lus is paced by the subject, he has the opportunity for
errorless performance. Therefore, response speed seemed
to be the appropriate measure for subject paced tasks. His
results on a visual search task showed that the change in
noise level increased the time required for decisions and
1
that during the last 50 displays, efficiency of task per
formance increased when the noise level stayed constant at
I
81 db. The loss was somewhat less for the upward shift in
noise level than the downward, which would be indicative,
l_
according to the theory, that arousal of the upward shift
was more significant than that due to the downward shift
or that the distraction for the upward shift was less
severe.
16
Despite Teichner's indication that his theory does
not depend on suppositions regarding neural mechanisms, it
is supported by Hebb's (1955) views on the conceptual ner
vous system. According to Hebb, stimuli serve two func
tions: to cue and to arouse or promote vigilance. They
serve, he stated, to tone up the cortex, with a background
supporting action that is completely necessary if the mes
sages proper are to have their effect.
An explanation of Teichner's results might be
found in Hebb's consideration of the relation of the effec
tiveness of cue function to the level of arousal. When
bombardment is at a low level, an increase will tend to
strengthen or maintain the concurrent cortical activity,
whereas when arousal is already at a high level, the greater
bombardment may interfere with the delicate adjustment
involved in cue function. Hebb concluded that there will
be an optimal level of arousal and it may be that Teichner
has pinpointed that level for auditory stimuli at approxi
mately 81 db.
McBain (1961) concluded that in terms of the "arous
al hypothesis," noise which is low in :·_ntelligibili ty, while
17 I
at the same time being high in variability, should enhance
performance in a monotonous task. His investigation was
conducted using adult ma les as subjects, a monotonous task
which consisted of hand printing continuously in sequence
seven pairs of letters, in conditions of quiet and noise.
McBain did not state the db level of the quiet and noise
conditions. The quiet condition included clicks of the
apparatus and the masking sound of the f an. He described
noise as a recording of spe ech played in reverse with
superimposed short fragments of intelligible conversation,
music, and me aningless sounds, but he did not st ate the
schedule of their inclusion. If he found an optimal level
of arousal, it would be difficult to duplic a te with the
given data.
The Response Contingency Effects theory as outlined
by Kryter (1970) attempted to explain individual differ
ences in reactions to noise by two factors: stimulus con
tingency and response contingency. Founded on the studies
and formulation of Azin (1958), it was assumed that noise
is considered more harmful, disagreeable, or aversive to
some persons than to others. It has been the general
finding that more anxious or introverted or somatic respon
sive personality types are more affected by noise, which
would attest to the existence of a stimulus-contingency
factor. Work by such researchers as Auble and Britton
18 I
(1958) supported the contention that anxiety affects per
formance under imposed background noise. In terms of
learning., the task is performed relatively poorly because
it is related to or contingent upon the aversive noise.
Habituation takes place at different rates for different
people.
The response-contingency factor is dependent on the
assumption that some subjects view noise as punishment and/
or lack of noise as a reward for work performance. The
subject will be more highly motivated and perform better if
he thinks his response will tend to result in maintained
reduced noise. Habituation can take place if the rewards
and punishments are not response-contingent.
Imposed Background Noise
The effects of imposed background noise have been
studied in three major auditory environments: industry.,
open plan office buildings., and educational settings. The
application of imposed background noise to these environ
ments was made in order to improve performance and/or
improve communication in these settings. The results
obtained from research in these areas will be examined in
the remainder of this chapter.
19
Industry
Kirkpatrick (1943) reviewed the application of
music to the industrial environment. He concluded that
there was evidence to support the belief that music in
industry relieves boredom, increases contentment in work,
improves output, lessens fatigue, and makes the work
setting more attractive to applicants. These conclusions
were based in part on the investigations of Burris-Meyer
which revealed increased average production, reduced absen
teeism, and early departures.
The Muzak Corporation, for the past 40 years, has
produced controlled laboratory experiments as well as
industrial investigations of the effect of music on worker
morale, attitude, alertness, and efficiency. Muzak's
product has been described by Keenan (n.d.) as functional
non-entertainment music designed to be unobtrusive and to
accompany the needs and movement of human work. Further:
It is designed to be dynamic (unlike nwhite"
sound) and, through Muzak's unique characteristic of
"stimulus progression," to offset, by varying the
designed characteristics of Muzak-chosen, arranged
and recorded music, the monotonies, fatigues and
work decrements in the work session. (p. 4)
O'Neill (1966) reviewed the background for the
development of functional music which Keenan has described.
He concluded that although attitudes and reactions of the
listener to music are highly subjective, the effectiveness
of mood stimulus programming can be evaluated in terms of
20
increased output, incidence of error, absenteeism and late
ness. Wokoun (1963) found support for the hypothesis that
background music leads to improved vigilance and improved
performance.
Open Plan Office Buildings
Open planning or ''office-landscaping" in commercial
office buildings had its beginning in Germany and later
spread to the United States. Initially many open planned
spaces were unsatisfactory due to lack of speech privacy.
Fatigue and interruption from intruding intelligible speech
led to efforts to improve acoustical materials including
sound screens and the use of a background sound system to
provide adequate speech privacy.
Farrell (1971) reported that early experiments in
the controlled use of masking noise attempted to use air
turbulence in the air-conditioning system to provide mask
ing background noise. These experiments failed because of
1
lack of precision in design, installation, and testing of
air systems. Farrell further suggested that electronic
generation of noise is the best way of achieving a success
ful result. This background sound system has been vari
ously referred to as "white sound," "sound masking,"
"noise masking," or "environmental background sound system."
Pirn (1970) described in detail the variables to
be considered in designing a sound system for open planning.
21
To be effective, background noise must be continuous,
unobtrusive, and yet of adequately high level to supply the
necessary masking of relatively unpredictable intrusive
1
noise. He suggested the use of electronically generated
noise and evenly distributed concealed loudspeakers as the
most reliable of possible solutions.
Educational Settings
Hoffman (1966) addressed the question of the inter
action between an external auditcry distractor and a com
plex mental task. The DAT Verbal Reasoning Test was admin
istered to 281 11th grade high school subjects in the
presence of steady and intermittent noise at 75 db and 85
db. He found that intermittent or steady noise of 85 db
had no effect on intellectual performance, which apparently
contradicted Broadbent's contention that the more complex
the task, the greater the decrement in performance.
Mandell (1966) studied the interaction of perform
ance on a color-word test and an irrelevant auditory dis
tractor by studer.ts at grades 2, 4, and 6. Hoffman's tape
of playground noise was used as the external noise; the db
level was not specified. Mandell found that there was lit
tle or no interdependence between the effects of playground
noise and performance on the color-word task. However, he
found some interference with performance when an irrelevant
auditory distractor was additionally introduced and contrarz
22
to theory--more mature children may be more susceptible.
Eddleblute (1971) measured performance of graduate
and undergraduate students on three programmed textbooks to
determine the possible effects of three auditory environ
ments on the rate of achievement. The three treatments
were normal classroom silence, white noise, and background
music. The music was prepared by the Muzak Corporation and
may therefore be presumed to have been an ascending program.
The white noise was also presented by tape. Noise levels
of the three treatments were not specified but the taped
music and white noise were judged by the investigator to
be unobtrusively audible in a quiet classroom. No signifi
cant difference in information handling rates were observed.
From a national survey of 37 different educational
settings, Fitzroy and Reid (1963) analyzed data taken from
teacher, administrator, and student polls of acceptable
noise levels. Of the their conclusions the following was
of major pertinence:
One of the somewhat surprising aspects of this
survey is that relatively high background noise lev
els do not seem to be objectionable, if the character
of the noise is somewhat bland and undefinable as to
content. By this is meant an accumulation of noise
or intermixed, unrecognizable speech sounds, a sub
dued buzz or hum. It should be somewhat broad in
its frequency components and without pronounced and
abrupt changes in intensity level. A loud, penetrat
ing voice with clear enunciation so that words and
sentences can be understood materially reduces the
acceptability. At the same time, without this high
level masking sound, even a soft voice which is clearly
L understandable becomes an interference. (p. 16)
23
Although Muzak Corporation has provided music for
1
educational settingsJ no reports as to its acceptability
or effectiveness are available at this writing. The HusherJ
a speaker which broadcasts electrically generated noiseJ
has been developed by Bolt Beranek and Newman. Its use in
educational settings has not yet been reported in the
literature.
CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
This experiment was designed to assess the effects
,of four auditory backgrounds on the achievement of primary
students on a listening task. Chapter III describes the
experimental design, subjects, experimental materials,
instrumentation, field procedures, and statistical analysis.
Experimental Design
This study used a randomized control-group posttest
only design with intact classrooms. It was assumed that at
the time o testing, the groups were equal. This design
controls the main effects of history, maturation, and
allows for testing the control group at the same time as
the experimental groups. Following the lead of Van Dalen
and Mayer (1962) a pretest was not administered. A random
table of numbers was used to assign one of four groups to
the control condition and each of the three others to one
of the three experimental conditions. Four one-way analy
ses of variance were used.
24
25
Experimental Sample Population
Informal observation of third-grade students for
12 years by this investigator had revealed a small percent
age of students who seemed unable to screen out external
auditory distractors and who typically complained about
intrusive noises. This phenomenon occurred when the ambi
ent room noise was at a low level and in small-group,
large-group, and tutorial settings.
Up to the time of this investigation, a major edu
cational practice had been to identify students with learn
ing disabilities and to place them in special classes.
There is now a trend to mainstream children with learning
disabilities, that is to place them in the normal class
room.
Rather than identifying students with auditory
processing difficulties, isolating them, and using them as
subjects, this investigator chose to study regularly
enrolled third-grade students in normal classroom settings,
in order to make the best general application of the
results of this study.
At the time the study was conducted, students in the
Beverly Hills Unified School District came from middle- to
upper-class homes. The average IQ for students in the dis
trict was approximately 114. In the four ele-aentary schools
of the district there was little difference in the reading
26
achievement scores as determined by the Stanford Achieve
ment Test.
In the school chosen for the experiment, students
in the third grade had been assigned to their particular
classrooms by their second-grade teachers acting in con
cert. An effort had been made as well to distribute high
and low achievers and students with behavioral problems on
a balanced basis to each of the third-grade classrooms.
Also, new students had been randomly assigned to the
classes having the fewest pupils.
Experimental Variables
Four auditory backgrounds were used as treatment
variables:
1. Ambient Room Noise (T
1
). The ambient room noise
was measured in each educational setting. The
measurement was taken at approximately 12 feet
from the speaker and a level of 40 db was
obtained in the ambient room noise alone set
ting. A signal to noise ratio of 23 db was
set.
2. Imposed White Noise and Ambient Room Noise (T
2
).
It was determined that the ambient room noise
in the second setting was 42 db. The White
Noise was set at a level of 51 db and a signal
to noise ratio of 23 db was established.
3. Imposed Playground Noise and Ambient Room Noise
(T
3
). The ambient room noise in setting three
was 43 db. The Playground Noise was set at a
level of 51 db and a signal to noise ratio of
23 db was established.
4. Imposed Music and Ambient Room Noise (T
4
). It
was detennined that the ambient room noise in
the fourth setting was 41 db. The Imposed Music
was set at 51 db and a signal to noise ratio of
23 db was established.
Experimental Materials
No commercially prepared tapes of the listening
test used in this investigation were available. To assure
that auditory conditions were controlled and that the
recording was of excellent quality, the services of Bolt
Beranek and Newman Inc. were employed. Karl S. Pearsons,
manager of the Psychoacoustics Department, was consulted
and supervised the production of the four auditory tapes.
Mark Taylor, professional narrator, contributed his serv
ices.
First, a master tape of the three subtests of the
Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehension was recorded.
Lovitt (1967) suggested that children prefer a male reader.
The rate of listening was determined by the reader in con
sultation with this investigator and the psychoacoustics
!engineer. No editing was done.
limately 45 minutes in length.
28
The master tape was approx-
The master tape of the Evan Wright Test of Listen-
ing Comprehension alone was used in the ambient room noise
condition. Three duplicates of the master tape were made
on dual track tape with recordings of white noise, play
ground noiseJ and music on the second track. The white
noise was produced by an Allison Noise generator equipment
provided by Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc. The playground
noise was a duplication of Hoffman's tape of playground
noise (HoffmanJ 1966). The music was an ascending progres
sion tape of musical selections especially prepared for
this studyand provided by Muzak Corporation.
Hoffman's tape of playground noise provides a con
tinuous background "hubbub" noise in which children's
voices are heard as they occur on a playground at recess.
ShrieksJ shoutsJ bouncing ballsJ phonemes are heardJ but
now words are discernible. It is the kind of noise that
might be noticed in any elementary classroom at recess.
The technical description of the tape can be found in Hoff
man's dissertation.
Publications by Muzak reveal the elements of music
considered by their research staff to be important to mood
programming (WokounJ 1969). Elements of an ascending pro
gram include tempoJ rhythmJ instrumentationJ and size of
orchestra or mass of sound. Other factors considered
I
include: associative values, mode, melodic configuration,
1
artistic interpretation, and dynamics. The tape used in
this study was approximately 15 minutes in length and
therefore to achieve continuous background music it was
recorded three times on the second track of one tape.
Dependent Variable
29
Listening comprehension, as measured by objective
criterion tests, was the dependent variable. This variable
consisted of three listening tasks: listening vocabulary,
using contextual clues, and following directions. The
individual scores for each task we1·c combined to produce
the total listening comprehension score.
1. Listening vocabulary. A sentence was read, fol-
lowed by four words. The subject was asked to
choose the word which best completed the sentence.
2. Following directions. A series of numerals was
presented and the subject was asked to mark a
sequence of numerals in a certain manner. Two
rectangular shaped houses were presented and
the subject was directed to add structural
details.
3. Contextual clues. A sentence was read which
included one difficult word. The subject was
asked to listen to the sentence and select the
l
I
correct meaning of the difficult word from three
possible choices.
Testing Instrument
30
Neither of the two most widely used commercially
published listening tests, the Brown-Carlsen Listening
Comprehension Test or the Sequential Tests of Educational
Progress (STEP), offered test forms for children enrolled
in third grade. Duker (1968) revealed a suitable testing
instrument, the Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehen
sion, and described it thus:
This is a thorough and carefully done account of
the preparation of a listening test for the early
elementary grades. Wright reports a reliability of
.84 and bases his claim to validity on satisfactory
correlations with teacher ratings, pupil ratings,
the Durrell-Sullivan Reading Capacity Test, and the
Nashville test. The population to which the test
was given consisted of 152 second-~raders, 163 third
graders, and 173 fourth-graders. ,p. 282)
Time constraints were also a consideration. The
typical classroom hour is 50 minutes in length. It was
assumed that the advantages of limiting the test in length
would foster the sustained interest of the subjects, pro
mote cooperation of the classroom teachers, prevent the
interaction of subjects, and limit the loss of students due
to special scheduling of remedial and advanced classes.
L __ -
--------
31
Adaptation of Instrument
The Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehension is
made up of 10 subtests requiring 1 hour and 8 minutes of
actual testing time. It had to be shortened for feasible
use in this study. Three subtests of the testing instru
ment were selected on the basis of how they ranked in
importance by 23 experts who had special knowledge of the
listening process. Listening vocabulary ranked thirdJ
following directions ranked se~ondJ and using contextual
clues ranked sixth out of 20 items. These three subtests
could be administered in the typical classroom period of
50 minutes and were choseri on the basis of time constraints.
Instrumentation
A Sony Type T. C. 2701 track magnetic tape recorder
was used for the classroom playback set-up. The recorder
was placed at the front of the classroom at the approximate
position which was traditionally used by the classroom
teacher. The two speakers were placed one on each side of
the machine) both facing the classroom.
A calibrated 1.0 KH
2
Octive band of noise was
played and the levels were adjusted to read a certain
valueJ depending on the signal to noise ratio. The meas
urement were taken about 12 feet from the speaker for both
speech and imposed noise.
32
Field Procedures
In order to set up the equipment used in testing
and to secure the cooperation of the classroom teachers,
four 15 minute color sound motion pictures were shown to
all third-grade students the first instructional hour of
the school day. The students were then given the regularly
scheduled 20 morning recess. During this time an acousti
cal engineer measured the ambient room noise in each class
room and adjusted the sound level of the recorders which
were used to play back the listening tapes.
The answer sheets were based on those used by
Wright (1937) and were modified to eliminate material
pertaining to those subtests not used. The pupil informa
tion sheet requested first and last name, age, grade, date,
school, and room. This information was provided by the
classroom teacher and filled in by the examiner so that
the subject was not requested to provide such information.
The test booklets contained three separate response sheets,
one for each subtest of the measuring instrument. A test
booklet was placed on each student's desk prior to the
student's return from recess. Two sharpened pencils were
also provided for each student.
The classroom teachers accompanied the students
from recess to their classrooms and established quiet and
order. The investigator started the tapes in each class-
L
33
room and the testing began. The investigator monitored the
halls and no persons were permitted to interrupt the test
ing.
Sony T.C. 100 model tape recorders with new blank
cartridges were used to record the ambient room noise.
Since volume is automatically adjusted by such recorders,
Jno volume level was observable. However, the tapes did
reveal the typical classroom noises of shifting in chairs,
,dropping of pencils, and shuffling of papers as present in 1
what were judged by the classroom teacher to be normal
amounts.
When the testing was completed, the investigator
stopped the tapes, collected the test booklets, and thanked I
the students for their cooperation.
Each test was hand scored by this investigator.
Statistical Analysis
This study used four one-way analysis of variance
designs (See Table 1). A separate analysis of variance
test was conducted for each of the three subparts of the
measuring instrument (the Evan Wright Test of Listening
Comprehension) as well as for the total test. Each of the
analyses of variance tested the variability of the means
jof the four groups within the study (T
1
Ambient Room Noise,
T
2
Ambient Room Noise and Imposed White Noise, T
3
Ambient
Room Noise and Imposed Playground Noise, and T
4
Ambient
,,
Table 1
Diagram of Experimental Design--Four Separate
One-way Analysis of Variance
Evan Wright Test Imposed
Imposed
of' Listening Ambient Room White Playground
Comprehension
Noise
Noise
Noise
Subtest #1
Ti
T2
Ts
Subtest #2
Ti T2 Ts
Subtest #3
Ti
T2
Ts
Total of
Ti Ts
Subtests
T2
34
Imposed
Music
T4
T4
T4
T4
I
Room Noise and Imposed Music). A one-way analysis of
variance was used in this study since no preconceived
interactions would be able to occur between any of the
four groups.
35
The Scheffe procedure for both the .05 and .01
level of significance was used to identify any differences
between group means. A Cochran C and a Bartlett-Box F Test
for Homogeneity of Variance were also used in the analysis.
A fixed effect model was assumed. According to
Kirk ( 1968) J a fixed effect model is one in which ''all
treatment levels about which inferences are to be made are
included in the experiment."
CHAPTER IV
RESULTS
The St~dy
The study was conducted in one of four elementary
schools of the Beverly Hills Unified School District. The
students used in this study were from middle to upper class
homesJ had an average IQ of 114J and showed little differ
ence in reading achievement scores.
The data collected in this study were analyzed
according to the three hypotheses of this study. For each
hypothesis the following tables were developed: (1) Cell
SizeJ MeansJ and Standard DeviationsJ (2) Analysis of Vari
anceJ (3) Test of Homogeneity of VarianceJ and (4) Scheffe's
Tests of Significant Difference between Means with Unequal
Cell Sizes.
The four dependent variables were: (1) Listening
VocabularyJ (2) Following Directions, (3) Contextual Clues,
and (4) Total of Three Subtests of the Evan Wright Test of
Listening Comprehension.
The four treatments used in this study were: (1)
Ambient Room Noise (T
1
), (2) Imposed White Noise and Ambi
ent Room Noise (T
2
), (3) Imposed Playground Noise and
36
37
Ambient Room Noise (T
3
), and (4) Imposed Music and Ambient
Room Noise (T
4
).
The four treatment groups determined by the basic
hypotheses of this study were: (1) Ambient Room Noise (T
1
)
represented the control, (2) Imposed White Noise and Ambi
ent Room Noise (T
2
) stood for the hypothesis that the
imposition of white noise will result in significantly
more effective listening comprehension scores, (3) Imposed
Playground Noise and Ambient Room Noise (T
3
) represented
the hypothesis that the imposition of continuous playground
noise will result in significantly more effective listening
comprehension scores, and (4) Imposed Music and Ambient
Room Noise (T
4
) represented the hypothesis that the imposi
tion of music will result in significantly more effective
listening comprehension.
Table 2 shows cell size means and standard devia
tions for the Listening Vocabulary variable.
Table 3 shows that for the Listening Vocabulary
variable there was no significant difference between the
1
four treatment groups. Table 4 shows that the assumption
of homogeneity of variance for cells of unequal size was
confirmed. Table 5 also indicated there was no signifi
cant difference between means with unequal cell size.
Table 6 shows cell size, means, and standard
deviations for the Following Directions variable.
L
Table 2
Cell Size, Means, and Standard Deviations for
Listening Vocabulary ( 40 questions)
Number of Standard
Treatment Students Means Deviations
Ti
22
34.23 2.71
T2 23 33.91 4.31
Ts 19 35.89 2.96
T4 23 34.65 3.21
Table 3
Analysis of Variance for Listening Vocabulary
(40 questions)
F F
Source df
ss MS
Ratio Prob.
Between groups
3
45.81 15.27
1.33
0.26
Within groups
83 946.75
11.40
Total 86 992.56
Table 4
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for Listening
Vocabulary (4o questions)
Test
Cochrans C
Bartlett-Box F
Results
o.4123
1.808
Prob. of Difference
between Means
0.037
0.142
38
Table 5
Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference between
Means with Unequal Cell Sizes for Listening
Vocabulary (40 questions)
(a= .05 and ~01)
Needed
a Level Difference
Group Means
T2 Ts
.05
.01
4.02
34.23 33.91 35.89 34.65
34.23 33.91 35.89 34.65
Table 6
Cell Size, Means, and Standard Deviations for
Following Directions (14 questions)
Number of Standard
Treatment Students Means Deviations
Ti
22 6.32 2.55
T2 23
6.22 2.52
Ts 19 7.84 3.15
T4 23 6.30 2.96
Table 7
Analysis of Variance for Following Directions
( 14 quest ions)
F F
Source df
ss MS
Ratio Prob.
Between groups
3
36.40 12.13
1.55
0.21
Within groups
83
648.08 7.81
Total 86 684.48
39
40
Table 7 shows that for the Following Directions
variable there was no significant difference between the
four treatment groups. Table 8 shows that the assumption
of homogeneity of variance for cells of unequal size was
confirmed. Table 9 also indicated there was no significant
difference between means with unequal cell size.
Table 10 shows cell sizeJ meansJ and standard
deviations for the Contextual Clues variable.
Table 11 shows that for the Contextual Clues vari
able there was no significant difference between the four
treatment groups. Table 12 shows that the assumption of
homogeneity of variance for cells of unequal size was con
firmed. Table 13 also indicated there was no significant
difference between means with unequal cell size.
Table 14 shows cell sizeJ meansJ and standard
deivations for the Total of Three Subtests of the Evan
Wright Test of Listening Comprehension.
Table 15 shows that for the Total of Three Subtests
of the Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehension there
was no significant difference between the four treatment
groups. Table 16 shows that the assumption of homogeneity
of variance for cells of unequal size was confirmed.
Table 17 also indicated there was no signficant difference
between means with unequal cell size.
Table 8
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for Following
Directions (14 questions)
Test
Cochrans C
Bartlett-Box F
Results
0.3143
o.48o
Table 9
Prob. of Difference
between Means
o.498
0.669
Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference between
Means with Unequal Cell Sizes for Following
Directions (14 questions)
(a = . 05 and .01)
Needed
a Level Difference
.05
.01
4.02
Group Means
T2 Ts
6.32 6.22
6.32 6.22
7.84 6.30
7.84 6.30
Table 10
Cell Size, Means, and Standard Deviations for
Contextual Clues (6 questions)
Treatment
l __ _
Number of
Students
22
23
19
23
Means
3.91
3.52
4.26
3.87
Standard
Deviations
0.81
1.20
0.87
1.06
41
Table 11
Analysis of Variance for Contextual Clues
( 6 questions)
F
Source df ss MS Ratio
Between groups
3
5. 76 1.92 1.90
Within groups
83 83.85
1.01
Total 86 89.61
Table 12
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for
Contextual Clues (6 questions)
F
Prob.
0.14
Test Results
Prob. of Difference
between Means
Cochrans C
Bartlett-Box F
0.3625
1.320
Table 13
0.160
0.265
Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference between
Means with Unequal Cell Sizes for Contextual
Clues (6 questions)
(a= .05 and .01)
Needed
a Level Difference
.05
.01
4.02
Group Means
T2 T3
3.91 3.52
3.91 3.52
4.26
4.26
42
Table 14
Cell Size, Means, and Standard Deviations for
Total of Three Subsets of the Evan Wright
Test of Listening Comprehension
Treatment
( 60 questions)
Number of
Students
22
23
19
23
Table 15
Means
44.45
43.65
48.oo
44.83
Standard
Deviations
4.49
6.97
6.06
6.41
Analysis of Variance for Total of Three Subsets
of the Evan Wright Test of
Listening Comprehension
(60 Questions)
F F
Source df SS MS Ratio Prob.
Between groups 3 218.88 72.96 1.98 0.12
Within groups
Total
83 3060.06 36.87
86
43
I
Table 16
Tests for Homogeneity of Variances for Total
of Three Subsets of the Evan Wright Test
of Listening Comprehension
Test
Cochrans C
(60 questions)
Results
Prob. of Difference
between Means
Bartlett-Box F
0.3313
1.379
0.346
0.246
Table 17
Scheffe's Tests of Significant Difference between
Means with Unequal Cell Sizes for Total of
Three Subsets of the Evan Wright Test
of Listening Comprehension
(60 questions)
(a= .05 and .01)
Needed
a Level Difference
Group Means
T2 T3
.05
.01
4.02 44.45 43.65 48.oo 44.83
44.45 43.65 48.00 44.83
44
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, RESULTS, DISCUSSION,
AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Included in this chapter is a brief summary of the
purpose, · problems, and conclusions of this study. The
conclusions are based on the analysis of the data presented
in Chapter IV. There is a discussion of the findings as
1·
they pertain to listening in the primary grades. Recommen-
dations are based on inferences derived from the analysis
and interpretation of the data produced by this study.
Summary
The purpose of this study was to observe third
grade students' listening achievement in four different
auditory environments by imposing one of three types of
noise on the normal ambient room noise in three of the
classrooms and ambient room noise in the fourth classroom.
A second aim was to compare music with white noise and
recorded playground noise to determine if music was a
superior masking noise of caused arousal and improved
achievement.
The main dependent varia- ole of ttiis study was the
total score of three subtests drawn from the Evan Wright
45
46
Test of Listening Comprehension. The independent variables 1
were ambient room noise and three imposed background noises.
One of the four elementary schools of the Beverly
Hills Unified School District was randomly chosen and
students in four intact third-grade classrooms were ran
ldomly assigned to one control and three experimental groups.
Eighty-seven students were tested in their regular class
:rooms. No teacher ratings of listening achievement were
I
used in either assigning group placement or determining
results. No pretests of listening achievement were given.
The only testing was a posttest consisting of three sub
tests of listening comprehension in four auditory environ
ments. These subtest scores made up a final total score.
Results
One of the most important, definitive findings of
this study was that ambient room noise did not affect
listening comprehension significantly. This finding was
confirmed on each dependent variable: Listening Vocabulary,
Following Directions, Contextual Clues, and Total of Three
Subtests of the Evan Wright Test of Listening Comprehension.J
It was also another finding that none of the three masking
,noises resulted in any significant improvement and achieve
ment on assigned 11stening tasks. A further finding was
that music was not a superior masking noise nor did it
1 stimulate arousal significantly.
I
47
Discussion
This discussion relates the findings of this study
to the problems as presented in Chapter I and to the review
of literature in Chapter II. Caution regarding conclusions
is required due to the limited scope of the listening tasks
tested.
This study measured the ambient room noise in the
selected classrooms to be approximately 40 db. This is not
a high intensity noise. Shifting of chairs) clicking of
pencils) and whispering are audible in such an environment
and might result in distraction and poor achievement on a
listening task. This did not occur in ambient room noise
alone (T
1
). This would seem to indicate that in the normal
classrooms most students filter out irrelevant features of
the surroundings and task stimuli are those that control
response as suggested by Broadbent (1957).
Furthermore) the application of white noise (T
2
) to
the educational setting does not appear to result in an
increase in listening comprehension as was suggested by
the previous studies of the open plan in offices (PirnJ
1970; Farrell) 1971). This may lend support to the obser
vation of Mandell (1966) that more mature children may be
more susceptible to distraction due to intrusive noise.
It should also be noted that the somewhat higher
than normal IQ of 114 of the subjects in this study may
48
Jhave interacted with the treatment. Hall (1954) pointed
out that intelligence was of prime importance in listening.
1
Further investigation of intelligence and the ability to
maintain vigilance under distracting conditions seems to be
indicated.
This study also found that recorded playground
noise (T
3
) had no discernible effect on listening compre
hension. Along with Hoffman (1966) this study tends to
question Broadbent's (1957) hypothesis that the more complex
the taskJ the greater the decrement in performance due to
intrusive background noise.
The data revealed in Chapter IV also refute the
hypothesis that music in an ascending program (T
4
) promotes
arousal and promotes better performance on a listening
comprehension task. Since no attempt was made to survey
attitudes of students) results in that area remain unknown.
This study was designed to test the basic hypothe
sis that a continuingJ unobtrusiveJ high level background
noise might sufficiently mask ambient room noise in a
regular classroom that listening comprehension by primary
students might be significantly improved. No such improve
ment was evident as the results of this studyJ presented in
Chapter IVJ indicate.
Research in both industry and school settings had
previously suggested that intrusive noise had resulted in
49
decreased production and increased annoyance. Some studies
on cognitive tasks had shown degeneration of performance in
the presence of intrusive noise. The aim of this study was
to generate some acceptable alternatives. It was also
proposed that one specific kind of background noise (music)
would stimulate arousal and therefore promote listening
comprehension to a greater degree than the other two altern~
atives. The data collected and the statistical methods
used in this study do not support these hypotheses.
Recommendations
Four recommendations for presentation of listening
tasks in the normal classroom can be made from the results
of this study.
1. The students should be instructed that ambient
room noise does not affect listening comprehen
sion. Students and teachers might be given
opportunities to prove noise does not affect
listening comprehension by performing listening
tasks under different intensities and types of
noise with immediate feedback as to performance.
2. Auditory training to identify environmental
noises might be given so that students can
easily filter out noise not related to task.
3. Students should be instructed that noise is a
normal condition in a working world and that a
certain level of noise is acceptable.
4. Students might be permitted to select environ
mental background noise and set level of inten
sity in order to enhance their pleasure in the
listening task.
Additional investigation should be done in the
three areas identified in the study:
1. Replication of the study, using increased inten
sities of ambient room noise.
2~ Replication of the study, using a population of
children with auditory decoding and encoding
disabilities.
50
3. Replication of the study, using different listen
ing tasks.
REFERENCES
Auble, D., & Britton, N. Anxiety as a factor influencing
routine performance under auditory stimuli. Journal
of General Psychology, 1958, 58, 111-114.
!
Azrin, N. H. Some effects of noise on human behavior.
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior,
I 1958, !, 183-200.
I
Broadbent, D. F. Effects of noise on behavior. In C. M.
Harris (Ed.), Handbook of noise control. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1957.
Broadbent, D. E. Perception and communication. London:
Pergamon Press, 1958.
Chudovsky, K. From two to five. Ios Angeles: University
of California Press, 1968.
Duker, S. Listening. In R. L. Ebel (Ed.), Encyclopedia
of educational research (4th ed.). New York: Macmillan,
1969.
Duker, S. Listening bibliography. Metuchen, N.J.: The
Scarecrow Press, 1968.
Eddleblute, C. E. Jr. Some effects of white noise and
background music on learner information handling rates.
Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Syracuse University,
1971.
Farrell, R. Masking noise systems in open and clos~d
spaces. Journal of the Audio Engineering Society,
1971, 19, 197-201.
Fitzroy, D., & Reid, J. L. Acoustical environment of
school buildings (Technical Report No. 1). New York:
Educational Facilities Laboratory, 1963.
Floyd, M. K. A bibliography of noise 1965-1970. Troy,
I N.Y.: The Whitson Publishing Company, 1973.
i
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Asset Metadata

Creator Handelsman, Mary Crutchfield (author)

Core Title Effects of imposed background noise on listening comprehension of primary children

School School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Education

Degree Conferral Date 1977-06

Publication Date 06/01/1977

Defense Date 06/01/1977

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag listening,OAI-PMH Harvest

Format theses (aat)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Allen, William H. (committee chair)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC25315

Unique identifier UC25315

Identifier Educ Ed.D. '77 H236 (call number),etd-Handelsman-1977.pdf (filename)

Legacy Identifier etd-Handelsman-1977

Document Type Dissertation

Format theses (aat)

Rights Handelsman, Mary Crutchfield

Internet Media Type application/pdf

Type texts

Source 20230120-usctheses-microfilm-box5 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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