The Effects of Horticultural Therapy on the Well-Being and Hope of Women in Rural Korea

Abstract

Purposes: Horticultural therapy (HT) is an enjoyable and accessible method of recreation that readily lends itself to a variety of healthful lifestyle activities. HT is valued for its physical, cognitive, social, emotional, and recreational benefits. This study was designed to examine the effects of HT on the psychological well-being and hope of rural women. Methods: HT consists of three stages: establishing credibility (sessions 1-3), well-being and interpersonal relationships improvement (session 4-22), and maintenance (sessions 23-24). Participants consisted of 45 women from rural Korea, of which 21 were assigned to the experimental group and 24 to the control group. The experimental participants attended 24 sessions of HT. Results: Two groups undergone the program had a significant difference in the psychological well-being and hope. Conclusions: The findings of this study show that HT has positive effects on psychological and emotional health, and can be utilized as an intervention to help rural women.

Horticultural Activity: Its Contribution to Stress Recovery and Wellbeing for Children

“…The objective of the present study was to investigate the health benefits and the stress-reducing impacts of 5 min of horticultural activity on elementary school students by measuring their physiological functioning (HRV, SC, and SKT) and psychological responses using SD and STAI from different assessment dimensions. Prior studies have shown the importance of horticultural activity for adult males [22], females [44] and elderly people [45]; however, very little is known about its positive impacts for children.…”

Urban Gardening as a Multifunctional Tool to Increase Social Sustainability in the City

“…The results proved that urban gardening classes supported improvement in psycho-emotional health and gave hope for better future. In turn, health indicators of the group, which was excluded from gardening classes, remained the same [6]. Furthermore, the research data in the Netherlands and the USA provides evidence on efficiency of urban gardening therapy in physical health questions [5].…”

“…Various research results showed that nature has a positive impact on physical and mental health of people [4]. Following this idea, the popularity of rehabilitation programs in urban gardens is increasing [6]. Last decade was also crucial in terms of emerging urban gardening forms in Central and Eastern parts of Europe.…”