Date of Award

8-2026

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

School

Center for Science and Math Education

Committee Chair

Dr. Rachel Gisewhite

Committee Chair School

Center for Science and Math Education

Committee Member 2

Dr. Allison Downing

Committee Member 2 School

Center for Science and Math Education

Committee Member 3

Dr. Mac Alford

Committee Member 3 School

Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences

Committee Member 4

Dr. Scott Rush

Abstract

Undergraduate biology education often prioritizes technical skill development and conceptual mastery while giving less focus to the relational and reflective capacities necessary for ethical environmental decision-making in the Anthropocene. The Anthropocene is characterized by human-generated environmental changes. An often-overlooked source of these changes is anthrophony; human generated sounds that can negatively impact natural soundscapes by masking or displacing vocalizations from non-human animals. As future conservation practitioners of the Anthropocene, undergraduate biology students may benefit from an educational approach that supports both scientific and relational epistemology. This dissertation investigated this integrative approach to undergraduate biology education using soundscape studies as ecopedagogy.

Study 1 examined the scientific rigor or soundscape studies by investigating the influence of anthrophony on Bird-Voiced Treefrog (Dryophytes avivoca) vocalizations. Passive acoustic monitoring and statistical analyses revealed that increasing anthrophony significantly altered individual call frequencies and chorus-level vocal characteristics, suggesting that anthropogenic noise influences acoustic communication and may have broader ecological consequences.

Study 2 used a qualitative approach to explore how undergraduate students described experiences of attention restoration and mindfulness while engaging in soundscape research. Student data were diffractively analyzed using the Attention Restoration Theory and components of mindfulness. Restorative experiences were most pronounced in rural environments and were strongly influenced by present-moment awareness and habitat characteristics.

Study 3 investigated how the same students experienced ecological awareness through their intra-actions with soundscapes. Guided by agential realism, findings indicated that ecological awareness emerged through relational encounters among participants, soundscapes, organisms, and technologies. Participants recognized ecological relationships, anthropogenic influences, and their own roles within environmental systems, often leading to ethical reflection and conservation-oriented thinking.

A diffractive synthesis across the three studies identified listening as a unifying framework. Through literal, reflexive, and attentive listening practices, participants moved from noticing ecological phenomena, to recognizing relational entanglements, to considering ethical responsibilities toward more-than-human communities. These findings suggest that soundscape research can function simultaneously as a rigorous form of ecological inquiry and an ecopedagogical approach that fosters meaningful learning, ecological awareness, and relational engagement within the Anthropocene.

ORCID ID

0009-0002-7887-5731

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