Children’s Attentional Processes in Outdoor and Indoor Environments: The Role of Physiological Self-Regulation

Masón, Lucía; Zagni, Benedetta; Bacchin, Francesca; Frison, Carlotta; Scrimin, Sara

doi:10.3390/ijerph192013141

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 42 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Interestingly, children’s self-reported emotional difficulties moderated the relationship between the environment and attentional performance. Students with higher self-reported emotional difficulties were those who benefitted more from a lesson in the greenness, an outcome that suggests how a calmer and quieter context for a lesson supports selective attention [ 49 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With respect to this, studies indicated the positive role of urban neighborhood green space in children’s emotional resilience [ 11 ]. Research has also shown that children were less distracted from negative emotional materials when presented with outdoor than indoor background stimuli [ 49 ]. Students with higher or lower emotional difficulties may therefore benefit from exposure to nature differently.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Lessons in a Green School Environment and in the Classroom: Effects on Students’ Cognitive Functioning and Affect

Masón

Manzione

Ronconi

et al. 2022

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The positive impact of short-term exposure to nature during a green recess in a school day is documented in the literature. In this study we investigated cognitive, academic, and affective effects of a single contact with nature during a regular school lesson in the greenness, compared to an usual classroom lesson, on young students in second and third grades (N = 65). In a within-subjects design, for the cognitive effects we examined children’s (a) selective and sustained attention and (b) math calculation performance in common school tasks. For affective effects we considered (c) their positive and negative mood and (d) the perception of environmental restorativeness. Findings revealed that after a single lesson taught in the green school garden, children had greater selective attention and math calculation performance in two tasks than after a similar lesson in the classroom environment. Moreover, children with higher self-reported emotional difficulties showed greater selective attention and reported a statistically significant increase in positive affect and a tendency to a significant decrease in negative affect after the lesson in the greenness than in the classroom. Students also perceived the green space as more restorative than the classroom environment. Results are discussed against theories on the benefits of exposure to natural environments, highlighting the theoretical and practical significance of the study.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lessons in a Green School Environment and in the Classroom: Effects on Students’ Cognitive Functioning and Affect

Masón

Manzione

Ronconi

et al. 2022

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Effects of green and urban environment exposure during classroom breaks in a video-based setting

Mason,

Sella,

di Bosco

et al. 2024

Journal of Outdoor and Environmental Education

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Natural environments are beneficial for cognitive functioning and affect. Appraisals of such benefits can lead to the development of pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors in the long run. This study aimed to investigate the effects of an indirect exposure to a natural and urban environment during a short break in a school day, using a ‘green’ video depicting a walk through a lush forest and comparing it to an urban video portraying a walk through a busy city. We involved 91 fourth and fifth graders in a within-participants design. Results show that students decreased their performance in an arithmetic calculation task after watching the urban video, while no significant differences were observed before and after the exposure to the green environment. Students also reported experiencing more negative affect in relation to the exposure to the urban than the natural environment. Moreover, the students perceived the natural environment as more restorative than the urban environment. Taken together, our findings suggest that exposure to urban environments, in contrast to natural environments, may have negative effects on cognitive and affective functioning during school breaks. Educational implications suggest that when it is not possible to stay in a natural environment around the school, or there is no access to nature due to distance, videos of natural environments can be used during short breaks. They have potential to cognitively and affectively benefit students’ who may often be exposed to environmental stressors.

show abstract

Benefits of nature exposure on cognitive functioning in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Nguyen,

Walters

2024

Journal of Environmental Psychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Children’s Attentional Processes in Outdoor and Indoor Environments: The Role of Physiological Self-Regulation

Cited by 3 publications

References 42 publications

Lessons in a Green School Environment and in the Classroom: Effects on Students’ Cognitive Functioning and Affect

Lessons in a Green School Environment and in the Classroom: Effects on Students’ Cognitive Functioning and Affect

Effects of green and urban environment exposure during classroom breaks in a video-based setting

Benefits of nature exposure on cognitive functioning in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About