Soundscape design for people with dementia; The correlation between psychoacoustic parameter and human perception of safety and mood

Abstract

In its base, soundscape design has a human-centred approach to the acoustic environment by putting a person's perception at the heart of the design process. The goal is to improve people's quality of life and well-being through sonic environments. The soundscape approach becomes complex when designing for people with cognitive complexities. It is critical to find ways to understand the connection between soundscape and people's responses. In this research, a personalized soundscape is designed based on recognizable sounds that give persons with dementia clues regarding time and place. Research has shown the positive effect of natural and non-natural soundscape on people with cognitive difficulties. Adding recognizable sounds to the soundscape gives people a feeling of safety, elevates their mood and activates them. The soundscape then will be evaluated by persons with dementia or their caregivers for necessary adjustment. The sound's evaluation process depends on the sound's physical characteristics, the psychoacoustic parameter of sound, and the person's cognition and psychological state. The research looks at the psychoacoustic parameter of evaluated sounds (sharpness, loudness, and roughness) concerning a sense of safety and improving the mood. The goal is to find a correlation between these parameters and sound selection to improve the process and enhance people's quality of life through soundscape design.