Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
4.4
2.4
Journals
Forests
Special Issues
Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition
share announcement

Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Forestry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 2354

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Xin-Chen Hong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Architecture and Urban-Rural Planning, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China
Interests: soundscape; biophilic design; public health; urban forests; quiet habitat
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Jiang Liu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Architecture and Urban-Rural Planning, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China
Interests: soundscape and landscape planning and design; landscape ecology; ecological planning; landscape resource management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Guangyu Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Forestry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
Interests: forest management; forest policy; land-use change; conservation; ecosystems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The World Health Organization (WHO) has the goal of reducing citizens' exposure to community noise in urban and suburban areas. Urban forests contribute to a healthy environment for the public in high-density cities. Soundscapes play a positive health-related role in urban areas, especially in natural soundscapes in urban forests. The effects are not limited to psychological and physical rehabilitation but also have ecological significance, such as protecting the acoustic environment for animal communication in forested areas. Additionally, soundscape perception is closely related to other perceptions, contributing to the visiting experience in urban forests. These facts demonstrate that soundscapes in urban forests have profound connotations worth further exploration.

Thus, we propose this Special Issue, “Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition”. We welcome submissions of original research articles, reports, technical notes, reviews, and mini-reviews covering topics including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Ecological patterns and processes of forest soundscapes;
  • Boundary effects and perceptual topology;
  • Natural soundscape and human health;
  • Experience of multi-sensory interactions;
  • Environmental behavior and cognitive disposition;
  • Soundscape resource management in forests.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Acoustics.

Dr. Xin-Chen Hong
Prof. Dr. Jiang Liu
Dr. Guangyu Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • natural soundscape
  • ecological pattern of soundscape
  • multi-sensory interaction
  • soundscape resource management
  • environmental behavior
  • environmental health

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

22 pages, 13676 KiB  
Article
Does Urban Green Space Pattern Affect Green Space Noise Reduction?
by Liyi Feng, Jiabing Wang, Binyan Liu, Fangbing Hu, Xinchen Hong and Wenkui Wang
Forests 2024, 15(10), 1719; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15101719 - 28 Sep 2024
Viewed by 568
Abstract
The effect of urban green spaces on traffic noise reduction has been extensively studied at the level of single vegetation, hedges, etc., but there is a lack of corresponding studies at the scale of spatial patterns of urban green spaces. Therefore, this study [...] Read more.
The effect of urban green spaces on traffic noise reduction has been extensively studied at the level of single vegetation, hedges, etc., but there is a lack of corresponding studies at the scale of spatial patterns of urban green spaces. Therefore, this study aims to analyze the relationship between the spatial pattern of urban green space and the change in green space’s noise reduction capacity. Through the morphology spatial pattern analysis method, this analysis divides the urban green space in the Fuzhou high-tech zone into seven types of elements with different ecological definitions and simulates the noise condition of the urban environment with the presence of green space as well as without the presence of green space by computer simulation, calculates the distribution map of the noise reduction produced by the urban green space, and analyzes the correlation between the seven types of green space elements and the noise reduction with the geographically weighted regression modeling analysis. The study finds that (1) Urban green space patterns can significantly affect the net noise reduction of green space. Areas with high green coverage can produce a stronger green space noise reduction effect. (2) More complex green space shapes and more fragmented urban green space can produce higher noise reduction. (3) The green space close to the source of noise can exert a stronger noise reduction effect. Therefore, in the process of planning and design, from the perspective of improving the urban acoustic environment, the configuration of high-quality green spaces in areas with higher levels of noise pollution should be given priority, which may have better noise reduction effects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 2866 KiB  
Article
Effect of Exposure to 2D Video of Forest Environment with Natural Forest Sound on Psychological Well-Being of Healthy Young Adults
by Emilia Janeczko, Małgorzata Woźnicka, Wojciech Kędziora, Krzysztof Janeczko, Katarzyna Śmietańska, Piotr Podziewski and Jarosław Górski
Forests 2024, 15(9), 1549; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15091549 - 2 Sep 2024
Viewed by 770
Abstract
Background and Objectives: In recent years, there has been a significant increase in interest in the health benefits of contact with nature. The theoretical and practical aspects of this issue are constantly being investigated. It is worth noting, however, that there is a [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: In recent years, there has been a significant increase in interest in the health benefits of contact with nature. The theoretical and practical aspects of this issue are constantly being investigated. It is worth noting, however, that there is a large group of people for whom the only available form of contact with nature can only be through images (the view outside the window, photos and films about nature), recorded sounds of nature or descriptions of nature. Research indicating how much exposure to nature in the dimension of virtual reality achieves improvements in well-being, mood and vitality is therefore urgently needed. Material and Methods: The main goal of the experiment was to examine whether watching a 20-min 2D video of forest environment or reading a textbook on forest knowledge for 20 min would bring any psychological benefits. The order of both exposures was intentionally changed (reversed) for every second participant in this study to reduce the order effect. A group of 16 volunteers, students of Warsaw University of Life Sciences, took part in the experiment. The psychological tests before and after each of the two parts of the experiment (viewing a picture with sound and reading a book) were established using five questionnaires: Profile of Mood State (POMS); Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS); Restorative Outcome Scale (ROS); Subjective Vitality Scale (SVS) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Results: As a result of the analyses, a 20-min viewing of a 2D video of a forest with natural sounds of nature was shown to have a positive effect on the psychological relaxation of the subjects in the form of an increase in restorativeness and vitality in the participants of the experiment, as well as a greater decrease in negative feelings, tension and anger than when reading a forest-themed book. Watching a video of a landscape can reduce tension and anger levels significantly, which can be an important guideline in relation to the interior design of public spaces and the protection of employees from the adverse effects of psychosocial working conditions, as well as the desire to stabilize anger and maintain emotional stability in everyday life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

54 pages, 26713 KiB  
Article
Thermal–Acoustic Interaction Effects on Physiological and Psychological Measures in Urban Forests: A Laboratory Study
by Ye Chen, Taoyu Li, Shaoyou Chen, Hangqing Chen and Yuxiang Lan
Forests 2024, 15(8), 1373; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15081373 - 6 Aug 2024
Viewed by 658
Abstract
The environment in which people live is a complex system influenced by multiple factors interacting with each other, and therefore, it is crucial to deeply explore the influences of various factors on environmental perception. Among the numerous factors affecting the experience of urban [...] Read more.
The environment in which people live is a complex system influenced by multiple factors interacting with each other, and therefore, it is crucial to deeply explore the influences of various factors on environmental perception. Among the numerous factors affecting the experience of urban forests visits, the thermal–acoustic environment stands out prominently. This study focuses on urban forests located in subtropical regions, with specific research conducted in the Xihu Park in Fuzhou, China. The study explores the thermal–acoustic interaction in urban forest environments. A total of 150 participants evaluated the perception of sound, thermal sensation, and overall perception through laboratory experiments, with 36 of them having their objective physiological indicators monitored. Different levels of sound and temperature were selected for the experiments, with three levels for each type of sound. Our results show that increasing temperature enhanced the perceived loudness of sound, especially when the environment was quiet. Sound type and loudness had a significant impact on thermal sensation, but no interaction was observed with temperature. Moreover, we found that certain sounds could improve overall comfort, and the effect was most evident at moderate loudness. Temperature had a significant influence on both comfort and annoyance, with increasing temperature leading to higher annoyance. These findings provide important insights into how the interplay between sound and heat affects human perception and emotional state, providing scientific guidance for the design of more human-centered environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soundscape in Urban Forests - 2nd Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop