Environmental Psychology elective at Leiden University (2020-2021)

Lecture 3: Nature (taking a break)

People have been recommended to go to onature for its well-being effects since (at least) the 19th century

Epidemological research: understanding what factors determin a large population to get sick

De Vries et al., 2003. Natural Environments—Healthy Environments? An Exploratory Analysis of the Relationship between Greenspace and Health

• Representative sample of Dutch population (N = 17.000)
• Result: significant positive relationship between presence of green in neighbourhood and self reported health

Takano et al., 2002. Urban residential environments and senior citizens’ longevity in megacity areas: the importance of walkable green spaces

• Japanese longitudinal study, older inhabitants Tokio (N= 3144)
• Results: significant positive relationship between presence of ‘ walkable green’ and lower mortality within 5 years

Video demonstrating how green spaces improve well-being: https://vimeo.com/83228781

• Green spaces improve mental health short-term and long-term as well

Biophilia theory:

There is an innnate emotional affiliation of human beings to other living organisms. It likely evolved while hunter-gatherers were living in, with, and of nature. That is why natural landscapes are intrinsically rewarding and enjoyable.

Two theories about recovery effect of nature:

• Perception of nature causes reduction of negative feelings and psychophysiological recovery of stress

2. Attention restoration theory (Kaplan, 1995):

• Perception of nature causes recovery of attentional fatigue

Lederbogen, F. et al.,2011. City living and urban upbringing affect neural social stress processing in humans

• Growing world’s population now lives in cities
• Creating a healthy urban environment is important
• Cities negatively affect mental health
• Mood and anxiety disorders are more prevalent
• Incidence of schizophrenia is higher

What neural processes can explain this relation?

• Activation of amygdala (indicator of stress)
• Activation of perigenual anterior cingulate cortex (pACC; indicator of stress regulation)

Conclusion of study: People living in cities can not cope as well with social stress as people living more rural; especially with a childhood raised in urban areas

Bratman et al., 2015. Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation

• After a 90-minute walk participants of the nature walk, compared to the urban walk, reported less rumination, and also their brains showed less activity in pACC

Ulrich, R.,1984. View through a window may influence recovery.

• Archival study of 46 patients recovering from gallbladder surgery (records from 1972 to 1981)
• “Treatment”: assignment to room with wall view or nature view
• Patients matched on age, gender, smoking, obesity, hospitalization history, floor level, room color
• Findings: 

                                                                          Nature               Wall

Number of days of hospitalization after surgery:    7.96                 8.70

Minor complications (e.g. headaches, nausea):    Less (Not Signif.) More

Nurses notes relating to patient’s condition:       Fewer negative    More

Replication study by Raanaas, Patil, and Hartig (2011)

• Patients (N=278) recovering from heart or lung operations for 4 weeks
• Blocked, partially blocked, panorama view
• Physical and mental health states measured
• Finding:A bedroom view to natural surroundings appears to have better supported improvement in self-reported physical and particularly mental health during a residential rehabilitation program

Collado. S, Staats, H., & Sorrel, M., 2016. Helping out on the land: Effects of children’s role in agriculture on reported psychological restoration

Research questions:

• Do children recover from daily experiences in nearby rural areas?
• Does it depend on involvement in agricultural work?

Findings:

• Effects of psycho-social characteristics on restoration
• Several effects of involvement in agriculture on potential mediators

Conclusion:

• Country side is a restorative environment for village children
• Work related experiences limit degree of restoration
• The experience of being away, physically and psychologically, mediates degree of reported restoration
  • Farm children experience less sense of being away --> less restoration

Guéguen, N., & Stefan, J.,2016. “Green altruism”: Short immersion in natural green environments and helping behavior.

Effect of nature on social relationships:

• Decreases social isolation
• Leads to more social integration
• Exposure to plants and flowers
• Increases desire for community aspiration
• Leads to more social interaction

But does nature make people more pro-social??

Study: a confedarate drops a glove. Is there a difference in the amount of people who help when comparing those who have walked through a park vs those who didn't? Yes, there is! More helping behavior in those who went to the park before seeing the glove.

Conclusion

• Strong main effect:Nature makes people more pro-social
• Nature elicits positive mood
• Positive mood facilitates helping behavior
• Research shows full mediation of mood in the relation between nature and helping behavior

Van der Wal, A. J., Schade, H. M., Krabbendam, L., & Van Vugt, M., 2013. Do natural landscapes reduce future discounting in humans?

Participants were presented with two options: 1, receive 100 Euros now or 2, Receive 120 Euros in 90 days. The participants were either shown a picture of an urban environment or a natural environment. 

Findings: Those who were exposed to the nature picture, were more likely to select option 2. When the study was replicated in the field (city vs nature), they found the same: nature condition more likely than urban condition to go for option 2.

• Nature seems to evoke a more future oriented mindset
• Higher future valuation could imply more long-term orientated strategies and behaviors
• Societal and environmental problems are mostly caused by short-term oriented strategies and behaviors
• Overpopulation
• Health problems (drug abuse, obesity)
• Resource exploitation