Study shows traffic impact on mental health

Nature sounds more effective at reducing stress

There’s a mental health treatment happening right outside your window, a new study suggests. If you can hear the sound of cars moving in your street, and the speed of the road is high, it’s a stressor. The slower the cars on your street, the less stress and anxiety you’ll experience.

The research, by scientists at the University of the West of England, comes at a crucial time as cities around the world debate the merits of lowering speed limits.

Traffic speeds and noise levels

According to Study Finds, when people can hear natural sounds without the interference of high-speed traffic noise, they experience lower levels of stress and anxiety.

However, this calming effect diminishes as traffic speeds and accompanying noise levels increase. It’s like trying to appreciate a Mozart symphony while someone is running a vacuum cleaner; the essential beauty is lost in the mechanical noise.

Measuring Sound Levels

To reach this conclusion, the researchers conducted an experiment with 68 students, carefully designing a series of tests to measure how different soundscapes affected the participants’ moods and stress levels.

Each participant underwent three rounds of exposure to different soundscapes: pure nature sounds (including bird songs), nature sounds mixed with 20 mph traffic noise, and nature sounds mixed with 40 mph traffic noise.

To ensure that the results were not simply reflecting the participants’ natural mood swings, the researchers first exposed them to stress-inducing stimuli, such as thinking about complex math problems presented with flashing colors and annoying background noise.

After this deliberate stress induction, the participants listened to the different soundscapes while the researchers measured their anxiety and stress levels using standardized psychological measures.

Nature Sounds Most Effective

Nature soundscapes alone proved to be the most effective at reducing stress and anxiety, with participants reporting the lowest levels of stress after listening to pure nature sounds.

When 20mph traffic noise was added to the mix, the calming effects were somewhat reduced but still present. However, when faster 40mph traffic noise was introduced, the therapeutic benefits of nature sounds were significantly masked, resulting in higher levels of reported stress and anxiety.

“While cities have traditionally focused on creating green spaces, this research suggests that these areas also need acoustic protection,” the researchers said, by restricting traffic speeds in residential areas.