Overview

Noise stress affects many different cognitive functions, including attention, memory, reaction times, executive function, decision-making.
Noise affects productivity.
- Dean 2020 randomized exposure to engine noise during a textile training course at a government training facility. He found that “an increase of 10 dB reduces productivity by approximately 5%.”
Personality type influences how noise affects one’s cognition—introverts are more sensitive to noise. However, when performing low to moderately complex tasks, they may benefit from listening to soft music.
- Mohammed et al. (2018) showed that extraverts work more quickly in the presence of noise than introverts. Introverts’ levels of attention, tolerance, and focus also decrease more than extroverts when exposed to higher noise levels.
- Gonzalez and Aiello 2019 show that for people who get bored easily and need more frequent external stimulation, music impairs their cognition. Contrastingly, for people who need low external stimulation, they can benefit from listening to soft music while completing low to moderately complex tasks.
Generally, white noise can improve short-term concentration and cognition in specific (e.g. loud/distracting) environments. However, white noise should not be played for extended periods of time.
- Othman et. al (2019) measured young adults' responses to auditory stimuli when exposed to different background noise levels using an fMRI machine. The study found that auditory and working memory (AWM) was significantly enhanced under a 10 and 5 signal-to-noise (SNR) ratio. (When exposed to an auditory stimuli at 60 dB, the optimal background noise level was around 50-55 dB).

In a study of eighty participants, the half of the participants listening to white noise demonstrated superior recall accuracy. White noise may also increase the speed of arithmetic computations and help children with attention deficit disorders.
Chronic low levels of noise are detrimental to human health and can damage the auditory region of the brain. These effects have been observed in the 60-70 dB sound pressure level range, which is common among white noise generators.
The effects of noises < 70 dB are unclear, but may follow an inverted-U relationship where mild levels of noise can be beneficial depending on the task at hand.
- (see Othman et. al (2019) above)
- In a study of white noise’s effects on children’s cogn

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