Indoor soundscape model: Assessing contextual factors in open-plan offices on university campuses in Surabaya, Indonesia

Abstract

Evaluation research in Western countries shows that soundscape perception and work behaviour in an open-plan office are negative due to uncontrolled sound levels and diminished visual and acoustic privacy. This condition resulted in a noteworthy diminution in employee performance and comfort. Most offices in large cities, including those in Indonesia, also follow the trend of adopting an open-plan system. For this reason, it is necessary to conduct further studies in the local environment. Contextual experience is a key aspect in indoor soundscape studies, of which subjective evaluation is an important part. This study further investigates the causal relationship between contextual factors related to space usage and personal and demographic aspects on psychological, expectation, soundscape perception, and work behaviour aspects. The questionnaire survey was conducted on full-time employees at six administrative offices on two university campuses in Surabaya. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyse statistically the collected data and to test the formulated hypotheses. The results reveal a significant path from personal and demographical to psychological, which has the highest estimated t value of 9.438 and is supported by a significance level of p < .01 (t0.01>2.58). Social-cultural characteristic indicators, namely, societal values and lifestyle, have the highest loading and consequently have a large influence on soundscape perception and work behaviour in the local environment. This results in certain work behaviour reflected in the reactions, responses, soundscape preferences, and activities of employees working in the local environment, which differs from that of those residing in Western countries.