Pre-seminar 3

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America is a scientific journal dedicated to studies of sound in a broad context. Research in the journal focuses on different disciplines such as psychoacoustics, aeroacoustics, underwater sound, bioacoustics, architectural acoustics and many more. The journal has an impact factor of 1.555 as of writing.

The paper I chose is called Noise in an Intensive Care Unit and investigates the noise in two different intensive care units (ICUs) in Germany and what impact this has on the staff. The theoretical frame of this research is psychoacoustics and its aim is to present a basis for charting the noise situation in hospitals in Europe and in length take steps to reduce noise in hospitals for the benefit of both patients and staff.

The study was comprised of one survey of the staff and complemented with measurements of the noise level in the ICUs to compare it with recommendations from EPA (American Environmental Agency) and WHO (World Health Organization) concerning both sound levels for resting as well as working.

The study showed that staff feels negatively affected by the noise level and that the noise levels are above the recommended levels for working in an hospital environment.

Briefly explain to a first year university student what theory is, and what theory is not

Theory deals with why some observed behavior is observed. The logical argumentation as to why something has happened. If we were to explain why a rock falls when we let go of it, the theory behind that would for example be that gravity acts as a downward thrusting force on the object and that when we let go, no other significant force is holding it in place.

Sutton & Staw tried to define theory rather by investigating what theory was not (Sutton & Staw, 1995). In this they concluded that references, diagrams, lists of variables, data and hypotheses are not theory in themselves. These are instead tools that help the researcher define a theory, but can not constitute theory in themselves.

It's easy to reference the work of another researcher, but to have theory means that we need to explain why the work is relevant and how the findings in that work relate to a logical argumentation in this study.

Describe the major theory or theories that are used in your selected paper. Which theory type can the theory of theories be characcterized as?

The theories of the paper comprises of presenting the fact that noise in hospitals has been increasing since 1960’s and is explained by the fact that there are many more medical devices that make noise today in cojunction with walls in hospitals generally being very sound-reflective. This theory fits in with the type explanatory theory which Gregor states in his text The Nature of Theory in Information Systems (Gregor, 2006) since it both explains and points to a causal relationship between more medical devices and sound-reflective surfaces as cause for more noise in hospitals.

Another important theory in the article is the claim that the lower noise levels in one of the measured rooms was likely due to there being fewer medical devices there than in the other room. This theory also holds up as a explanatory theory since it explains why the noise level is lower and further contests the causal relationship between amount of medical devices and noise levels.

In some parts of the text, the theory is missing or rather weak, where the authors simply reference earlier work instead of explaining why frequency composition of noise has a negative impact on people for example.

Which are the benefits and limitations of using the selected theory or theories?

Both of these theories gives the research deeper insight into what’s causing the the high noise levels in hospitals and though that opens up for discussion and reflection around how noise levels can be lowered. For example by designing the devices to be more silent.

However, none of the theories puts the noise level of devices into relation with the noise made by staff or the enhancment of the noise levels by the reflecting surfaces. Therefore stating that lowered noise levels is caused by less medical devices is not evident.

Gregor, S. (2006). R Esearch E Ssay. MIS Quarterly, 30(3), 611–642. Retrieved from http://heim.ifi.uio.no/~petterog/Kurs/INF5220/NatureofTheoryMISQ.pdf

Sutton, R. I., & Staw, B. M. (1995). ASQ Forum What Theory is Not. Administrative Science Quarterly, 40(3), 371–384. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/2393788