Biophobia and Urban Restorativeness

Patuano, Agnès

doi:10.3390/su12104312

Cited by 30 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 66 publications

(203 reference statements)

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“…Although the literature gives substantial evidence of the restorative benefits of nature experience (e.g., Stevenson et al, 2018;Hartig, 2021), various studies indicate that "nature" does not unequivocally elicit the approach responses that would sustain a restorative process. In a review, Patuano (2020) points to a fear of wild nature as a constraint on benefits. Nature being perceived as something scary and disgusting is put forward as a major reason, including the presence of risks of encountering dangerous and/or unattractive animals, as well as allergies, poisoning, vector-borne diseases, and getting lost due to disorientation (e.g., Bixler and Floyd, 1997).…”

Section: Nature Experience and Restorationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Appraisals of Wildlife During Restorative Opportunities in Local Natural Settings

Johansson¹,

Flykt

Frank

et al. 2021

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Many call for a broad approach to valuation of nature’s contribution to people, one that provides a contextualized understanding of what may be experienced as a value in different cultures, groups and settings. In the present paper we address contributions of nature to psychological well-being as realized through restorative processes during encounters with wildlife. Although restorative benefits of nature experience have received much consideration, sparse attention has been given to the role of the presence or absence of different animals in the settings investigated. The presence of a liked species may increase appreciation for and engagement with a natural setting, but fear of encountering some species may counter the desire to visit a setting with otherwise high restorative quality. This paper proposes a psychological framework for understanding how wildlife may contribute to or hinder people’s opportunities to restore in local natural settings. The framework addresses the transaction between the individual and their surroundings, making use of an appraisal theory of emotion and theories about the restorative benefits of nature experience. We focus upon encounters in landscapes shared by humans and wildlife, and we elaborate on our reasoning with scenarios from Sweden involving local people’s appraisal of wolves and roe deer. An integrated understanding of the psychological processes at work would facilitate communication and decision-making about the contribution of wildlife in nature conservation and management.

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Section: Nature Experience and Restorationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Appraisals of Wildlife During Restorative Opportunities in Local Natural Settings

Johansson¹,

Flykt

Frank

et al. 2021

Front. Environ. Sci.

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“…Finally, university students are in a specific age range between adolescence and adulthood. Several studies looking at teenagers' use of natural spaces have found that the population to be less connected with nature than children or adults, suggesting that adolescence might be a "time out" in people's relationship with nature [39][40][41]. However, the cut-off age for this "time out" has not yet been explored.…”

Section: Cultural and Demographic Variations In The Use Of Green Spaces For Health And Wellbeingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It could indeed be assumed that some students are not in the habit of visiting such spaces, which might be the result of a variety of factors such as culture or previous living environments. Indeed, the use of green spaces for health and wellbeing is also linked to nature connectedness [37] and familiarity [41]. As China is undergoing rapid urbanization to the detriment of nature connectedness and contact with nature [38], Chinese students might now be more familiar with urban areas and feel less inclined to visit green spaces.…”

Section: Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

International Chinese Students in the UK: Association between Use of Green Spaces and Lower Stress Levels

Zhao

Patuano

2021

Sustainability

Self Cite

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The health benefits of urban green spaces have been found to vary for different populations, such as people of different socio-demographics or different cultures. Among these populations, one remains understudied although its numbers are growing: Chinese international students. Indeed, more and more Chinese students choose to go abroad for higher education but face specific challenges, often resulting in them experiencing high levels of stress and poor health. This study explores the link between Chinese international students’ use of local green spaces and the effect on their perceived stress and health. An online survey was created to collect data from 186 Chinese international students studying in Edinburgh, Scotland (UK). The data covered the participants’ reported health status and their perceived stress levels, the strategies they use when coping with stress, their awareness of the benefits of visiting green spaces as well as their self-reported use of and access to local green spaces. The findings show a significant correlation between access to and use of urban green spaces and the self-reported wellbeing indicators. Some of the barriers experienced by participants in visiting green spaces were also explored. By investigating the specific behaviors of this emerging and vulnerable population, this study expands the corpus of existing evidence for the role played by urban green spaces in supporting wellbeing. Some recommendations to support the health of this community using urban green spaces can therefore be proposed.

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“…Besides these risks, some people have the perception that more vegetation can lead to risks like mosquitos, harvest mite, oak procession caterpillar, cats defecating in the garden [54]. This thinking is part of biophobia (see [59,60]), and cannot be completely tackled when it is deeply rooted. However, information about how to avoid these risks can help, for example by choosing for a mixed lay out of nature and culture, which could be less threatening than a complete natural lay out [59].…”

Section: Risksmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This thinking is part of biophobia (see [59,60]), and cannot be completely tackled when it is deeply rooted. However, information about how to avoid these risks can help, for example by choosing for a mixed lay out of nature and culture, which could be less threatening than a complete natural lay out [59].…”

Section: Risksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Greening the City: How to Get Rid of Garden Pavement! The ‘Steenbreek’ Program as a Dutch Example

2021

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The Steenbreek program is a private Dutch program which aims to involve citizens, municipalities and other stakeholders in replacing pavement with vegetation in private gardens. The Dutch approach is characterized by minimal governmental incentives or policy, which leaves a niche for private initiatives like Steenbreek, that mainly work on behavioural change. The aim of this paper is to build a model based on theory that can be used to improve and better evaluate depaving actions that are based on behavioural change. We tested this garden greening behaviour model in the Steenbreek program. The main result is that the model provides an understanding of the ‘how and why’ of the Steenbreek initiatives. Based on this we are able to provide recommendations for the improvement of future initiatives. Steenbreek covers a wide range of projects that together, in very different ways, take into account elements of the theoretical framework; either more on information factors, or on supporting factors, sometimes taking all elements together in a single action. This focus is sometimes understandable when just one element is needed (e.g., support), sometimes more elements could be taken into account to be more effective. If a certain element of the framework is lacking, the change of behaviour will not (or will only partly) take place. The model also gives insight into a more specific approach aimed at the people most susceptible to changing their behaviour, which would make actions more effective.

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Biophobia and Urban Restorativeness

Cited by 30 publications

References 66 publications

Appraisals of Wildlife During Restorative Opportunities in Local Natural Settings

Appraisals of Wildlife During Restorative Opportunities in Local Natural Settings

International Chinese Students in the UK: Association between Use of Green Spaces and Lower Stress Levels

Greening the City: How to Get Rid of Garden Pavement! The ‘Steenbreek’ Program as a Dutch Example

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