Assessing noise annoyance: an improvement-oriented approach.

A concept for practice-oriented assessment of noise annoyance at the workplace is presented. Employees evaluated the noise situation at their workplace by characterizing the loudest noise event with respect to relevant noise characteristics. The results from a first use of the questionnaire for Subjective Evaluation of Noise Characteristics in Office Workplaces (SENO) show (1) a general need for an additional constructive measure of subjective noise annoyance, (2) that evaluation of the loudest noise event is representative for the overall workplace situation, and (3) that coping plays a crucial role and should be explicitly controlled. Finally, examples of how to use SENO for improving the workplace situation are given.