Effects of Natural Sounds on Attention Restoration Outdoors (NEO)

This study aims to examine whether listening to natural sounds in a noisy outdoor environment compared to no natural sounds influences behavioural, cognitive, affective, and physiological markers.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Mental Fatigue; Heart Rate Variability; Working Memory; Cognitive Fatigue; Behavioral Performance; Positive and Negative Affect; Inhibition, Psychological; Perceived Restoration
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: No Masking Sounds; Other: Masking Sounds

Detailed Description

The investigators hypothesize that listening to natural sounds has restorative effects on attention by supporting greater use of involuntary attention. This generates the prediction that exposure to natural sounds in the context of a noisy outdoor environment will have greater restorative effects on attention (i.e., physiological, affective, cognitive, and behavioural) as compared to the control group (exposed to environmental noise only). Individual differences (i.e., age, gender, caffeine and food intake, body mass index, skin temperature, noise sensitivity, sleep quality, baseline physiology and behavioural performance) will be examined and accounted for. Environmental factors (i.e., outdoor humidity, temperature, and noise) will also be accounted for.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Singapore
  • Singapore, Singapore, 639798
    • Recruiting
    • Cultural Science Innovations, Nanyang Technological University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 35 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Singapore-based
• Non-clinical
• 18-35years

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals with hearing difficulties or failing to meet the minimal threshold for normal hearing
• Individuals with a history of ear, developmental, neurological, or psychiatric disorder

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Outdoor Environment; Exposure to outdoor environmental noise	Other: No Masking Sounds; No masking sounds will be played from outdoor speakers.
Experimental: Outdoor Environment with Machine-Learning Selected Masking Sounds; Exposure to outdoor environmental noise and masking sounds	Other: Masking Sounds; Masking sounds will be played from outdoor speakers.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Reverse Corsi Task (Change)	Change in Span and Reaction Time	baseline and up to 60 mins after sound intervention
Go/NoGo Task (Change)	Change in Accuracy and Reaction Time	baseline and up to 60 mins after sound intervention
Change in Heart Rate Variability	Electrocardiograph and photoplethysmograph (Change)	1 day (during fatiguing task and sound intervention)
Positive and Negative Affect Schedule - Expanded Form	Positive and Negative Affect Score	up to 60 mins after sound intervention
Fatigue State Questionnaire (Change)	Change in Fatigue State Questionnaire Score	baseline and up to 60 mins after sound intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Perceived Restorativeness Soundscape Scale	Perceived Restorativeness Soundscape Scale Score	up to 60 mins after sound intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Nanyang Technological University
• Collaborators: National Research Foundation, Singapore; Ministry of National Development, Singapore; Housing and Development Board, Singapore

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 24, 2022
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): March 15, 2023
• Study Completion (Anticipated): May 15, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 5, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 10, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): January 11, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 23, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 21, 2023
• Last Verified: March 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Fatigue; Mental Fatigue
• Other Study ID Numbers: COT-V4-2020-1-S004

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No