The Adaptation to Sonic Territoriality: A Domestic Space Case Study

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, apart from accommodating daily activities, the domestic space also needs to accommodate additional activities, such as studying and working from home, with a longer intensity of time. These activities produce sound and are also influenced by other sounds in the domestic space which then forms the domestic soundscape, thus triggering the sonic territoriality of each occupant to adapt according to their needs for sound. By using the theory of adaptation strategy, as well as the theory of territoriality regarding the mechanism of territorial control and the elements of space, this study aims to identify the adaptation strategies that are being carried out in the domestic space when certain sounds enter the territory that is being occupied. A case study with a qualitative method was conducted in a domestic space with residents who are active for a long time at home, using field observation and interview as the data collection techniques. From the observations, a mapping of the space, activities, and sounds of each occupant of the house was made. Based on the results of the case study, it was found that the adaptation strategies carried out in order to adapt according to their sonic territoriality are: adjustment, in the form of arranging the spatial components and shifting positions and orientations inside a territory, and withdrawal, in the form of moving from one room to another. These adaptations involve elements of space, which are mainly fixed and semifixed features, as well as territorial mechanisms: personalization and defense.