Vocal Ergonomics in the Workplace: Heating, Ventilation, and Air-Conditioning Method Influences on Vocal Comfort and Function.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning method on voice function following a voicing task using ecologically valid offices, one with radiant HVAC and one with forced air.
Method: A total of 12 consented participants (6 women, 6 men) narrated a video in each of 4 environmental conditions in a within-between repeated-measures design. Acoustic data were collected with an ambulatory phonation monitor and perceived phonatory effort was determined following the voicing task. Data were analyzed using a within-between repeated-measures analysis of variance with significance set at α < .05.
Results: Perceived phonatory effort did not differ between environments; however, a significant difference in vocal amplitude between 2 trials was identified for the male participants and physiologically significant differences in vocal amplitude were identified for male and female participants.
Conclusions: The findings suggest that perceived phonatory effort may not be a sensitive measure of vocal function differences following a voicing task in ecologically valid office spaces despite significant acoustic findings. Future research should address longer exposure to environmental differences combined with a longer voicing task within ecologically valid work spaces as well as the recruitment of participants who have particular vulnerability to environmental perturbations.