The Natural Environment in Residential Settings: Influences on Human Health and Function

Wells, Nancy M.; Rollings, Kimberly A.

doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199733026.013.0027

Cited by 27 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 77 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Residential settings constitute a restorative environment for many people, and they have attracted substantial attention in the scientific community (Hartig, 2012a; Wells and Rollings, 2012). There is evidence suggesting that exposure to nature in areas near the home improves children's psychological health, increases children's cognitive functioning (Wells, 2000), including their capacity to inhibit impulses (Faber Taylor et al, 2002) and ability to cope with stressful events (Wells and Evans, 2003).…”

Section: Restorative Experiences Among Children With Normal Mental Camentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Contact with Nature and Children's Restorative Experiences: An Eye to the Future

Collado

Staats

2016

Front. Psychol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article offers an overview of what has been done until now on restorative research with children and opens up new inquires for future research. Most of the work has studied children's exposure to nature and the restorative benefits this contact provides, focusing on the renewal of children's psychological resources. The paper begins with an introduction to children's current tendency toward an alienation from the natural world and sets out the objectives of the article. It is followed by four main sections. The first two sections report on what we already know in this research area, distinguishing between children with normal mental capabilities and those suffering from attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The findings gathered in these sections suggest that children's contact with nature improves their mood and their cognitive functioning, increases their social interactions and reduces ADHD symptoms. The next section describes five suggestions for future research: (1) the need for considering the relational dynamics between the child and the environment in restoration research, and the concept of constrained restoration; (2) the possibility of restorative needs arising from understimulation; (3) the importance of considering children's social context for restoration; (4) the relationship between restoration and pro-social and pro-environmental behaviors; and (5) children's restorative environments other than nature. We close by making some final remarks about the importance of restoring daily depleted resources for children's healthy functioning.

show abstract

Section: Restorative Experiences Among Children With Normal Mental Camentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The pattern emerging from the findings gathered until now suggests that children benefit from nature exposure as much as adults do (Wells and Rollings, 2012; Collado et al, 2016a). Little is known, however, about what specific elements and person-environment transactions make the environment restorative for children.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Contact with Nature and Children's Restorative Experiences: An Eye to the Future

Collado

Staats

2016

Front. Psychol.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Beyond that, a growing body of evidence demonstrates the importance of the natural environment to more abstract indicators of human functioning. Stress, creativity, interpersonal relationships, and cognitive abilities exhibit both short‐term and long‐term effects of exposure to “green” environments such as trees, grass, and water (Staats 2012; Wells and Rollings 2012). Environmental degradation will not only prevent people from benefiting from the natural environment, it will also increase social inequities in the distribution of environmental “goods”.…”

Section: Toward Effective Collaborationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological science, conservation, and environmental sustainability

Clayton

Litchfield

Geller

2013

Frontiers in Ecol & Environ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Generally speaking, the capacity to direct attention is crucial for children’s everyday activities (Kuo, 2001; Kuo and Sullivan, 2001). Home, for example, is identified as a restorative environment (Hartig, 2012; Wells and Rollings, 2012), and some studies report a positive effect of nature on children’s cognitive functioning (considering children of different ages, up to 18 years). Living in a place with more natural elements can foster children’s improved attentional capacity (Trancik and Evans, 1995; Faber-Taylor and Kuo, 2006), as well as increase their capability to inhibit impulses (Faber-Taylor et al, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Green Breaks: The Restorative Effect of the School Environment’s Green Areas on Children’s Cognitive Performance

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Restoration involves individuals’ physical, psychological, and social resources, which have diminished over the years in the process of meeting the demands of everyday life. Psychological restoration can be provided by specific environments, in particular by natural environments. Studies report a restorative effect of nature on human beings, specifically in terms of the psychological recovery from attention fatigue and restored mental resources that were previously spent in activities that require attention. Two field studies in two Italian primary schools tested the hypothesized positive effect of recess time spent in a natural (vs. built) environment on pupils’ cognitive performance and their perceived restorativeness, using standardized tests. In Study 1, children’s psychological restoration was assessed by measuring sustained and selective attention, working memory, and impulse control, before and after the morning recess time. Team standardized playtime was conducted in a natural (vs. built) environment, and the perceived restorativeness was measured after each recess time. Results showed a greater increase in sustained and selective attention, concentration, and perceived restorativeness from pretest to posttest after the natural environment condition. In Study 2, the positive effect of free play recess time in a natural (vs. built) environment was assessed during the afternoon school time on sustained and selective attention and perceived restorativeness. Results showed an increase in sustained and selective attention after the natural environment condition (vs. built) and a decrease after the built environment break. Higher scores in perceived restorativeness were registered after the natural (vs. built) environment condition. Team standardized playtime and individual free play recess in a natural environment (vs. built) support pupils’ attention restoration during both morning and afternoon school times, as well as their perceived restorativeness of the recess environment. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in terms of nature’s role both for the school ground design or redesign and for the organization of the school’s activities.

show abstract

The Natural Environment in Residential Settings: Influences on Human Health and Function

Cited by 27 publications

References 77 publications

Contact with Nature and Children's Restorative Experiences: An Eye to the Future

Contact with Nature and Children's Restorative Experiences: An Eye to the Future

Psychological science, conservation, and environmental sustainability

Green Breaks: The Restorative Effect of the School Environment’s Green Areas on Children’s Cognitive Performance

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About