Noise in the preschool. Health and preventive measures.

The overall purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the sound environment in Swedish daycare facilities, and the well-being and health consequences of being exposed to noise everyday for employees at daycare facilities. Moreover, the researcher wants to examine the initiatives that can be launched to limit noise by looking at different acoustic and organisational initiatives.

The study shows that the majority of the early childhood educators reported that they were made tired by the noise and their sleep was disturbed by working in an environment with a high noise level. Analyses of work load among the employees show that they use much energy on working in a noisy environment which results in stress and burn-out. Furthermore, the study shows that the level of exposure to noise is fairly evenly distributed between the different daycare facilities. There were also only small differences in the level of exposure in terms of different days of the week, but there were large differences between individuals, i.e. there were large differences in how sensitive the individual staff members were to noise. The early childhood educators characterise the sound environment as the most problematic occupational safety and health factor. According to the study, the most pronounced sources of noise are children’s voices and sound from activities. The experience of having a poor sound environment impairs the prerequisites for the pedagogical work and increases the frequency of health problems. Acoustic measures such as new ventilation systems, new tables, insulating wall panels, toys that do not make noise and fewer children in the rooms turned out to have a much greater effect on the sound environment than organisational measures such as a relaxation room, sound and voice training for children and adults or installing a noise meter.

The dissertation is based on a collaboration with daycare facilities in Umeå Municipality in Sweden and consists of two sub-studies. A total of 101 early childhood educators took part in the first sub-study, and 24 early childhood educators took part in the second sub-study. The first sub-study is about measuring the noise level in play rooms and eating rooms. The impact on experience and health effects of the sound environment was analysed through a questionnaire survey and tests of the stress hormone cortisol in the early childhood educators. In addition, audiometric screenings were carried out to test the hearing of the participants. In sub-study two, the researcher examined the correlation between noise and occupational safety and health, and how this affects the stress level of the employees.

Sjödin, F. (2012). Noise in the preschool. Health and preventive measures. Umeå universitet: Institutionen för folkhälsa och klinisk medicin, Yrkes- och miljömedicin.