Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/21490
Title: Into the Woods or a Stroll in the Park: How Virtual Contact with Nature Impacts Positive and Negative Affect
Contributor(s): McAllister, Elizabeth (author); Bhullar, Navjot  (author)orcid ; Schutte, Nicola  (author)orcid 
Publication Date: 2017
Open Access: Yes
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph14070786Open Access Link
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/21490
Abstract: This study examined the effects of virtual contact with nature on positive and negative affect, and investigated the psychological process of perceived restorativeness as a mediator of this relationship. A sample of 220 Australians aged between 18 and 75 years (M = 49.07, SD = 14.34, female = 72%) participated in the study. Participants were randomly allocated to one of the three experimental conditions experienced through video presentations: (1) 'wild' nature, (2) 'urban' nature, and (3) non-nature control. They then completed measures of perceived restorativeness as well as positive and negative affect. Compared to the non-nature control condition, the experience of wild nature resulted in significantly higher levels of positive affect and lower levels of negative affect. The experience of urban nature resulted in significantly lower levels of negative affect only compared to the non-nature control video. Experience of wild and urban nature resulted in greater perceptions of restorativeness as compared to the non-nature control video. Restorativeness was a significant underlying psychological mediating path through which nature experience exerted its influence on affect. These results have the potential to inform nature-based green care interventions for mental health as well as for urban planning to maximize beneficial effects of natural environments.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(7), p. 1-11
Publisher: MDPI AG
Place of Publication: Switzerland
ISSN: 1660-4601
1661-7827
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 170113 Social and Community Psychology
170106 Health, Clinical and Counselling Psychology
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 520302 Clinical psychology
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 970117 Expanding Knowledge in Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 280121 Expanding knowledge in psychology
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Psychology

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