The Influence of Sensitivity for Road Traffic Noise on Residential Location: Does it Trigger a Process of Spatial Selection?

People move to another house for different reasons. It is sometimes presumed that a process of self-selection might take place on the basis of noise sensitivity, i.e., sensitive people would either leave high noise areas or not move into these areas in the first place. Thus, a “survivor population” would remain in the high noise areas. This research aims to investigate whether such a process can be observed in the Netherlands. The study does not show evidence of a process of self-selection based on noise sensitivity. Nevertheless, the results suggest that noise-sensitive people are less satisfied with their living environment and are more willing to move than those who are not noise sensitive. Due to the limited sample size, external validity is limited.

[1]  James M. Fields,et al.  Effect of Personal and Situational Variables on Noise Annoyance: with Special Reference to Implications for En Route Noise , 1992 .

[2]  R. Guski Personal and social variables as co-determinants of noise annoyance. , 1999, Noise & health.

[3]  William A. V. Clark,et al.  RECENT RESEARCH ON MIGRATION AND MOBILITY: A REVIEW AND INTERPRETATION , 1982 .

[4]  R. Job,et al.  The role of noise sensitivity in the noise-response relation: a comparison of three international airport studies. , 2004, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

[5]  W. Ellermeier,et al.  Psychoacoustic correlates of individual noise sensitivity. , 2001, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

[6]  H. Vos,et al.  Demographic and attitudinal factors that modify annoyance from transportation noise , 1999 .

[7]  R. Job Community response to noise: A review of factors influencing the relationship between noise exposure and reaction , 1988 .

[8]  S L Staples Human response to environmental noise. Psychological research and public policy. , 1996, The American psychologist.

[9]  Rainer Höger,et al.  Living on Polluted Soil , 2000 .

[10]  J. Dovidio,et al.  Psychological Research and Public Policy: Bridging the Gap , 2007 .

[11]  P. Stallen A theoretical framework for environmental noise annoyance. , 1999, Noise & health.

[12]  J. Dayton-Johnson,et al.  Migration and Employment * , 2009 .

[13]  J. Gallacher,et al.  Road traffic noise, noise sensitivity and psychological disorder , 1993, Psychological Medicine.

[14]  J. Gallacher,et al.  Road traffic noise, noise sensitivity and psychological disorder. , 1993, Schriftenreihe des Vereins fur Wasser-, Boden- und Lufthygiene.

[15]  W. Ellermeier,et al.  Psychoacoustic correlates of individual noise sensitivitya ) , 2001 .

[16]  S. Stansfeld,et al.  Sensitivity to noise in a community sample: I. Measurement of psychiatric disorder and personality , 1985, Psychological Medicine.

[17]  M Topf,et al.  Noise-induced stress in hospital patients: coping and nonauditory health outcomes. , 1985, Journal of human stress.

[18]  L. Fechter,et al.  Characterising conditions that favour potentiation of noise induced hearing loss by chemical asphyxiants. , 2000, Noise & health.

[19]  R. Job Noise sensitivity as a factor influencing human reaction to noise. , 1999, Noise & health.

[20]  Jon P. Nelson,et al.  HIGHWAY NOISE AND PROPERTY VALUES. A SURVEY OF RECENT EVIDENCE , 1982 .

[21]  J. Gallacher,et al.  Road traffic noise and psychiatric disorder: prospective findings from the Caerphilly study , 1996, BMJ.

[22]  S. Stansfeld,et al.  Noise, noise sensitivity and psychiatric disorder: epidemiological and psychophysiological studies. , 1993, Psychological medicine.

[23]  William A. V. Clark,et al.  Changing Jobs and Changing Houses: Mobility Outcomes of Employment Transitions , 1999 .

[24]  F. J. Langdon Noise nuisance caused by road traffic in residential areas: Part III , 1976 .

[25]  Wolfgang Ellermeier,et al.  Psychometric properties of four measures of noise sensitivity: a comparison , 1999 .

[26]  Mark Wardman,et al.  Stated Choice Valuations of Traffic Related Noise , 2006 .

[27]  W. Michelson,et al.  Long and Short Range Criteria for Housing Choice and Environmental Behavior , 1980 .

[28]  Clara H. Mulder,et al.  Residential Relocations in the Life Course , 1999 .

[29]  Ian H. Flindell,et al.  Non-acoustical factors in environmental noise. , 1999, Noise & health.

[30]  E. Oehrstroem EFFECTS OF LOW LEVELS OF ROAD TRAFFIC NOISE DURING THE NIGHT: A LABORATORY STUDY ON NUMBER OF EVENTS, MAXIMUM NOISE LEVELS AND NOISE SENSITIVITY , 1995 .

[31]  J. Fields Effect of personal and situational variables on noise annoyance in residential areas , 1993 .

[32]  N. Weinstein Individual differences in reactions to noise: a longitudinal study in a college dormitory. , 1978, The Journal of applied psychology.

[33]  A. Oswald,et al.  Moving for Job Reasons , 2001 .

[34]  M. J. Maher,et al.  ROUTE CONTROL OF TRAFFIC IN URBAN ROAD NETWORKS: REVIEW AND PRINCIPLES , 1977 .

[35]  S. M. Taylor,et al.  A path model of aircraft noise annoyance , 1984 .

[36]  J Kastka,et al.  On the interaction of sensory experience, causal attributive cognitions and visual context parameters in noise annoyance. , 1987, Developments in toxicology and environmental science.

[37]  Franssen Eam,et al.  Hinder door milieufactoren en de beoordeling van de leefomgeving in Nederland. Inventarisatie Verstoringen 2003 , 2004 .

[38]  C Levy-Leboyer,et al.  "Individual differences in noise annoyance: four explanations". , 1987, Developments in toxicology and environmental science.

[39]  H. Miedema,et al.  Annoyance from transportation noise: relationships with exposure metrics DNL and DENL and their confidence intervals. , 2001, Environmental health perspectives.

[40]  H. Vos,et al.  Noise sensitivity and reactions to noise and other environmental conditions. , 2003, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.