scholarly journals Im Test: Wald als Ressource für psychisches Wohlbefinden | In Test: Forest serving as a resource for psychological well-being

2010 ◽  
Vol 161 (3) ◽  
pp. 90-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dörte Martens ◽  
Nicole Bauer
Keyword(s):  
Visual Stimulation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Presentation Mode ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Exposure Condition ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Presentation Modes ◽  
Treatment Conditions ◽  
In The Wild

Physical environment influences human health and well-being. In comparison with urban environments, natural environments contribute towards psychological well-being, which has been shown in several studies. However, a comparison of the effects caused by different natural conditions has not been focused on much. Furthermore, experiments on this topic are dominated by visual stimulation modes. Our work addresses these shortcomings. First, the dichotomy of natural and urban environments is opened up by comparing different natural environments – wild and tended forest – analyzing their impact on well-being. Second, the presentation mode, possibly influencing well-being itself, is systematically varied. In a 2 × 2 experimental design, participants from Zurich, Switzerland (N = 196), were randomly assigned to one of the treatment conditions: a walk in a wild or a tended forest area, presented by real exposure or in the laboratory by video. Self-reported well-being was assessed by standardized multidimensional scales in a pre-post design. The results demonstrate that the maintenance elicits different degrees of intensity in the influence on psychological well-being. The tended forest affected well-being more positively in some aspects, possibly due to a higher amount of dead wood arousing sadness in the wild forest. For designing urban natural areas, an appropriate degree of care should be visible for the visitor to increase the overall positive effect on well-being. Concerning the comparison of presentation modes, results show a stronger effect in the real exposure condition. However, the effect was unidirectional under both conditions, indicating the possibility to generalize laboratory results. This is important for conceptualizing further research on restoration and well-being elicited in laboratory settings.

scholarly journals Effects of exposure to immersive videos and photo slideshows of forest and urban environments

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fariba Mostajeran ◽  
Jessica Krzikawski ◽  
Frank Steinicke ◽  
Simone Kühn
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Jail Inmates ◽  
Forest Environment ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Head Mounted Display ◽  
Sense Of Presence ◽  
Hospital Patients

AbstractA large number of studies have demonstrated the benefits of natural environments on people’s health and well-being. For people who have limited access to nature (e.g., elderly in nursing homes, hospital patients, or jail inmates), virtual representations may provide an alternative to benefit from the illusion of a natural environment. For this purpose and in most previous studies, conventional photos of nature have been used. Immersive virtual reality (VR) environments, however, can induce a higher sense of presence compared to conventional photos. Whether this higher sense of presence leads to increased positive impacts of virtual nature exposure is the main research question of this study. Therefore, we compared exposure to a forest and an urban virtual environment in terms of their respective impact on mood, stress, physiological reactions, and cognition. The environments were presented via a head-mounted display as (1) conventional photo slideshows or (2) 360$$^{\circ }$$ ∘ videos. The results show that the forest environment had a positive effect on cognition and the urban environment disturbed mood regardless of the mode of presentation. In addition, photos of either urban or forest environment were both more effective in reducing physiological arousal compared to immersive 360$$^{\circ }$$ ∘ videos.

scholarly journals Mental Health & Resiliency: Designing Participatory Nature Dependent Environments and Communities for a Sustainable Future

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Beam ◽  
Nawari O. Nawari ◽  
Bill Tilson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Urban Planning ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Community Planning ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Mental Health Research ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Relationship Building ◽  
Natural Environments

Sustainable design trends have historically wended down a road that supports the idea of densely populated urban planning as a strategy for mitigating sprawl. Creation of dense urban areas aims at the reduction of carbon emissions. However, studies show that densely populated areas often come with a panacea of mental health, resiliency, and quality of life ails for a community.The following research explores the possibility of combining densely populated design approaches with ancient community planning methods that encourage relationship building: close contact with natural environments and social interchange. Community planning that also creates a day to day contact with nature could be a crucial strategy for both sustaining healthy ecosystems and the development of sustainable communities. The potential for integrating dependence upon nature within built urban environments, as well as the possibility of positive place-making by harvesting nature dependent cultural and social assets in communities and neighborhoods, is, therefore, a wealthy area worthy of exploration.To explore these areas, mental health research on the effects of nature on the brain, as well as the three leading determinants of social, environmental and economic well-being, worldwide, and the founding cultures of these determinants were reviewed. Resilient indigenous groups and case studies of the happiest nation, of Norway and two leading environmentally sustainable and resilient countries, Costa Rica, Cuba, and New Mexico are examined. The paper provides recommendations for improving mental health and resilience by integrating strategies for nature and community needs in urban planning and built environments design.

Interactions between human behaviour and the built environment in terms of facility management

Facilities ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 2-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darja Kobal Grum
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Behaviour ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Solutions ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Purpose In comparison with the relations between the human and natural environments that have been the central focus of environmental psychology for many years, the interactions between the psychological processes underlying human behaviour and the built environment have only recently regained the interest of researchers. In this paper, the author first discusses the reasons for the slower development of human – built environment relations. Afterwards, the author systematically examines the impact that the research of environmental stress, namely, poor housing and poor neighbourhood quality, had on the contemporary understanding of human – built environment relations. Design/methodology/approach The author focuses on social, biophilic and evidence-based design. The author proposes deeper psychological engagement in correlation with human behaviour, psychological well-being and society. The author highlights the inclusion of psychologists in interdisciplinary research teams addressing the development of sustainable solutions to the issues of residential environments. Findings It has been shown that substandard house quality, high noise, lack of natural light in houses, poorer physical quality of urban neighbourhoods, living in a low-income neighbourhood, etc. are linked to elevated physiological and psychological stress. Despite this evidence, there is still a gap between building designers and building users in modern industrialised societies, which could deepen tenants’ dissatisfaction due to specific behavioural needs and consequently lower their psychological well-being and health risk behaviour. Research limitations/implications These are potential risks of error arising from the use of assumptions, limited samples size and data from the secondary resources. Originality/value The major contributions of this paper are as follows. If the environment is understood as a dynamic, constantly changing and complex system of a wide range of players, the author can discern in this environment a dynamic that is otherwise characteristic of emotional dynamics. Expressed participants’ high satisfaction with residential status does not necessarily generate high expectations regarding real estate factors.

scholarly journals Effects of Spatial Elements of Urban Landscape Forests on the Restoration Potential and Preference of Adolescents

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1349
Author(s):  
Linjia Wu ◽  
Qidi Dong ◽  
Shixian Luo ◽  
Wenyuan Jiang ◽  
Ming Hao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Visual Stimulation ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Quantitative Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Recovery Potential ◽  
Restoration Potential ◽  
The Impact

City green space can promote people’s health and aesthetic satisfaction; however, most extant research focuses on suburban forests and urban parks. Urban landscape forests have important ecological and aesthetic value for urban environments. This study conducted a visual stimulation to examine the impact of four common spatial element combinations in urban landscape forests on teenagers’ recovery potential and preference. The results indicate that urban landscape forests had positive physiological and psychological effects on adolescents, including decreased blood pressure, improved heart rate, reduced anxiety, and improved recovery ability. Diastolic blood pressure relief performance was better among males than females. In addition, a stepwise linear regression analysis was performed to explore the quantitative relationship between spatial elements and recovery and preference values. The results demonstrate that water elements were a significant predictor in the quantitative relationship between spatial elements in landscape forests and restoration and preference values. Terrain, flower, and shrub elements did not have a significant effect on overall restoration and preference values. This study highlights the intervention value of urban landscape forests in promoting the health and well-being of adolescents, with implications for future planning and design of urban landscape forests.

scholarly journals Simulated nature walks improve psychological well-being along a natural to urban continuum

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuliana Brancato ◽  
Kathryne Van Hedger ◽  
Marc Berman ◽  
Stephen Charles Van Hedger
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Pine Forest ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Urban Neighborhood ◽  
City Center ◽  
Physical Environments ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Category Variability

Compared to urban environments, interactions with natural environments have been associated with several health benefits including psychological restoration and improved emotional well-being. However, classifying environments dichotomously as either natural or urban may emphasize between-category differences and minimize potentially important within-category variation (e.g., forests versus fields of crops; neighborhoods versus city centers). Therefore, the current experiment assessed how viewing brief videos of different environments, ranging along a continuum from stereotypically natural to stereotypically urban, influenced subjective ratings of mood, restoration, and well-being. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four video conditions, which depicted a simulated walk through a pine forest, a farmed field, a tree-lined urban neighborhood, or a bustling city center essentially devoid of greenery. Immediately before and after the videos, participants rated their current emotional states. Participants additionally rated the perceived restorativeness of the video. The results supported the idea that the virtual walks differentially influenced affect and perceived restoration, even when belonging to the same nominal category of natural or urban. The pine forest walk significantly improved happiness relative to both urban walks, whereas the farmed field walk did not. The bustling city center walk decreased feelings of calmness compared to all other walks, including the tree-lined neighborhood walk. The walks also differed on two perceived restorativeness measures (daydreaming and being away) in a graded fashion; however, the farmed field walk was found to be less fascinating than all other walks, including both urban walks. Taken together, these results suggest that categorizing environments as “natural versus urban” may gloss over meaningful within-category variability regarding the restorative potential of different physical environments.

scholarly journals Effects of Captivity on the Morphology of the Insertion Sites of the Palmar Radiocarpal Ligaments in Hominoid Primates

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1856
Author(s):  
Aroa Casado ◽  
Yasmina Avià ◽  
Miquel Llorente ◽  
David Riba ◽  
Juan Francisco Pastor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Habitat Conditions ◽  
Anatomical Changes ◽  
Different Types ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Insertion Sites ◽  
The Impact

The environmental conditions of captive hominoid primates can lead to modifications in several aspects of their behavior, including locomotion, which can then alter the morphological characteristics of certain anatomical regions, such as the knee or wrist. We have performed tridimensional geometric morphometrics (3D GM) analyses of the distal radial epiphysis in wild and captive gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans. Our objective was to study the morphology of the insertion sites of the palmar radiocarpal ligaments, since the anatomical characteristics of these insertion sites are closely related to the different types of locomotion of these hominoid primates. We have identified significant differences between the wild and captive specimens that are likely related to their different types of locomotion. Our results indicate that the habitat conditions of captive hominoid primates may cause them to modify their locomotor behavior, leading to a greater use of certain movements in captivity than in the wild and resulting in the anatomical changes we have observed. We suggest that creating more natural environments in zoological facilities could reduce the impact of these differences and also increase the well-being of primates raised in captive environments.

scholarly journals Measuring the Effects of Forest SPA Programme in Urban Parks Using Active Imagination

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-234
Author(s):  
Gordana Pešalj ◽  
Svetlana Uršič ◽  
Ivana Jovanović ◽  
Svetlana Zdravković ◽  
Ljubica Presetnik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bodily Pain ◽  
High Stress ◽  
Urban Parks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Active Imagination ◽  
Daily Routine ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Health And Well Being

AbstractNature has been shown to be beneficial to our overall health and well-being. We are all connected to nature and it is important to maintain this vital connection for our health and well-being. Spending time outside in nature or urban parks has been shown to positively affect a person’s emotions and improve their sense of well-being. Access to nature balances circadian rhythms, lowers blood pressure, reduces stress and increases absorption of Vitamin D. Increasingly, evidence demonstrates that contactwith the living world around us is an important part of healing and recovery. The natural world’s role in human well-being is an essential, yet often forgotten, aspect of healthcare. Of particular importance are the benefits one can derive through interaction with natural environments. Reincorporating the natural world is practiced to move healthcare toward being more “green”. Spiritual well-being is enhanced through the experience of greater interconnections, and it occurs when interacting with the natural world. One study examined the physiological and psychological responses to real forest landscapes as well as the therapeutic uses of forests relative to urban environments.Lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol have been reported in adults subsequent to performing the same mental activities in a garden setting vs. an indoor classroom. A separate study involving over 11,000 adults from Denmark showed that living more than 1 km away from green space (forests, parks, beaches, lakes) were 42 percent more likely to report high stress and had the worst scores on evaluations of general health, vitality, mental health and bodily pain The landscape itself offers retreat from daily routine. The aim of our research was to measure the effects of Forest SPA programs on attendants’ well-being. Research has been organized in cooperation between Health college Belgrade and Medical SPA Association of Serbia. There were fourteen participants taking part in the research. Prior to Forest SPA program all participants, 14 students on specialization in Medical Wellness were invited to half-an-hour active imagination (mandala drawing) workshop. Drawing Mandala is a meditation in motion, dreaming with open eyes, and during the process of active imagination the unconscious self is active and not passive like in dreams. Using the data and research methodology from Henderson’s Empirical Study of the Healing Nature of Artistic Expression we designed our investigation. After 90 minutes of Forest SPA program in selected Urban park, participants were invited to draw mandala to describe how they feel at that moment. Several participants (8 of them) attended a 90-minute City SPA program with Tibetan bowls vibration massage. At the end of the SPA program they were invited to draw mandala. Analyzing symbols and colors, number of symbols and their relationship in presented mandalas we can realize the effects of the Forest SPA programs in urban parks on achieving better emotional balance and enhancing individualization process in participants. Our pilot research of Active imagination (by drawing mandalas) revealed that it can be used as a part of Forest SPA program as ART therapy and at the same time as an instrument for individual approach to the client of Forest SPA program as a medical SPA concept.

Restorativeness in Natural and Urban Environments: A Meta-Analysis

2019 ◽  
pp. 003329411988406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Menardo ◽  
Margherita Brondino ◽  
Rob Hall ◽  
Margherita Pasini
Keyword(s):  
Natural Environment ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Outdoor Environment ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Significant Heterogeneity ◽  
Environmental Attitude ◽  
Natural Element

In recent decades, there has been an increasing volume of research aimed out quantifying the extent to which the natural environment can assist in restoring mental, emotional, and physical well-being. It is commonly assumed that natural environments are more restorative than urban environments. However, studies addressing this issue use a variety of methods for data collection making it difficult to compare the findings of different studies. The research reported here uses a meta-analysis aimed at estimating how much natural environments are perceived as being more restorative than urban environments. We investigated the role of moderator variables such as research design, kind of natural environment, participants, measurement instruments used or the context in which the data were collected. PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, Scopus, SpringerLINK, Web of Science online databases were used to identity all peer-review articles on restorativeness published to date ( k = 167). Reference sections of obtained papers were examined for additional studies. Only 22 studies met inclusion criteria (direct exposure to environment, comparison between one outdoor environment with natural element and one without natural element, and restorativeness measured by self-report scale) and were included in meta-analysis. Results show that natural environments are perceived to be more restorative than urban environments (Cohen’s d (confidence interval) = 1.99 (1.38–2.61)). Significant heterogeneity between the study was found ( Q(19) = 503.16, p < .001) and variability within studies was very high ( I2 = 97%). However, subsequent univariate moderator analyses were not significant. Other methodological differences (e.g., lighting conditions) could explain this variability. We concluded that the variability in studies is more likely to be due to individual differences (e.g., age, connections to nature, and environmental attitude) than the methodological differences.

scholarly journals The reduction of directed attention fatigue through exposure to visual nature stimuli: Exploring a natural therapy for fatigue

SURG Journal ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 5-13
Author(s):  
Michael Varkovetski
Keyword(s):  
Visual Stimulation ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Attention Restoration Theory ◽  
Directed Attention ◽  
Natural Landscape ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Attention Restoration ◽  
Test Application ◽  
Attention Fatigue

This study compares the restorative effects on directed attention functioning following exposure to natural landscape images versus scrambled/distorted landscape images. Attention restoration theory (ART) provides an analysis of the stimuli and environment required for restoration of cognitive fatigue. According to ART, nature employs attention through a bottom-up process in which intrinsically fascinating stimuli from the natural environment itself modestly dominate attention. This allows the mechanisms responsible for top-down processing, which is necessary for directed attention, to recover and replenish. Unlike natural environments, urban environments employ attention through bottom-up stimulation, which forces one to overcome the stimulation using directed attention, thus not allowing for the recovery of directed attention mechanisms. This study looks into whether solely visual stimulation of natural environments is adequate for the restoration of directed attention mechanisms as measured with the “Attention Test” application. The mean completion time on the Attention Test game was significantly lower in the nature image group (M = 54.33) when compared to the scrambled image group (M = 62.04), thus validating the visual aspect of ART.

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