Congratulations to our User Experience Librarian Eric Jeitner and former Outreach Librarian Christy Goodnight on the publication of their article "Hearing Yourself Think: Ambient Sound in Library Study Spaces" in Weave: Journal of Library User Experience. In the article, they make an exploratory case that low-level, ambient sound is a crucial component of ideal study space for some students. The authors performed a thorough literature review and their own year-long study to present evidence that a sizable group of college students will seek out study spaces that contain “pink” ambient noise. Eric and Christy found that this demographic has been overlooked in the discussion surrounding how libraries negotiate sound within their walls and add important data to this conversation.
If you are interested in learning more, please email Eric for access to the article or to ask any questions you may have.