Acoustic refurbishments in a university lecture room: effects on speaker's comfort and voice use

Poor acoustic conditions in learning spaces have a detrimental effect on the speaker´s health and constitutes a risk factor for voice disorders. Previous research indicate that an acoustic refurbishment of the learning space has the potential to increase well-being and decrease voice related health problems among teachers, but the research is scarce. In this study, we aim to investigate how different acoustic conditions affect the speakers voice use and self-perceived speaker's comfort. Voice recordings of short speech-tasks and self-evaluations of speaker's comfort were collected from fifteen participants during a three-step acoustic refurbishment of a real-life university lecture room in an experimental setting. The influence of background babble and a classroom soundfield amplification system on vocal parameters and self-perceived speaker's comfort were also investigated. Factor analysis of the speaker's comfort questionnaire revealed a two-factor solution where factor 1 represented vocal behavior and perception of room acoustics, and factor 2 represented the perception of the task in itself. Sum scores for factors 1 and 2 will be calculated and used in a mixed-effects model investigating the effect of room acoustics on self-perceived speaker's comfort.