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Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable

Work context · O*NET

Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable is a work-context dimension in the O*NET database — one of the standardized conditions O*NET uses to describe the environment a job is done in , grouped under Physical Work Conditions. O*NET defines it by asking workers: "How often does this job require working exposed to sounds and noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable?." It is rated for 894 occupations, which average 3.08 out of 5 (moderate relative to other context dimensions).

How it's measured

O*NET rates each occupation on this dimension on a 1–5 context-importance scale (the CX scale), where higher means the condition is a more frequent or more central part of the work. The figures on this page are those occupation-level ratings — a description of working conditions as workers report them, not a judgment about pay, difficulty, or whether a job is "good."

Economy-wide average 3.08 / 5 Mean across all 894 rated occupations
Range across occupations 1.07–4.99 Lowest to highest occupation rating (spread 3.92)
Intensity vs. other dimensions 61st pct Where this dimension's average ranks among all O*NET work-context dimensions

Occupations where it's highest

The occupations that rate this condition strongest on the 1–5 scale.

Occupation Rating Score
Hoist and Winch Operators 4.99
Sailors and Marine Oilers 4.96
Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas 4.94
Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers 4.93
Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders 4.89
Locomotive Engineers 4.86
Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas 4.86
Flight Attendants 4.85
Continuous Mining Machine Operators 4.82
Structural Iron and Steel Workers 4.82
Refractory Materials Repairers, Except Brickmasons 4.81
Roof Bolters, Mining 4.81
Chemical Plant and System Operators 4.80
Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators 4.79
Pile Driver Operators 4.78
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing 4.78
Millwrights 4.77
Helpers--Extraction Workers 4.76
Landscaping and Groundskeeping Workers 4.74
Motorcycle Mechanics 4.74
Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians 4.73
Biomass Plant Technicians 4.72
Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators 4.70
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood 4.68
Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers, Motor Vehicles 4.67

Occupations where it's lowest

The occupations that rate this condition weakest — where it is rarely part of the work.

Occupation Rating Score
Software Developers 1.07
Chiropractors 1.21
Family Medicine Physicians 1.21
Ophthalmic Medical Technicians 1.23
Manicurists and Pedicurists 1.28
Personal Financial Advisors 1.31
Food Preparation Workers 1.36
Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric 1.39
Directors, Religious Activities and Education 1.40
Regulatory Affairs Managers 1.43
Fundraising Managers 1.44
Computer User Support Specialists 1.45
Obstetricians and Gynecologists 1.45
Poets, Lyricists and Creative Writers 1.45
Philosophy and Religion Teachers, Postsecondary 1.48
Skincare Specialists 1.48
Business Intelligence Analysts 1.50
Naturopathic Physicians 1.50
Astronomers 1.52
Optometrists 1.52
Shampooers 1.54
Audiologists 1.55
Business Continuity Planners 1.57
Funeral Attendants 1.57
Massage Therapists 1.58

How AI is used by roles where exposed to sounds, noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable is central

A working condition is not itself "being automated" — but we can look at the occupations where it is most central and ask how those people actually use AI. This rolls the Anthropic Economic Index per-role signal up across the roles that rate this condition 3 or higher (CX-rating-weighted). 45.3% of the 453 occupations where this condition is present carry observed AI-usage data (205 roles).

Across those roles, 36.9% of AI conversations are people working with AI and 33.0% hand a task to AI , with an average autonomy of 3.47 / 5.

Collaboration pattern Share What it means
directive 28.9% AI does it; you give the instruction
learning 19.1% you ask AI to explain or teach
task iteration 16.3% you and AI go back and forth
feedback loop 4.1% AI does it, then adjusts from your feedback
validation 1.5% you do it; AI checks your work

Roles behind this signal

The occupations where this condition is most central and that also have the most AEI data. "Works with AI" is the role's share of conversations that augment rather than automate.

Occupation Condition (1–5) Works with AI Autonomy
Technical Writers 3.1 54.2% 4.0/5
Recreation and Fitness Studies Teachers, Postsecondary 3.0 66.2% 3.3/5
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education 3.6 62.3% 4.0/5
Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education 3.2 62.8% 4.0/5
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School 3.6 58.3% 4.0/5
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education 4.3 49.7% 4.0/5
Correspondence Clerks 3.3 54.8% 3.0/5
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Middle School 3.1 47.5% 4.0/5
Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks 3.8 42.8% 3.0/5
Correctional Officers and Jailers 4.1 52.7% 3.0/5
Education Administrators, Elementary and Secondary School 3.1 56.5% 4.0/5
Robotics Engineers 3.4 42.0% 4.0/5

Source: Anthropic Economic Index (2026-01-15-v4-plus-2025-03-27-v2) over a sample of Claude.ai Free and Pro conversations — not all AI tools and not the whole workforce. This is a role-weighted projection from AEI-linked occupations where this condition is central, not a direct measurement of AI use for the condition itself. Shares are weighted by how central the condition is to each role; some conversations are left unclassified by Anthropic's taxonomy, so shares need not sum to 100.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/work-context/exposed-to-sounds-noise-levels-that-are-distracting-or-uncomfortable

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/work-context/exposed-to-sounds-noise-levels-that-are-distracting-or-uncomfortable

BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-exposed-to-sounds-noise-levels-that-are-distracting-or-uncomfortable,
  title  = {Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27). Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/work-context/exposed-to-sounds-noise-levels-that-are-distracting-or-uncomfortable}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.