Sound Design and Mental Health: Sound That Heals

The Psy-Son project: a sound envelope in the service of mental health

The result of a collaboration betweenIrcam, GHU Paris Psychiatrie & Neurosciences and ENSCI - Les Ateliers, the Psy-Son project is a perfect illustration of the synergy between technology, design and mental health.

Designed for psychiatric in-patients, this innovative device combines a chair equipped with vibrating elements at spinal level and a tablet enabling caregivers to control a personalized sound session. The aim? To create an immersive, soothing sound experience to prevent or alleviate anxiety attacks. By enveloping the person in a reassuring world of sound, the device encourages relaxation and refocusing, while maintaining communication with nursing staff.

Launched in 2021 and supported by a 160,000 euro grant as part of the Hospital Program for Nursing and Paramedical Research (PHRIP), the Psy-Son project is currently undergoing in-depth clinical evaluation. Deployed in two inpatient units of the Paris Psychiatry & Neurosciences GHU, the system has already attracted a great deal of interest from caregivers and patients alike. While initial feedback from the field suggests a positive effect on anxiety management, the full results of the impact study are expected in 2025. This rigorous framework testifies to the project's ambition: to offer a sound tool that is truly integrated into nursing practice and supported by objective data.

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What this tells us about the soothing power of sound design

Sound doesn't just entertain. It can also soothe, refocus and heal. This is what the Psy-Son project subtly demonstrates.

Beyond the hospital context, this raises questions about our relationship with sound in everyday spaces. How can we design sound environments that are more accurate, more sensitive, more human? At a time when people are talking aboutsound experience, sound design andbrand identity, Psy-Son reminds us that sound is above all a living medium, capable of connecting us to ourselves and to others.

Although Ircam amplify is not directly involved in the medical sector, this approach resonates strongly with our vision of sound design. It confirms a central intuition: sound is not just a communication tool or a channel forsound identity - it is a sensitive material, capable of generating profound effects on body and mind.

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What are the implications for sound marketing?

In a sales area, reception hall or exhibition space, a well-executed acoustic study can transform a stressful environment into a place of attention and respite. Some brands, as part of their sound branding, are starting to take this into account: slowing down the tempo, working on spatialization or on the frequencies used, to encourage calm and concentration.

In other words, there's still a lot of innovative territory to be explored here, where acoustic design meets neuroscience, and where the sound signature doesn't just represent a brand, but accompanies an inner state.

At Ircam amplify, this approach inspires our reflections on thesound experience in public places. Because if a listening chair can help a patient to calm down, then a good sound design can also encourage your target to slow down, help them to find their bearings and feel more serene.

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